Flyers 4, Oilers 2
PHILADELPHIA -- Center Claude Giroux snapped a 21-game drought with his first goal of the season, goalie Steve Mason made 22 saves and the Philadelphia Flyers beat the Edmonton Oilers, 4-2, on Saturday in a matchup of two of the NHL's worst teams.
Center Vincent Lecavalier and left wingers Jay Rosehill and Scott Hartnell also scored for Philadelphia (5-10-1).
Giroux, the Flyers' captain, hadn't scored since April 15. His frustration was obvious in the second period, when he snapped his stick in half after missing on a couple opportunities.
However, Giroux was all smiles after firing a wrist shot past Oilers' goalie Devan Dubnyk to give the Flyers a two-goal cushion in the third period.
Left wingers Taylor Hall and David Perron had goals for Edmonton (4-12-2).
The Oilers started the season going 1-6-1, beat Ottawa and Montreal on the road for their only winning streak of the season and are 1-6-1 since.
Hall's goal got the Oilers to within one with 6:35 left. But Lecavalier answered with a hard-angle shot for his team-high sixth goal of the season.
The Flyers entered the game last in scoring with an average of 1.47 goals per game, while the Oilers were last in defense, allowing an average of 3.82 goals per game.
Something had to give, and it was the Oilers. Philadelphia reached three goals for only the second time this season.
Rosehill redirected a perfect centering pass from defenseman Mark Streit to give the Flyers a 1-0 lead almost 12 minutes into the first period.
It was Rosehill's first goal in 18 games dating to last season and only his fourth in 92 career games.
Known more for his aggressive play than his scoring, Rosehill took on left wing Luke Gadzic in the second period. Gadzic left the game because of a shoulder injury after the fight and didn't return.
Hartnell took a crossing pass from Streit and fired a hard wrist shot that beat Dubnyk to the far side to give the Flyers a 2-0 lead with 2:44 left in the first period.
The Oilers cut it to 2-1 late in the second period on Perron's power-play goal. Right wing Ales Hemsky set it up with a pass from behind the net to Perron, who deflected it off the post and behind Mason.
Oilers defenseman Anton Belov got a match penalty near the midpoint of the third period for making contact with Giroux's head on a hard check that knocked him to the ice.
The Flyers couldn't take advantage on the ensuing five minutes of power-play time. However, Giroux scored during a 4-on-4 when right wing Wayne Simmonds got a crosschecking penalty halfway through Belov's penalty time.
NOTES: The Oilers were active on Friday, acquiring center Roman Horak and goalie prospect Laurent Brossoit from Calgary for defenseman Ladislav Smid and goalie prospect Olivier Roy. Edmonton then agreed to a deal with former Flyers goalie Ilya Bryzgalov. .... The Oilers played in Philadelphia for only the fifth time in 10 years and first time since a 4-1 victory on March 8, 2011. ... The Flyers scored only 22 goals in the first 15 games, tying Buffalo for the modern-era low after 15 games. The Sabres also did it this season. ... Scott Hartnell has scored goals in two of the last three games after not getting any in his first nine. ... Jay Rosehill's goal snapped Philadelphia's 175-minute scoreless drought at home. ... For the 15th time in 16 games, the Flyers entered the third period either up one goal or down one.
