Flyers rough up Rangers

NEW YORK - Rookie forward Claude Giroux is emerging as the type of player the Flyers envisioned when they made him their first-round selection in the 2006 draft.

Using his speed, elusiveness, and playmaking ability, Giroux seemed to be in the middle of scoring opportunities whenever he was on the ice today, and his first-period goal and two second-period assists sparked the Flyers to an easy 5-2 win over the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden.

Giroux shared the spotlight with captain Mike Richards, who became the first player in NHL history to score three three-on-five shorthanded goals in his career. Richards scored on a breakaway after 1 minute, 18 seconds of the second period, helping trigger the rout.

Richards, of course, is a proven player. Giroux, a converted winger, is just starting to establish himself.

"We moved him to center and we like what he's done," coach John Stevens said after the second-place Flyers moved three points ahead of the Rangers in the Atlantic Division. "He's good in his own end, and he's a lot stronger on the puck than he looks. He's played extremely well and he's helped us win some games."

The 5-foot-11, 172-pound Giroux played on four lines today, but he was primarily centering Scottie Upshall and Darroll Powe on a third line that had two speeds: fast and faster.

For the second straight game, the Flyers scored three goals in lightning-quick fashion to break open a close game.

On Saturday, they scored three goals in 1:07 to increase their 2-1 third-period lead in a 5-1 win over the Islanders. Today, they scored second-period goals by Matt Carle, Glen Metropolit and Mike Knuble in 1:49 to pull away from a 2-0 lead - and ignite "Fire Renney" chants from the unhappy crowd.

"I take full responsibility for where the team is now," said Rangers coach Tom Renney, whose team is 1-5-2 in its last eight games.

Earlier, Upshall tipped the puck away from goalie Henrik Lundqvist near the goal mouth, went behind the net and fed Giroux in front. The rookie knocked his third goal past Lundqvist with 11:48 left in the opening period.

"Upshall made a great play and I had an open net," Giroux said.

Giroux, who turned 21 last month, struggled after being promoted from the AHL Phantoms on Dec. 26. In his fourth game, he suffered a concussion when elbowed by Anaheim's Corey Perry on Jan. 2 and was sidelined for nearly two weeks.

But since returning to the lineup on Jan. 15, Giroux has made steady progress. In his last five games, he has six points and has been so productive that he has been getting time on the power play.

With Giroux leading the way, the Flyers built a 5-0 lead.

"We didn't check anyone and didn't control the puck at the beginning of the game," Rangers winger Markus Naslund said. "We let a goal [by Richards] dictate the outcome of the game, even though we were still in it."

In the teams' only other meeting this season, the Rangers scored a 4-3 win. That was back on Oct. 11, the Flyers' first game.

Goalie Marty Biron was pulled after allowing four goals in the first 16:13 of that game as the Flyers fell into a 4-0 hole. Today, he turned aside 35 shots in his second straight strong performance.

"They came in our building in the first game of the season and chased me out of the net," Biron said. "That was fresh in my mind."

Today, it was Lundqvist who was chased after he and his teammates fell behind, 4-0, with 12:03 left in the second period.