Richards, Carter lead Flyers past Islanders

UNIONDALE, N.Y. - To stop a three-game slide, Flyers coach John Stevens paired his two leaders on the same line. If the Flyers were going to shake this "funk," Stevens said, Mike Richards and Jeff Carter were the two who needed to step up for his team.

And that's exactly what happened in last night's 2-1 victory over the New York Islanders.

"It was Mike Richards who got us going," Stevens said. "I almost feel like he willed this team to win tonight. I know he was tired and we expected big minutes out of him. Both he and Jeff Carter seemed like they found energy they didn't have."

Richards scored a power-play goal with 34 seconds left in the second period to tie the game, and Carter set up the winning goal by Scott Hartnell in the final period with a beautiful backhanded pass.

The win prevented the Flyers (13-8-1) from sliding into fourth place in the Atlantic Division; they ended their five-game trip with a 2-3 record. It was the team's 11th straight victory over the Islanders.

New York had dominated the majority of the play over the first two periods until Richards' goal.

"Him and Jeff are obviously our best guys up front," defenseman Chris Pronger said of Richards and Carter. "We need those guys going every night. Tonight, they took charge of the game."

It also helped that backup goalie Brian Boucher, making just his third start of the season, turned in another stellar outing. He stopped 28 shots for his second win on the trip. And his defense, which allowed too many chances for New York with sloppy giveaways, helped correct some of the mistakes with 23 blocked shots.

In the third period, the Flyers allowed just one shot on net.

"We fought back and found our legs in the second and third period," Richards said.

Richards' goal gave the Flyers a chance in a game in which they struggled.

Dan Carcillo drew a roughing penalty on Brendan Witt late in the second period, and the Flyers went on their first power play of the game. Claude Giroux held the puck in the high slot before feeding Richards for a one-timer that beat former Flyers goalie Marty Biron.

It was Richards' 10th goal of the season but just his second in 10 games. The goal evened the score at 1 after two periods, even though the Islanders had the better of it by far.

In the third, the Flyers spent more time in New York's zone. The defense limited the looks on Boucher, and finally the possession paid off when Carter found Hartnell to take the lead for good with 5 minutes, 27 seconds left.

Richards was headed for the net on the play - attracting the focus of the defense - while Hartnell slipped in and took the perfect pass from Carter.

"Jeff and I think we have some chemistry," Richards said. "We're both gritty players."

With Danny Briere serving the first game of a two-game suspension, both played a remarkable amount of time in the road trip's finale. Richards logged 24:25 on the ice, Carter 23:18. Only Pronger played more.

Stevens said the Richards-Carter pair played well in the first period, even while the Flyers played on their heels.

Boucher faced 17 shots in the period and stopped 16 of them. The Islanders had the only two power plays of the period, as Trent Hunter converted on the first.

"It's certainly two big points," Stevens said. "It looked like we were down and out in the first period."

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