Flyers 2, Coyotes 1
Rookie Matt Read scored to snap a tie with 19 seconds remaining in the third period and Ilya Bryzgalov got the better of his former team by turning aside 30 shots as the Philadelphia Flyers skated to a 2-1 home triumph over the Phoenix Coyotes on Thursday.
James van Riemsdyk tallied midway through the second period and Claude Giroux notched his team-leading 12th assist for Philadelphia, which improved to 6-0-2 in its last eight games.
All was not rosy for the Flyers, who saw veteran Jaromir Jagr exit the game in the first period with a lower body injury. He did not return.
With the game tied at 1-1, Jakub Voracek's sharp-angle shot was denied by Mike Smith. Max Talbot pounced on the rebound and alertly fed Read, who slammed it home to send the Wells Fargo Center into a frenzy. The tally was Read's third in as many games.
Signed to a nine-year, $51 million deal in the offseason, Bryzgalov improved to 5-0-1 in his last six contests since dropping his previous five straight games. The Russian spent four seasons with the Coyotes.
After a scoreless first period, the Flyers kept the pressure on in the second before van Riemsdyk cracked the scoreboard with a snapshot.
Mikkel Boedker leveled the contest by cleaning up a rebound and Smith finished with 40 saves for Phoenix, which fell to 7-2-2 in its last 11 contests and 5-2-1 on the road.