Flyers Win Opener by Stifling Leafs, 3-0

John Vanbiesbrouck stopped 25 shots, including a penalty shot by Mats Sundin, as the Philadelphia Flyers defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs, 3-0, Thursday night.

Valeri Zelepukin, John LeClair and Eric Desjardins scored and the Flyers’ checking frustrated the highest-scoring team in the NHL as they got the jump in the opener of their first-round Eastern Conference playoff series.

The Maple Leafs led the NHL with 268 goals but were continually thwarted by the Flyers, who were making their first playoff appearance in three years.

The turning point came early. Toronto had a two-man advantage for two minutes when Chris Therien and Keith Jones were sent off for cross-checking in the 11th minute. The Maple Leafs could not score, and the Flyers grabbed a 1-0 lead after returning to full strength.

Toronto goalie Curtis Joseph tried to clear the puck up the side boards, but it didn’t make it to the blue line. Daymond Langkow pounced on the turnover and spotted Zelepukin hovering behind the defense near the crease. Zelepukin took the pass, pulled the puck to his backhand, and lifted it past Joseph at 15:32.

The Maple Leafs had planned to beat the Flyers with superior speed, but bad passes ruined their offensive flow. At the end of the first period, Toronto had committed eight turnovers to only two by Philadelphia. And the Flyers were winning the battles along the boards.