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PITTSBURGH (AP) -- The Philadelphia Flyers don't have the skaters
or the speed of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Never have, never will.
And, most of the time, it doesn't matter.
John LeClair and Keith Primeau each scored a goal and set up
another and the Flyers proved they can outmuscle the Penguins on
the road as well as at home even with Jaromir Jagr playing, winning
3-2 Saturday.
|  | | Pittsburgh's Jaromir Jagr, right, battles Chris Therien at the end of the second period. |
Primeau and Chris Therien scored 4-on-4 in a physical first
period and LeClair gave the Flyers a two-goal lead by scoring his
39th of the season in a penalty-filled second period.
The Flyers, 4-0-1 against the Penguins this season, closed
within two points of idle New Jersey for the Atlantic Division
lead. The Penguins, who had won five of six, failed to further
separate themselves from Carolina and Montreal in the race for the
final two spots in the Eastern Conference playoffs.
"This was important. We're still battling for first in the East
and we beat a real good team that's playing on top of their game,"
LeClair said after the Flyers won in Pittsburgh for only the third
time in 22 games since the 1991-92 season. "It was like a playoff
game for them because they need the points."
Jagr agreed. The NHL scoring leader played after missing two
games with a bruised back caused by a blow delivered by the Flyers'
Dan McGillis during Philadelphia's 3-1 victory Sunday. But Jagr
didn't score and clearly wasn't sharp, often coming off the ice
visibly fatigued.
"We've got four games left, and every game is very important,"
Jagr said. "Every game now is like a seventh game in the
playoffs."
That's why Jagr is playing even while not completely healthy. He
was out for a month with a thigh injury that required surgery and a
strained hamstring, and still hasn't regained his game legs.
"I didn't skate for almost a month, then I played two games and
then I didn't play for a week," Jagr said. "Even if I feel OK,
the power's not there in the legs."
Jagr, trying to win his fourth scoring title, was credited with
three shots in 20 minutes, including a shot off the crossbar
during a power play with 2:30 left.
Earlier in the period, Jagr got open on the right side. Instead
of trying to outskate his defender, he pulled up and tried to
shoot, only to lose the puck. "Maybe my speed was a problem," Jagr said. "Maybe, if I'm
healthy, he doesn't catch me."
Just as they did Sunday, the Flyers relied on their size and
physical style to limit the Penguins' scoring chances and control
the tempo. Especially with Jagr hurting, the Penguins couldn't
force the Flyers into an up-and-down game that would favor their
playmakers.
"They want to clutch and grab, slow it down and we want to play
up tempo," Penguins defenseman Bob Boughner said. "We want to
control the game and use our speed. We got caught up in their
game."
The Penguins seized a 1-0 lead with 31 seconds gone as Martin
Straka scored on a breakaway for the first of his two goals.
Straka, who has 20 goals, also scored at 12:37 of the second,
beating Flyers goalie Brian Boucher at a tough angle from along the
goal line to make it 3-2.
But each time Straka scored, the Flyers toughened up defensively
and relied on their muscle to force the play in a game in which 15
penalties -- mostly for roughing or holding -- were called in the
first two period.
"We've got to keep it up, somehow," said Boucher, who turned
aside 21 of 23 shots. "We played desperate, and we did a great
job."
The two 4-on-4 goals shifted the momentum.
Penguins goalie Ron Tugnutt, starting despite a 1-7-2 career
record against Philadelphia because of wins over Washington and New
Jersey earlier in the week, came out of the net to play LeClair's
shot, which bounced into the unprotected crease for a Primeau
tap-in at 12:21.
Later in the period, Therien scored his fourth of the season on
another 4-on-4 at 18:27. LeClair scored what proved the deciding goal 51 seconds into the
second period, wheeling around the net and throwing a backhander by
Tugnutt.
"That's his play, that's his shot, from behind the net,"
Boughner said.
By losing, the Penguins (34-36-8) missed a chance to reach .500
for the first time in three months. Of their final four games, only
one is in Pittsburgh, Monday against Carolina.
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ALSO SEE
NHL Scoreboard
Philadelphia Clubhouse
Pittsburgh Clubhouse
RECAPS
Philadelphia 3
Pittsburgh 2
Detroit 0
St. Louis 0
NY Rangers 2
Boston 2
Chicago 2
NY Islanders 2
Los Angeles 2
Anaheim 1
Buffalo 2
Montreal 0
Toronto 4
Washington 3
Tampa Bay 3
Florida 3
Calgary 3
San Jose 0
Edmonton 4
Phoenix 3
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Chris Therien scores off the setup from Eric Desjardins.
avi: 598 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Martin Straka starts the game off with a goal in the first minute.
avi: 985 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Keith Primeau beats his man to the puck.
avi: 981 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
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