Flyers win after falling behind

NEW YORK - Earlier this week, Flyers coach John Stevens told Scott Hartnell that he needed to raise his game to help the club overcome some tough injuries.

Hartnell responded with three points Tuesday against the Atlanta Thrashers, and last night at Madison Square Garden, he scored a natural hat trick as the Flyers roared back to defeat the New York Rangers, 6-2.

It was Hartnell's second career hat trick and the first natural hat trick for the Flyers since John LeClair did it on Oct. 16, 1998, at Tampa Bay.

"Hockey is a weird thing, and confidence is a weird thing," Hartnell said. "When you get a point or goal, they seem to come in bunches. Tonight was a little different. I was around the net, banging pucks in."

With little fanfare and despite the absence of five starters for one stretch, the Flyers have quietly climbed back into the Atlantic Division race with six wins in their last seven games. They hit the midpoint of the season with 48 points. A year ago after 41 games, the Flyers had 26 points and were last in the Eastern Conference.

"I love the fact we're getting contributions from a lot of different areas," said Stevens, who added that Hartnell "has been terrific. Guys go down and we've asked a lot more of him. . . . He's a gritty guy. I thought that whole line [with Mike Richards and Steve Downie] was terrific.

"I like our team right now. . . . You could find great things in our team game on every single line. That's a sign it is starting to sink in."

Three second-period goals swung the game's momentum after the Rangers posted an early 2-0 lead. Hartnell's power-play goal to start the third period gave the Flyers a 4-2 pad. His final goal came off a fine breakaway pass from Downie, who played another strong, incident-free game.

"We're winning, that's the main thing," Hartnell said. "We're getting guys back from injury. . . . It's a good feeling in this dressing room."

Simon Gagne returned after missing 26 straight games while recovering from a concussion. He celebrated by scoring a third-period goal. Gagne played mostly on Danny Briere's line with R.J. Umberger.

"It makes it easier when you come back and get that first goal in your first game," Gagne said. "Sometimes when you look to get that first one, it takes time and your legs get heavier and your stick gets heavier. I'm pretty happy I got this one."

Gagne avoided contact in the opening period. Rangers ruffian Ryan Hollweg took a run at him on the side boards early in the game. Gagne turned away from the check or he would have been nailed.

"The first shift, I felt tired right away and had a hard time finding my legs," Gagne said. "On their first goal, I looked pretty slow. I felt pretty good in the second and third."

Hollweg's two goals in the first eight minutes put the Flyers down, 2-0. The second goal went in off Antero Niittymaki's face mask.

"It hit [Jason Smith's] nose and my head and went in," said Niittymaki, who made his third straight start and posted 39 saves.

The Flyers generated little offense on goalie Henrik Lundqvist in the first period but had two five-on-three power plays, with the second one extending into the middle period.

Richards began the period by drilling a shot from the left circle that Mike Knuble tipped off Lundqvist's legs for his 12th goal at 40 seconds.

Since clearing waivers and remaining on the roster, Jim Dowd has three points in three games. He outraced Michael Rozsival, avoiding an icing call, then centered the puck into the slot for Stefan Ruzicka, who measured Lundqvist, tying the score at 2.

"Just be ready. That's my whole career: Be ready to play," Dowd said of his second chance on the roster. "I don't want to go anywhere. I want to be on this team."

With the momentum clearly going the Flyers' way, Downie dug a puck off the back boards on the forecheck and fed Hartnell at the goal line. Hartnell shot from an impossible angle off the inside of Lundqvist's left skate, making it 3-2.

"It slipped out of our hands, and we never got back [in it]," Lundqvist moaned.