VANCOUVER -- Steve Mason had a busy night Monday, but he was not complaining. Allen Webster Jersey . The Philadelphia goaltender posted 41 saves as he backstopped the Flyers to a comeback 4-3 shootout win over the Vancouver Canucks. "It was the first time in a long time that we have given up over 30 shots, so I actually enjoyed it," said Mason. "It was nice to get into a game and feel like you are doing something out there." Vincent Lecavalier scored the shootout winner as the Flyers prevailed after trailing 2-1 in the second period and 3-2 late in the third. Lecavalier scored on a deke on Philadelphias first attempt and three Vancouver shooters could not beat Mason as the Flyers (19-16-4) posted their third straight win and sixth in eight games. The Canucks (23-11-7) suffered only their third loss in the past eight games. But more significantly, Vancouver missed a chance to move into a tie for fifth place in the Western Conference after the Kings lost earlier Monday to Chicago. "I thought we played good to get a point, but it pisses me off we dont get two," said Vancouver coach John Tortorella. The Flyers have not lost in Vancouver in nearly 14 years, with their last setback coming Dec. 31, 1989, but they were in danger of suffering another loss here for most of the game. Mark Streit, Claude Giroux and Brayden Schenn also scored for the Flyers. Giroux also had an assist and further bolstered his chances of playing for Canadas Olympic team as he extended his point streak to nine games. Brayden Schenn forced overtime and the shootout as he scored in the final minute of the third period after Daniel Sedin put the Canucks ahead with less than three minutes remaining. Schenn made up for a miscue by his older brother Luke, who inadvertently put the puck into his own net after Mason got his blocker on Daniel Sedins long shot from near the blue-line. "I guess (there was) a little brotherly love there," said Mason. "Luke was just trying to get back to the net there and I was putting my rebound where I wanted to and just an unfortunate bounce, things like that happen. (Its) just unfortunate it put us in that position." Tom Sestito and Jannik Hansen had Vancouvers other goals. Hansen was less than pleased after the Canucks lost despite outshooting the Flyers 44-27. "This game had no business going into overtime," said Hansen. "We should have closed this out quite earlier. a We need to score on our chances. Its not because we dont have them. We had quality opportunities in the third and even in overtime to get it done before the shootout." Mason, who recorded 42 saves, now has matched the 16 wins he produced with Columbus in 2011-12, when a full campaign was last played. Vancouver counterpart Eddie Lack, making his second consecutive start and third appearance in place of injured No. 1 netminder Roberto Luongo, finished with 25 saves. Tortorella was pleased that his club earned three of a possible four points in back-to-back games after earning a win the night before in Calgary. But he was angry that his team failed to control a key face-off prior to Brayden Schenns tying goal. "The mistake on the face-off, thats aggravating," said Tortorella. "Thats what keeps you out of playoffs, plays like that, the details, the face-offs. I thought we played our ass off back-to-back. We created a tremendous amount of scoring chances, but you kick yourself in the teeth for the lack of detail on the face-off." Vancouver could not score on its four power plays while Philadelphia was blanked on its three. The Flyers led 1-0 after the first period and the clubs were tied 2-2 following the second. Streit opened the scoring at 15:24 of the first period, putting in a backhand shot as the puck came to him after Canucks defenceman Dan Hamhuis denied Michael Raffl on a wraparound attempt. Sestito, a fourth-liner wanted mostly for his toughness, forged a 1-1 tie at 4:24 of the second period as he put in a Hamhuis rebound. With just under five minutes left in the second, Lack took a Wayne Simmonds shot to the mask. Despite losing his headgear on the play, Lack came up smiling and showed no ill effects. Less than a minute later, Hansen put the Canucks ahead 2-1 as he completed a nifty give-and-go with Daniel Sedin and tapped the puck into an open net. But Giroux pulled the Flyers even about two minutes later as took a lead pass from Raffl, fought his way up the middle through Hamhuis and Chris Tanev, and flicked the puck behind Lack from in close. Masons late stellar stops included denying Daniel Sedin on a breakaway early in the third and Ryan Kesler twice in the final minute of overtime. "Same story as the start of the year," said Giroux. "He kept us in the games and now to kind of get a win for him, its huge." Notes: Luongo worked out with Canucks goaltending coach Roland Melanson during a morning skate that involved a few players, including injured defenceman Alex Edler (undisclosed). a Simmonds was denied a chance to become the first Flyer to score multiple goals in four consecutive games in the 46-season history of the Philadelphia franchise. Reggie Leach (1976 and 1981) and Ross Lonsberry (1976) are the only other Flyers to record two or more goals in three straight games. a Defenceman Frank Corrado played his first game for Vancouver this season after being called up from Utica of the AHL earlier in the day. He replaced Andrew Alberts, who was injured Sunday on a high hit from Brian McGrattan in Calgary. McGrattan was assessed an elbowing major and game misconduct for the infraction. Corrado played for the Canucks late in the regular season and playoffs last season after playing his final junior campaign in the OHL. a Canucks captain Henrik Sedin played in his 670th consecutive NHL game. 02:55ET 31-12-13 Craig Kimbrel Jersey . According to TSNs Farhan Lalji, Richardson is heading to Toronto for a physical and is expected to sign with the Argonauts. Leon Durham Jersey . Hes still nowhere close to throwing yet. The four-time MVP was in good spirits when he made his first public appearance on the field since having neck surgery Sept.MINSK, Belarus -- Joel Ward knows who he is and who he isnt. "Im not going to go out there and be Ovi," he said. "I know what Im doing. Its not complex." Its not complex: Ward is just Team Canadas leading scorer through three games at the world hockey championship. With three goals hes actually tied for the tournament lead and has the same amount as Russian star and Washington Capitals teammate Alex Ovechkin. Ward doesnt have Ovechkins release or his accuracy, but the 33-year-old is no slouch, either. His 2013-14 NHL season included a career-high 24 goals, which was just the ticket to get him his first-ever international experience for Canada. Brad Pascall of Hockey Canada said assistant general manager Ron Hextall watched Ward play this past season and the group deciding on this team figured hed be a nice fit after the strong season he had. It was good for Ward to get noticed but even better for him to find some more self-appreciation of his offensive game. "Ive always believed in my abilities and never told myself I couldnt," the Toronto native said Tuesday. "My first year in Nashville I had 17 and I had some power-play time there, so I knew I could be a 20-goal scorer in the National Hockey League. It was just finding that spot and the right atmosphere and environment. This year I kind of got my spirits back up, my confidence back up to do so." Ward called it a season of "rejuvenation," crediting Capitals coach Adam Oates for changing the curve and length of his stick blade and teaching him more about how to play in front of the net. The reward was 24 goals and 25 assists, and those 49 points were third on Washington behind only Ovechkin and Swedish Olympian Nicklas Backstrom. Ward was never ever close to being considered for the star-studded Sochi team, but when he got the call to represent Canada at the world championships, he was thrilled just to have the chance. "When I first got the call, I said this was like my Olympics," he said. "First time to ever put a Canada jersey on. I grew up as a kid watching international hockey my whole life. When I got the call I was pretty excited to just be part of it. Im trying to make the most of it." So far, so good. Ward scored twice against Slovakia and then once against the Czech Republic. His three goals and four points lead Canada, which is 2-0-1 going into Thursdays game against Denmark. "Hes really come along as a player, and even in this tournament, too," Capitals and Team Canada teammate Troy Brouwer said. "Hes very opportunistic." What coach Dave Tippett likes about the six-foot-one, 221-pound right-winger is that he scores the kind of goals that are necessary in international play. "He scores hard goals --- hard goals in front of the net, good quick shots," Tippett said. Colin Rea Jersey. . "Hes a hard player. Everybody thinks this is the big ice and its all flow and away from (the net). You look where our goals are being scored right now: A lot of them are right in front of the net. Hes a player that can get in there and muck around a little bit. ... Go hard to the net and be willing to get into a battle to score. Thats what he does." Wards first goal of the tournament was a perfect tip of a point shot by Jason Garrison. His two others were sharp shots that Washington linemate Jason Chimera didnt think many goaltenders in the world could stop. But its not necessarily his shot but how he gets those opportunities that makes Ward fit for the big ice surface. Hes admittedly not the swiftest guy but takes pride in creating space and not making mistakes. "I just try to play good, two-way hockey, and if I get a chance on the offensive side, try to make plays for my linemates," Ward said. "Just keeping it simple is something key for me and try not to be no hero and be something Im not. I just want to get pucks down deep and puck possession is very key. Fortunate to get a couple good bounces and playing with some good linemates." Ward is likely to continue playing on Canadas fourth line with Jonathan Huberdeau and Sean Monahan moving forward, but he could get some better scoring chances on the power play. Even though only six of his 24 goals this past season came in that role, getting that extra ice time is why he thinks hes a better scorer than he was even two years ago when he had a 40-game drought. "You get more opportunity to play, right? So the more you play, the more opportunity you get," he said. "If you can kind of get that opportunity and capitalize a bit, then you get more positive results, obviously, and you get more ice time and you get rewarded." Being at the world championships is Wards reward for such a strong season in Washington. Its also his first trip to Europe. "Im usually just a beach guy," Ward said, smiling. "I like to sit in the sand a little bit and have a pina colada, so this is kind of a new experience, new territory for me. Thank God Im here, and Im thankful for being here and getting an opportunity to do this." Along the way, hes giving Canada the opportunity to win games and move past an opening shootout loss to France. Count at least Brouwer and Chimera among those not surprised and also pumped to see Ward playing and producing like this. "It couldnt happen to a better person," Chimera said. "Hes a great human being and everyone likes him. When he has success, the team has success, too, because the team just feeds off that kind of guy." ' ' '
VANCOUVER -- Steve Mason had a busy night Monday, but he was not complaining. Allen Webster Jersey . The Philadelphia goaltender posted 41 saves as he backstopped the Flyers to a comeback 4-3 shootout win over the Vancouver Canucks. "It was the first time in a long time that we have given up over 30 shots, so I actually enjoyed it," said Mason. "It was nice to get into a game and feel like you are doing something out there." Vincent Lecavalier scored the shootout winner as the Flyers prevailed after trailing 2-1 in the second period and 3-2 late in the third. Lecavalier scored on a deke on Philadelphias first attempt and three Vancouver shooters could not beat Mason as the Flyers (19-16-4) posted their third straight win and sixth in eight games. The Canucks (23-11-7) suffered only their third loss in the past eight games. But more significantly, Vancouver missed a chance to move into a tie for fifth place in the Western Conference after the Kings lost earlier Monday to Chicago. "I thought we played good to get a point, but it pisses me off we dont get two," said Vancouver coach John Tortorella. The Flyers have not lost in Vancouver in nearly 14 years, with their last setback coming Dec. 31, 1989, but they were in danger of suffering another loss here for most of the game. Mark Streit, Claude Giroux and Brayden Schenn also scored for the Flyers. Giroux also had an assist and further bolstered his chances of playing for Canadas Olympic team as he extended his point streak to nine games. Brayden Schenn forced overtime and the shootout as he scored in the final minute of the third period after Daniel Sedin put the Canucks ahead with less than three minutes remaining. Schenn made up for a miscue by his older brother Luke, who inadvertently put the puck into his own net after Mason got his blocker on Daniel Sedins long shot from near the blue-line. "I guess (there was) a little brotherly love there," said Mason. "Luke was just trying to get back to the net there and I was putting my rebound where I wanted to and just an unfortunate bounce, things like that happen. (Its) just unfortunate it put us in that position." Tom Sestito and Jannik Hansen had Vancouvers other goals. Hansen was less than pleased after the Canucks lost despite outshooting the Flyers 44-27. "This game had no business going into overtime," said Hansen. "We should have closed this out quite earlier. a We need to score on our chances. Its not because we dont have them. We had quality opportunities in the third and even in overtime to get it done before the shootout." Mason, who recorded 42 saves, now has matched the 16 wins he produced with Columbus in 2011-12, when a full campaign was last played. Vancouver counterpart Eddie Lack, making his second consecutive start and third appearance in place of injured No. 1 netminder Roberto Luongo, finished with 25 saves. Tortorella was pleased that his club earned three of a possible four points in back-to-back games after earning a win the night before in Calgary. But he was angry that his team failed to control a key face-off prior to Brayden Schenns tying goal. "The mistake on the face-off, thats aggravating," said Tortorella. "Thats what keeps you out of playoffs, plays like that, the details, the face-offs. I thought we played our ass off back-to-back. We created a tremendous amount of scoring chances, but you kick yourself in the teeth for the lack of detail on the face-off." Vancouver could not score on its four power plays while Philadelphia was blanked on its three. The Flyers led 1-0 after the first period and the clubs were tied 2-2 following the second. Streit opened the scoring at 15:24 of the first period, putting in a backhand shot as the puck came to him after Canucks defenceman Dan Hamhuis denied Michael Raffl on a wraparound attempt. Sestito, a fourth-liner wanted mostly for his toughness, forged a 1-1 tie at 4:24 of the second period as he put in a Hamhuis rebound. With just under five minutes left in the second, Lack took a Wayne Simmonds shot to the mask. Despite losing his headgear on the play, Lack came up smiling and showed no ill effects. Less than a minute later, Hansen put the Canucks ahead 2-1 as he completed a nifty give-and-go with Daniel Sedin and tapped the puck into an open net. But Giroux pulled the Flyers even about two minutes later as took a lead pass from Raffl, fought his way up the middle through Hamhuis and Chris Tanev, and flicked the puck behind Lack from in close. Masons late stellar stops included denying Daniel Sedin on a breakaway early in the third and Ryan Kesler twice in the final minute of overtime. "Same story as the start of the year," said Giroux. "He kept us in the games and now to kind of get a win for him, its huge." Notes: Luongo worked out with Canucks goaltending coach Roland Melanson during a morning skate that involved a few players, including injured defenceman Alex Edler (undisclosed). a Simmonds was denied a chance to become the first Flyer to score multiple goals in four consecutive games in the 46-season history of the Philadelphia franchise. Reggie Leach (1976 and 1981) and Ross Lonsberry (1976) are the only other Flyers to record two or more goals in three straight games. a Defenceman Frank Corrado played his first game for Vancouver this season after being called up from Utica of the AHL earlier in the day. He replaced Andrew Alberts, who was injured Sunday on a high hit from Brian McGrattan in Calgary. McGrattan was assessed an elbowing major and game misconduct for the infraction. Corrado played for the Canucks late in the regular season and playoffs last season after playing his final junior campaign in the OHL. a Canucks captain Henrik Sedin played in his 670th consecutive NHL game. 02:55ET 31-12-13 Craig Kimbrel Jersey . According to TSNs Farhan Lalji, Richardson is heading to Toronto for a physical and is expected to sign with the Argonauts. Leon Durham Jersey . Hes still nowhere close to throwing yet. The four-time MVP was in good spirits when he made his first public appearance on the field since having neck surgery Sept.MINSK, Belarus -- Joel Ward knows who he is and who he isnt. "Im not going to go out there and be Ovi," he said. "I know what Im doing. Its not complex." Its not complex: Ward is just Team Canadas leading scorer through three games at the world hockey championship. With three goals hes actually tied for the tournament lead and has the same amount as Russian star and Washington Capitals teammate Alex Ovechkin. Ward doesnt have Ovechkins release or his accuracy, but the 33-year-old is no slouch, either. His 2013-14 NHL season included a career-high 24 goals, which was just the ticket to get him his first-ever international experience for Canada. Brad Pascall of Hockey Canada said assistant general manager Ron Hextall watched Ward play this past season and the group deciding on this team figured hed be a nice fit after the strong season he had. It was good for Ward to get noticed but even better for him to find some more self-appreciation of his offensive game. "Ive always believed in my abilities and never told myself I couldnt," the Toronto native said Tuesday. "My first year in Nashville I had 17 and I had some power-play time there, so I knew I could be a 20-goal scorer in the National Hockey League. It was just finding that spot and the right atmosphere and environment. This year I kind of got my spirits back up, my confidence back up to do so." Ward called it a season of "rejuvenation," crediting Capitals coach Adam Oates for changing the curve and length of his stick blade and teaching him more about how to play in front of the net. The reward was 24 goals and 25 assists, and those 49 points were third on Washington behind only Ovechkin and Swedish Olympian Nicklas Backstrom. Ward was never ever close to being considered for the star-studded Sochi team, but when he got the call to represent Canada at the world championships, he was thrilled just to have the chance. "When I first got the call, I said this was like my Olympics," he said. "First time to ever put a Canada jersey on. I grew up as a kid watching international hockey my whole life. When I got the call I was pretty excited to just be part of it. Im trying to make the most of it." So far, so good. Ward scored twice against Slovakia and then once against the Czech Republic. His three goals and four points lead Canada, which is 2-0-1 going into Thursdays game against Denmark. "Hes really come along as a player, and even in this tournament, too," Capitals and Team Canada teammate Troy Brouwer said. "Hes very opportunistic." What coach Dave Tippett likes about the six-foot-one, 221-pound right-winger is that he scores the kind of goals that are necessary in international play. "He scores hard goals --- hard goals in front of the net, good quick shots," Tippett said. Colin Rea Jersey. . "Hes a hard player. Everybody thinks this is the big ice and its all flow and away from (the net). You look where our goals are being scored right now: A lot of them are right in front of the net. Hes a player that can get in there and muck around a little bit. ... Go hard to the net and be willing to get into a battle to score. Thats what he does." Wards first goal of the tournament was a perfect tip of a point shot by Jason Garrison. His two others were sharp shots that Washington linemate Jason Chimera didnt think many goaltenders in the world could stop. But its not necessarily his shot but how he gets those opportunities that makes Ward fit for the big ice surface. Hes admittedly not the swiftest guy but takes pride in creating space and not making mistakes. "I just try to play good, two-way hockey, and if I get a chance on the offensive side, try to make plays for my linemates," Ward said. "Just keeping it simple is something key for me and try not to be no hero and be something Im not. I just want to get pucks down deep and puck possession is very key. Fortunate to get a couple good bounces and playing with some good linemates." Ward is likely to continue playing on Canadas fourth line with Jonathan Huberdeau and Sean Monahan moving forward, but he could get some better scoring chances on the power play. Even though only six of his 24 goals this past season came in that role, getting that extra ice time is why he thinks hes a better scorer than he was even two years ago when he had a 40-game drought. "You get more opportunity to play, right? So the more you play, the more opportunity you get," he said. "If you can kind of get that opportunity and capitalize a bit, then you get more positive results, obviously, and you get more ice time and you get rewarded." Being at the world championships is Wards reward for such a strong season in Washington. Its also his first trip to Europe. "Im usually just a beach guy," Ward said, smiling. "I like to sit in the sand a little bit and have a pina colada, so this is kind of a new experience, new territory for me. Thank God Im here, and Im thankful for being here and getting an opportunity to do this." Along the way, hes giving Canada the opportunity to win games and move past an opening shootout loss to France. Count at least Brouwer and Chimera among those not surprised and also pumped to see Ward playing and producing like this. "It couldnt happen to a better person," Chimera said. "Hes a great human being and everyone likes him. When he has success, the team has success, too, because the team just feeds off that kind of guy." ' ' '
