Game No. 12 of the regular season between the Flyers and Carolina Hurricanes had a different feel than any of the others to at least one man. After all, it was the first meeting between the two teams Peter Laviolette has coached to the Stanley Cup Finals.The 2006 ’Canes won it all, unlike the 2010 Flyers, who took the Blackhawks to Game 6, before having their dreams crushed on Patrick Kane’s overtime goal. Carolina hasn’t come close to repeating since, which led to Laviolette’s departure in 2009. Only four players from that team are still on the roster. That’s a pattern Laviolette doesn’t want to see repeated here.Based on the early-season results, including last night’s 3-2 win over the ‘Canes, these Flyers seem headed in the right direction. A pair of Scott Hartnell goals and another by Claude Giroux were enough to give the Flyers their fourth straight win, keeping them atop the Atlantic Division standings. Rookie goalie Sergei Bobrovsky turned aside 26 shots, many of them from point blank range.The day didn’t start out particularly well for the Flyers, who learned the NHL was suspending Danny Briere three games for his crosscheck to the head of the Islanders Frans Nielsen in Saturday’s 6-1 win. Part of the NHL’s reason for such a severe penalty was because Briere was a repeat offender (he was suspended two games for a hit last season on Colorado’s Scott Hannan).Without Briere in the lineup, Laviolette switched his lines around. The coach moved Jeff Carter onto Briere’s line, alongside Hartnell and Ville Leino. It paid dividends early when Leino started off a rush that resulted in Hartnell backhanding one past goaltender Justin Peters.Then, after Patrick Dwyer converted a turnover into the tying breakaway goal 3:05 into the second period, the Flyers answered right back when Giroux one-timed a Mike Richards’ pass just seconds into a power play to make it 2-1.The Flyers needed insurance in the third when Hartnell redirected Kimmo Timonen’s shot off a face-off into the open corner to make it 3-1. Bobrovsky took it from there, continually frustrating the ‘Canes, while the fans called out “Bob! Bob!” — his Americanized nickname, with each big save. Joe Corvo's goal with 27 seconds left and the goaltender pulled made it close at the end. But it wasn’t enough to prevent Laviolette’s new team from beating his old one.
