Photo Courtesy of Kate Frese
PHILADELPHIA – It's always a terrific feeling to score a game-winning goal in a tense, high-stakes divisional game. It's even better to do so against a team that had cast you away just a year ago.
Michael Del Zotto got to experience that feeling Tuesday by scoring his fourth game-winner of the season against his former Rangers team just 1:19 into the third period, helping the Orange and Black avoid a series sweep at the hands of the Rangers.
"It felt pretty nice — I'd be lying if I said it didn't," Del Zotto told reporters following Saturday's spirited 4-2 win (see recap). "Any way to contribute for the team to win.
"You're excited for any team, maybe a little more for these guys. This time of the year, you're excited for every game — it's the best time of the year, we're competing for a playoff spot. You saw how excited we were after we won that game today."
Subsequently, Del Zotto has seven points in his last eight games. His 24:45 of ice time led the Orange and Black, and his game wasn't just one-dimensional, as he blocked four Ranger shots. He also finished with a plus-2 rating, to boot.
"He's doing a good all-around job," coach Craig Berube said. "That's the biggest thing for me — he's defending well, and he's jumping in the play when he can."
Making his return to the Flyers crease since going down with a knee injury on Feb. 8, Steve Mason made 34 saves on 36 shots — including an impressive sequence of seven consecutive saves in the third period. Mason's knee held up, and he appeared to still be in his usual form.
"That was a good test for my knee there," Mason said. "That was a good test to kind of let it go."
The game didn't get off to an ideal start for Mason though, as he allowed a fluke goal from the neutral zone on a Derek Stepan dump just seven seconds in. The call was overturned, however, as Chris Kreider was offside. Claude Giroux was able to help Mason laugh it off and ease the tension during the review, simmering a fluke situation.
"[Giroux] made it easy, but obviously with the call being reversed, that made it real easy," Mason said. "After that, you just kind of try to make the next save and go on from there.
"At the end of the day, I didn't want to waste a save on an offside," Mason quipped.
The win also reminded Berube of last year's seven-game playoff battle, that saw the Winged P beat the Rangers in three games with spirited, intense play — play that's usually typical of any Flyers-Rangers contest. With a playoff spot just six points away, the Flyers will need to continue with that intensity going forward.
"In the playoffs last year, two of the games we beat them, we played like that," Berube said. "[We played] with that fire, and that determination that's needed. Tonight, I thought we brought that for sure.
"It's up to the individual and the leaders to make sure we have that emotion in the game..and to initiate everything."
