Atleast we still have one good team in Philly...

On the eve of one of the most important/disappointing games in Phillies postseason history, another team was just beginning their season. The *new* Philadelphia Flyers started their run at the Cup on Thursday night with a 2-1 win over the Boston Bruins. The best part about the game was how they spoiled the Bruins championship ceremony night and hopefully sent the fans home crying. The fans maybe even went home a little scared last night with the likes of Ilya Bryzgalov, Jaromire Jagr, and Claude Giroux probably haunting their dreams for the rest of the season. With that being said, let’s take a look at some of the big things to take away from a solid 2-1 victory in Beantown last night.

1.     Jagr and Giroux are monsters.

"And we're the three best friends that anyone could have..."

We already knew that Giroux was a game changer, and that Jagr USED TO BE a superstar, but how would they perform together on one line? Giroux is now expected to be the star and leader of this team’s offensive punch all year, which is a lot to put on him since the trading away of Mike Richards and Jeff Carter. Jagr is almost 40 years of age, coming off a couple seasons in the KHL so no one really knew what to expect of him. We’ll tell you one person who knew what to expect: Paul Holmgren. Jagr and Giroux were put on display last night in a nationally televised game and they didn’t disappoint. The two connected for the first goal of the game on the powerplay where Jagr fed Giroux up the middle, made a ridiculous move around 2 defenders and then finished with a “What the hell just happened” goal around Tim Thomas. It was only one play, but with a lesser goalie on the ice, the “Dynamic Duo” could have put two or three more goals together. Once JVR gets going, this line is going to be a lethal machine that will be getting almost all of the ice time in big situations.

2.     Ilya Bryzgalov

"Yeah, I agree, I am the bees' knees."

We didn’t need to say anything else. Just the name of the man says enough about how he played last night. He looked as if he was the No. 1 goalie that Holmgren promised when he brought in. While the Flyers were busy making dumb penalty after dumb penalty to try and give the game away in the third, Bryz was a rock in the net. Shot after shot, you could see what makes this guy so successful. He comes out of the net and is always square to the shooter. His glove hand is quick and was there to catch a point blank chance by Brad Marchand in the second period after he got through the defense. All in all, he ended the night stopping 22 of 23 shots. This was a great opening night for a man who is slated to be the answer to the Flyers woes. We think he is going to be the best goalie we’ve had in town since the exit of the man, myth, and legend Ron Hextall.

P.S. This guy is a character if you haven't seen an interview with him we recommend clicking here.

3.     Sean Couturier is going to be GOOD

"Yeah, my mom says I have a great smile too. She is always pinching my cheeks in front of the other kids on the school bus though... Embarrassing."

Sean is someone that even we can say is a youngster or “wet behind the ears” and that is saying something. A kid of only 18 years old, there is a lot of hype and pressure on a man of his age to produce for a team and city that is ready to win. Well, after game one, it looks like he is ready to deliver the goods. He had 14:04 of ice time and every time he was on the ice, it looked like he was making plays. He created numerous turnovers in the neutral zone, and looked aggressive and hungry on the forecheck. He only accrued two shots, but looked like he had a nose for the goal and you can expect that to continue going forward. His biggest contributions, however, came while killing off the powerplay. Couturier had the confidence of his head coach to go out there and produce late in the third period and almost all of the game killing off the powerplay. And of course this unit was successful killing off 4 of 5 attempts throughout the game. If he is this good this early in his career, imagine in the next two or three years learning and growing with the likes of JVR and Giroux and maybe even picking up a thing or two from the Wiley Ole’ Veteran Jagr. This kid could be dangerous.

4.     Defense will carry the team.

"C'mon guys its time, FLYING V!"

Even with some of the exciting offensive additions the Flyers made in the offseason, this Flyers team is definitely made to win defensively. The Flyers have the best defensive line pairings in the NHL all the way from 1-6. Pronger, although he is getting older, is still as good as they come in the NHL. Then there are some of the younger guys out there like Meszaros, Coburn, and Carle who are going to be key defensive pieces on this team for a long time to come. Finally, let’s not forget Kimmo Timonen. The often forgotten Finnish superstar showed last night that he is once again, a force to be reckoned with. He may have single handedly saved the win for the Flyers when stopping a gimme for Nathan Horton in front of an open net. With all of the talent in front of Bryz, the defense should put up a lot of 0’s as the season goes on. This is something that most Flyers fans weren’t alive for the last time it was happening. Paul Holmgren may have changed the philosophy, but the one thing that won’t change is the winning of the Flyers going forward.