Michal Neuvirth Shuts Out Panthers, Hakstol Gets First Win

PHILADELPHIA - The loudest cheer of the night just might have been without the puck in the Florida Panthers’ net.

Michael Raffl emerged from the penalty box to a roar from the fans because the Flyers had spent the last four minutes torturing the Panthers, stifling their power play.

An afternoon meeting paid off.

Following the Flyers’ morning skate, the team had a penalty-kill meeting – one much tamer than the players-only meeting that came after a 7-1 loss Saturday to the Panthers – and watching tape of that drubbing helped.

Allowing only five shots in six penalty kills helped the Flyers to a 1-0 win for their first victory of the season.

“It’s a game of inches sometimes,” coach Dave Hakstol said. “Saturday not a lot of things went right. We were a foot or two off of two or three plays on Saturday night. Tonight we were in pretty good position. We were scrappy.”

By the time the Flyers were having their penalty-kill meeting, a normal occurrence , Michal Neuvirth had already been told that he was replacing Steve Mason, who is away from the team dealing with a personal family matter.