Flyers fall to Thrashers in shootout

ATLANTA - Flyers defenseman Kimmo Timonen, a 12-year NHL veteran, said he has never seen a team excel when it limps into the playoffs.

But right now, with 12 regular-season games left, the Flyers are limping. Badly.

Atlanta, which began Thursday night in 12th place, beat the Flyers in a shootout, 4-3, before 16,502 fans at the Philips Arena.

It was the Flyers' second loss to the lowly Thrashers in their last three games. In both of those contests, the Flyers managed just 12 shots in the first two periods.

"We played catch-up hockey all night, and that's tough to do," said Flyers center Danny Briere, who scored two goals - including the equalizer with 1 minute, 28 seconds left in regulation - and added an assist. "There's not much difference in this league between a playoff team and a non-playoff team. There's parity every night. We were playing a desperate team, and they deserve what they got tonight."

The Flyers didn't show much energy until a relentless third period. Atlanta was the hungrier team in the first 40 minutes.

"We were missing a little something. No zip," said Briere, who now has 31 goals. "Just that little extra jump, we didn't have it tonight."

"There's no excuse for it," coach Peter Laviolette said of his team's lackluster first two periods. "We need to be playing [hard] for 60 minutes."

The Flyers have only five wins in their last 13 games. They are two points ahead of second-place Washington in the East, with the Flyers having two games in hand.

The Flyers managed to salvage a point, thanks to Briere's late heroics.

With 6-foot-3, 210-pound defenseman Ron Hainsey draped on his back, the diminutive forward knocked the puck off the pads of goalie Ondrej Pavelec and scored his second goal of the night, tying the score at 3 late in regulation.

Atlanta won the shootout as Rob Schremp and Blake Wheeler scored, while Mike Richards and Briere failed to connect for the Flyers.

Wheeler scored after he lost control of the puck, making Boucher think the play was going to be blown dead. He quickly regained control and beat Boucher inside the right post.

Boucher said he "bit" when he thought Wheeler was shooting, but he had actually lost control of the puck. "It certainly didn't feel like a good play" by Wheeler, Boucher said.

"What a great move," he added, sarcasm dripping.

Richards had a chance with 4:19 left in regulation, but a sprawling Pavelec stopped his tap-in attempt after a slick, tic-tac-toe passing play.

"We started playing physical and really had a forecheck going," Richards said of the third period, when the Flyers had 11 shots (one fewer than the first two periods combined). "We have to start playing better and more consistent."

After Briere tied it, the Flyers controlled the overtime. But Wheeler nearly won it as he raced down the left side on a two-on-one. Boucher deflected his shot just wide with 1:27 left in overtime.

The Flyers, who failed to avenge Saturday's come-from-ahead, 5-4 overtime loss to Atlanta, had been 30-7-4 against the Thrashers since Atlanta joined the league in 1999.

Atlanta has just three regulation wins in its last 36 games.

With the playoffs nearing, Sean O'Donnell said the Flyers needed to start playing with more urgency - for 60 minutes or longer.

Richards agreed, saying he can feel the intensity of recent opponents like Atlanta, Toronto, and Buffalo - three teams fighting for playoff spots.

"It is a concern, and at some point, it's got to be us that plays that desperate and gets that mind-set going," he said.