It wasn't the prettiest game — and at times it looked like it was going be the trap game many had feared — but the Flyers were able to overcome some sloppy play early and extend their current win streak to nine games with a 3-1 victory over the Sabres at the Wells Fargo Center. It's just the seventh time in team history they've had a win-streak of at least nine games, and the first since the 2016-17 season.
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More important than the streak, the Flyers were able to keep pace with the Washington Capitals for the Metropolitan Division lead thanks to a big night from the Flyers' captain and another strong home performance by their young goaltender.
Let's take a look at the three biggest reasons the Flyers were able to beat Buffalo...
Captain Clutch
Glaude Giroux was all smiles before the game, stopping by the glass during warmups to say hello to his family. And, boy, did he put on a show for them.
The Flyers captain scored the first two goals for his team against Buffalo as the top line continues to deliver night in and night out ever since Alain Vigneault made the decision to put Giroux and Sean Couturier on the same line. In the time since, the Flyers' top trio has been lighting it up, and that continued against the Sabres.
Giroux's first tally of the night came in the opening period and got the scoring started for the Flyers, who overcame a slow start — they were outshot 13-4 in the first period and 39-24 in the game — to take a 1-0 lead midway through the second.
Let's take a second look at that nifty play Giroux made with his skate.
The Sabres would tie it up just under seven minutes later when Dominik Kahun beat Carter Hart for Buffalo's lone goal of the night, but it was hardly Hart's fault (more on him in a minute).
After the second period, Giroux had a message for those worrying that the team's win streak was in danger of coming to an end against the lowly Sabres.
And the captain backed up his talk by giving the Flyers the lead for good nine and a half minutes into the third.
As you've probably noticed, Jake Voracek was credited with an assist on both Giroux goals, putting him at 10 points during his current five-game point streak. For Giroux, it was his 20th and 21st goals of the season.
Joel Farabee would add an insurance goal with just over five minutes to play.
Travis Sanheim also had a pair of assists in the game.
Home is where the Hart is
If Giroux is the first star of the game, then Carter Hart should be 1A. The Flyers young goalie was sensational against the Sabres, stopping 38 of 39 shots by Buffalo, including a couple of gems.
Here he is stopping Sam Reinhart on a breakaway in the first period.
Shortly after that, he stopped the Sabres on a 2-on-1 and even though he gave up a rebound just in front of the crease, he was able to stop a second shot and get the puck out of the danger area.
He also made a few stops on shots through traffic, including this glove save in the third period to keep the game tied at 1-1.
The most important work Hart did on Friday night, however, came on the penalty kill. The Flyers kept the Sabres scoreless on four chances in this one, and Hart was a big reason why.
With the win, Hart moved to 20-2-2 on his home ice this season and 9-1 overall since the All-Star break. He also made a little history in the win.
Alain Vigneault
We rarely include the coach in our recaps, but the man is pushing all the right buttons. We've already mentioned how he shuffled the top line just over a month ago — and his team is 12-2 since. He also has his team playing their best hockey in the third periods, which once again proved to be the difference on Friday night, with the Flyers outscoring Buffalo 2-0 in the period.
He seems to know which goalie to play each night. And his players are doing all the little things, even on nights when they don't have their best stuff, like on Friday, and it's directly leading to wins.
Most importantly, his team has just won nine straight. And for that, he deserves a shoutout. And a martini.
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