Thursday night was a tough loss for the Flyers.
In most cases scoring eight goals is enough to win a hockey game, but on that night it was not. The Winnipeg Jets left Philadelphia with a 9-8 win.
It was clear during an after the game that offense was not the Flyer's problem, it was their defense and their goaltending.
Sergei Bobrovsky got the start Thursday night, but he only lasted about five minutes in to the second period when the Jets jumped out to a 5-1 lead.
Bobrovsky had an off night, you can't deny it, but the defense didn't help. The Flyer's D let the Jets get plenty of chances in front of the net, and they made the Flyers pay.
Bryzgalov, who was 0-3-1 in his last four starts before Thursday night, was struggling already.
Winnipeg managed to net four more goals on Bryzgalov, which was the fault of the defense and Bryzgalov himself, much like Bobrovsky.
He took the blame for the loss and said he was playing horribly. Honesty is appreciated in Philadelphia, but the Flyers signed Bryzgalov to a nine year, $51 million deal hoping he would solve the Flyer's goaltending problems.
Bryzgalov took things a step further when he said that he lost confidence in himself at the moment, then apologized to the team and the fans. Again, honesty is appreciated, but this is something no fan wants to hear.
Head coach Peter Laviolette is giving Bryzgalov the start tonight, even after the meltdown on Thursday night. He will be going up against the Carolina Hurricanes, who have an offensive threat in the young Jeff Skinner (four goals).
Bryzgalov was signed with the expectations that he would finally stop Philadelphia's goaltending problems, something that has ailed them since the post Hextall-era.
There is a lot of hockey left to play, but you want to see Bryzgalov get it together and regain his confidence back. Good goaltending is key to the Flyer's success.
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