The Montreal Canadiens rode a second consecutive strong performance by goaltender David Aebischer to a victory Wednesday night at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia.
The Canadiens completed their season-opening, three-game road trip with a 3-1 win over the Flyers.
Coach Guy Carbonneau told the media Tuesday that he was going to start Aebischer against Philadelphia, saying the Swiss netminder deserved to play after his solid win over the weekend against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The 28-year-old netminder didn't disappoint his new coach, making 27 saves including 13 in the final period.
"We've played really well all three games," Aebischer said. "There's always a period of adjustment in a couple of areas, but I thought we've worked really hard and that's the key.
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The Canadiens got the game-winning goal from winger Alex Kovalev at 6:18 of the second period.
With heavy pressure in the Flyers' zone, Kovalev grabbed the loose puck inside the faceoff circle and snapped a high shot over the left shoulder of goaltender Antero Niittymaki for a 2-0 Montreal edge.
The Flyers reduced the Canadiens' lead to 2-1 just 1:51 into the third period after the Canadiens failed to clear the puck out of their end.
Centre R. J. Umberger was able to slip behind the Montreal defence and beat Aebischer with his second attempt.
The Canadiens then relied on Aebischer to bail them out of several close calls as the Swiss goaltender continued to frustrate the Flyers with some spectacular saves.
The Flyers had a golden opportunity to send the game into overtime as Montreal defenceman Mathieu Dandenault was called for hooking with less than two minutes remaining.
Philadelphia pulled Niittymaki in favour of a 6-on-4 advantage, but Chris Higgins stripped Peter Forsberg at centre, turned around and blindly fired the puck into the empty net with 19 seconds left, giving Montreal the 3-1 win.
"We did a lot better job to take care of our end in the third period, and we played a lot better defensively," Kovalev said.
The Canadiens started off fast and opened the scoring just 38 seconds into the first period. Forward Michael Ryder took a perfect pass from captain Saku Koivu and beat Niittymaki with a quick shot from the side of the net.
"It's not fun to get scored on in the first minute," Niittymaki said.
Both teams struggled with the extra man Wednesday night as the Flyers went 0-8 on the power play, while the Canadiens failed to score on four attempts.
Despite the loss, Niittymaki was stellar in net for the Flyers, allowing only two goals on 22 shots.
The Finnish native continually kept the Flyers in the game during the final period, making seven saves.
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Keywords: Minnesota Wild, David Aebischer, Wachovia Center, Montreal Canadiens
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