from Sam Donnellon of Philly.com,
In a curious coincidence, the Flyers awoke this season at precisely the same time the Eagles hibernated for the winter.
Their hockey team’s eight-game winning streak, extended by Monday night’s 2-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks, began with a 7-4 victory over the Minnesota Wild one day after that pass slithered through the hands of Alshon Jeffery, and with it, a chance to repeat as Super Bowl champions. And it short-circuited a nice reversal from the Eagles’ early-season ineptitude and miscues, and it appeared to be triggered by a forced change in what most would concede is football’s most critical position: quarterback.
Likewise, the catalyst of the Flyers' crawl from the tomb has been 20-year-old goaltender Carter Hart, whose play last month earned him both the NHL’s monthly rookie award, and its second star overall. On Monday, it was more of the same, Hart stopping 41 Vancouver shots, including a leaping block of Nikolay Goldobin’s rebound shot during a late third-period power play that Chris Long would be proud of.
There were several others before and after that, creating an impressive pile of kindling on the opposing bench for the eighth game in a row.
"It’s almost like miracles out there," said Sean Couturier, whose hooking penalty created the need for divine intervention.
Watch the game highlights below.
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