Flyers Tie Atlanta

John LeClair could have been frustrated. Instead, he was patient.

LeClair scored two third period goals to help the Philadelphia Flyers gain a 3-3 tie with the Atlanta Thrashers on Tuesday night.

LeClair scored his second goal of the period and fourth of the season with 3:15 left, beating Atlanta goaltender Damian Rhodes from in close.

"He (Rhodes) definitely played well," he said. "When a goalie's hot like that, it can frustrate you, but we didn't let it happen."

LeClair's wingmate, Jeremy Roenick, picked up his seventh assist on LeClair's first goal.

"Rhodes had a big game, but he had some serious luck, too," Roenick said. "Our line put a lot of pressure on him. We had a lot of shots, some we didn't get good wood on and some he just made good saves."

The trio of LeClair, Roenick and Justin Williams had 11 shots on goal between them, with Williams assisting on LeClair's last goal.

Tony Hrkac had put Atlanta ahead 3-2 with his first goal of the season with 7:35 remaining in the third.

Rhodes, making his first start of the season, was outstanding in the first two periods, stopping all 20 of Philadelphia's shots on goal before the Flyers scored three times in the third on 14 shots. Overall, he stopped 34 of 37 shots on goal.

"He (Rhodes) really looked great. He is making an effort every day to improve," said Atlanta coach Curt Fraser.

"It's just one game," said Rhodes. "I've got to keep doing what I'm doing. Hard work does a lot of good for you."

Hnat Domenichelli gave the Thrashers a 2-1 lead 3:56 into the final period when he beat Philadelphia goalie Roman Cechmanek, converting a pass from Ray Ferraro.

LeClair tied it 2-2 at the 7:00 mark with a 10-footer from in front of the net.

Atlanta's Ilya Kovalchuk, the No. 1 overall pick in the NHL draft, scored the game's first goal with 1:22 left in the second period. It was the 18-year-old's second goal.

The Flyers tied it 1:43 into the third period on a goal by Paul Ranheim, his first.

Rhodes, who sat while Milan Hnilicka started Atlanta's first three games, made four outstanding saves in the second period.

Rhodes, Atlanta's starter the past two seasons despite 80 games lost to injury, made two diving kick saves on Mark Recchi and another stellar stop on Chris Therien.

Game notes:
Rhodes was 12-38-10 in his first two seasons with the Thrashers. ... The Thrashers were 0-for-3 on power plays and are 1-of-20 in their first four games. Philadelphia also was 0-for-3 and the Flyers are now 3-of-28 in their first six games.

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Author: 6 ABC - Action News