I always liked Niittymaki, I liked how he won, the game with the Phantoms vs the Flyers. Which I might add, he played awesome! He only let in 2 goals, while on the other end Biron let in 3. I didn't think the Phantoms offense was that good. Than in the home opener Biron let in 4 goals on 14 shots. Than Nittymaki comes in and just shuts it down, the Rangers would score no more. The Flyers almost come back and tie the game up. They came up a goal shy. Only if Nittymaki could of started, I guess the guy with the bigger paycheck always gets the nod. That makes sense right?

He was the third star and Richie was 2nd star.

He was number one in my book What do I know right?

Ill tell you what. I've been saying this since last season. Nitty is better than Biron.

Sisba played GREAT tonight, would love to see him stay.

On another note, the crowd was terrible tonight. I was there. Attendance wise felt like a sixers game and intensity felt like a devils home game. Just blahhh. Im talking before the 4 goals too.

i felt like it was 50 percent of the people there's first time at a hockey game... the family next to me couldn't tell which entrance way the flyers were gonna come out of before warmup, i guess they couldnt see the flyers fans on the bench, the rangers fans around the other one, and about 50 people crowded around the flyers exit to their lockerroom. some hick behind me started screaming "what are you doing get the puck you effing idiots" on a delayed offsides hahaha

Niitty made some very important saves to keep us within reach of getting level.

I think his point was put across last night that he could start more than last season.

I've said this about the crowd for quite some time. In the playoffs it's great, regular season not so much, and this was opening night. Wait a few weeks, it gets real quiet, especially on a week night.

Niitty was great. I hope we´ll see him start more games this season than last season. He certainly deserves it, not only because of his play last night. It´s not certain the Flyers would´ve won the game with Niitty as a starter, the whole team was flat in the first, but I sure would like to see him as a starter goalie in the future.

Nitty definitely looks like he could compete for the starting job after that. What happened on that 3rd goal Biron let in? That was terrible!

Our downfall from the beginning of the night was allowing Palin to drop the puck, I was so glad to see Gagne score though.

nitty played great and gave the boys a chance to get back in it ... and they almost did it .. first game jitters im sure because they looked a **** of alot better the last 2 periods ...

Maybe everyone is caught up in the excitement and spending their money on Phils tickets

Niitty looked great the other night at the Phantoms game. And I agree with whoever said the weeknight games get rather quiet...those are usually the only games I can attend with my work schedule and sometimes it's disappointing, especially when they aren't doing so great. Even though it was just preseason, we had an awful couple next to us at the game Tuesday.

Nitty deserves first star of the game. He kept the Flyers in it.

Definitely agreed, I was so upset the fans weren't louder last night. I tried, unsuccessfully, a couple times to get some chants going. I know it was hard in the first, but even at the beginning of the game it wasn't as loud as it should have been.

On to Niitty. Yea he played amazing. I was scared cause at the end of warmups Upshall was shooting and hit Niitty in the side where there were no pads and it took him by surprise cause he wasn't paying attention. Then on that 2 on 1 Niitty got up slow. He seemed fine a couple minutes later though.

I definitely think Biron and Nitty should fight it out for the starter role, but I think everyone in here is being a little too fickle based on one game. I wouldn't read into Biron's one game performance too deep, he'll be back in form soon enough.

I would have one message for Biron if he ends up playing a majority of the games this season...."FOR CHRIST SAKE, WORK ON YOUR BREAK AWAY GAME".

Your factual info. is off. Biron only let one in against the Phantoms. Aubin let the rest in. And no, this was one game. 1, maybe 2 goals were Biron's fault, the rest being lucky bounces and crap defense. Niitty even faced less shots in 41 minutes than Biron in 19. The entire team was horrible in the 1st period, and even Stevens, who loves Niitty to death, admits he only pulled Biron to change the game, which is a good move. So yea, well done to Niitty, but Biron's still better. That being the case, Biron's still our guy, until further notice.

Yeah, JJ & Jonsey said that Niitty got hit in the knee on both the Upshall shot & the 2 on 1. I'm sure it stung for a second, especially after getting hit there the second time, which would explain why he was slow to get up. I honestly think he deserves a chance to start tomorrow night, so we can see what he can do from the very beginning. He played excellently last night once he was put into the game. He was the main reason the Flyers even had any type of chance at coming back last night. (The Defense helped a little, but for the most part it was all Niitty.)

As for Biron, I have no idea what happened to him on any of the four goals he allowed. I think maybe the first two were just the entire team wasn't prepaired for the 'regular season' pase of the game (where as the Rangers were because they had already played 3 games before last night.) However, that third goal he allowed was horrible. It reminded me of the one Aubin allowed in the Pre-season game against the Caps. Horrible post-to-post coverage of the net. I know he isn't good with post-to-post coverage, but that was worse then any other time I've seen him allow a post-to-post goal. It was like he didn't even try to move, or want to move. Don't get me wrong, I like Marty, but that was just horrible! For it I think Niitty should get a chance to start against the Habs, but I guess we'll see who Stevens decides is the better bet.

Mark my words, Gagne will be our franchise player once again.

Yes, you are correct I didn't watch the whole game but what I did see was Niitty for the Phantoms and Biron for the Flyers. From what I did see Niity out played Biron. In opening night, yes you are right Biron did see more shots in his time on the ice, I just felt he could of played them alot better than he did. "Biron is still better" I don't know about this, but if you are basing your opinion off their contracts, than I guess you are correct!

Aren't we all missing the real point here? We can't win the cup with either of these goaltenders.

What would you recommend than?

No I don't just mean contracts. Last season, in which I watched every game. That is my base. The playoffs, that is my base. Contracts don';t mean anything, except the fact both of them are in their contract years

We could if Biron could stop a breakaway.

I don't know, I watched pretty much every game too, where the playoffs matter, he did play very well the first 2 rounds but in the third he seemed to have lost it. Maybe he was tired I don't know, but he wasn't the same.

Nitty definitely played much better than Biron yesterday. If only Nitty had been the starting goalie yesterday, we might be 1-0 instead of 0-1 right now.

Of course, even though this was just one game, it's never a good sign when your starting goalie gets chased from the net early in your season opener.

Very true, the Flyers didn't look ready that's for sure. I mean the Rangers did have 3 games under their belts, they definitely had a better pace than the Flyers. The Rangers could have blown us away, thank God, the Flyers finally woke up. On the bright side we almost came back from a 4-0 deficit which would of humiliated the Rangers, who could of easily beat us down if they kept playing the way they were.

Biron is still the number 1 goalie he will not lose the job after just 1 bad game however this could be the start of him losing his job. Most people forget Niittymaki has played the last few seasons with those hip issues, he could play but it limited him and his play was shaky. If that hip doesn't act up this season he may go back into his original form a few seasons back when he looked like he could be a top NHL goalie.

I think Niitty will be healthy and he will create a goalie contraversy as the season goes.

Nitty needs to get back into the form he was in when he won gold for Finland at the Olympics, alot of people seem to forget this feat that he accomplished.

ya he does. also it is early in the season but what i've seen from him is looking like he is on his way to getting back.


he won the silver medal not the gold. he was also named mvp

Maybe he feels like he's in one of those "Now or never" situations, he really needs to show his worth while still under contract.

Personally i'm not partial to either goalie and I really think they ought to fight it out tooth and nail for the starter role, regardless of who has the wealthier contract.

With that being said, there never will be another Hextall.

That isn't even the only impressive feat. He was also an animal when he played for the phantoms. In the playoff series were the Phantoms won the Calder Cup in 21 playoff games he had a GAA of 1.75 with a save percentage of .943% Was always a very good player with the Phantoms. His 1st season in the NHL he had some very impressive streaks and it was overall a very good 1st season. I believe he is better then that and will show it this season if he stays healthy. Injuries are the only reason his play has suffered a bit if he stays healthy I can see him stealing the starting job.

I would like to see Nitty get a fair shot before we commit a contract to either goalie.

They're currently both under contract ATM, i'm sure he'll get a fair shot as long as he earns it and it seems like he's working towards earning it. The norm for most teams is to try and play the goalie who's contract is worth the most between the two, as a result of the current salary cap situation in the league.

We can't win a cup with Niitty in net, yet Finland can win a gold... hm. It's only 1 game, I like Marty and Niitty. We'll have to see who becomes our #1 in the long run. Either way, we can win a cup with 1 of these goalies

I mean committing a new contract. I think Biron will be due a nice raise which is why I'd like to see Nitty get a shot because if he proves he can be the starter then they would probably save money re-signing him over Biron.

All last year saying Biron needed replaced...

All off season praying he would be gone...

Took less than a period for us to see what we can look forward to this year.

If Nitty doesnt start monday, Flyers coaches and management need their heads examined.

ya i agree with that. i think theres a good chance he will get the start. its what i hope for.

let me get this straight....biron has one bad period and we want him out and nitty in.....i thought biron took us to the conference finals last year......now if marty has a bunch of bad games like last nite, then yeah, give nitty a shot.....until then....just calm down everyone.....

I agree, calm down people. The defense was off. We were bunched up. We had no hustle and no jump on the NY Rangers even who played the night before. Now with Jones out a few months we need to learn to live with the Defense we have. 1 Goal I'll give to Biron as a fluke he couldn't see, the wrap around was partly his fault and partly Kukkonen's fault. Niitty will not replace Marty in the simple fact that Marty has proven his stones in playoff pressure. Last year we had Niitty plagued with confidence issues. I'm glad to see Niitty get his game back like he did last night, but I'd rather focus on keeping Marty confident because ultimately Biron is the better goalie.

About the cheering, my section was also a little mellow, but being only a few over from Dancing Shawny we got loud at times. Jesus though, about 20 Rangers fans by us though. Oh and what happened to my beloved A$$hole chant? I was calling that out in the first period to those **** refs and some other Flyer's fans told me to shut the **** up. Then the third period comes around and we all FINALLY come around to realizing the refs are idiots! Anyone remember the playoffs?

Don't start in on the defense... yes, the guys took awhile to get up to speed. The simple fact is that our 'top' goalie got lit up like a christmas tree... not just that, but he did it to himself... 2 of those goals are hands down soft goals. 1 could be argued soft pretty convincingly.

I have taken heaps of abuse in my few posts last year pointing out that Biron is not a cup goalie... this is not a 1 game reaction. This is one more piece of proof showing that on home ice, in the season opener, against an opponent we should out class... he skates over his own ding-a-ling... again. Having Biron as a starting goalie is akin to having Mark Laforest back in the day. I am not saying Nitty is Hexy to Biron's LaForest, but you certianly do not plan on calling a backup quality goaltender your starter and plan on going too far.

The defense was bad in front of Biron but that is no excuse he still played terrible. No spectacular saves and let in a few weak ones. The defense wasn't that great in front of Niittymaki ether but he still managed to pull off a bunch spectular saves to back them up when they did falter.

Only 1 goal was basically unsaveable. Biron let in 3 a good goalie should have saved. While I don't believe you just hand over the ropes to Niitty after 1 game anyone who knows anything about hockey can see that Biron was playing just as poorly as the defense in front of him.

More like two he should have had. There's no stopping either of the first 2. one game folks, Biron's still the guy and rightfully so.

The 2nd one was not an easy save but it was one he should have had. He was positioned perfectly to stop it but just seem to lose location of the puck until it was behind him.

When you evaluate a goalie you can only excuse him from shots he literally has no chance of saving and Biron only saw one of those. Even if one is a tough save from a good shot you can only blame the goalie for missing it. That is what separates the great goalies from the rest of the pack.

Not really. I mean we always appreciate great saves, but you want a guy who stops what he should. On most nights, not last night but most nights, Niitty will make those nice saves and allow cheap goals. Biron occasionally makes great saves, but is usually solid on those he needs to stop. That's why he's the guy, atm.

I have to agree with this, a goalies job is to stop those shots like the 2nd goal. The first goal was the one I feel not too many goalies would be able to stop, too many bounces off other players.

I thought Biron was going to take a more aggressive approach to the game. What happened?

This was a quote from the article about his new mask:

In addition to the new mask, Biron is playing a slightly new, more aggressive style this preseason.

“We talked about little things that I thought gave me an advantage last year going down the stretch and into the playoffs as a goalie,” Biron explained.

“We talked about taking a step forward on occasion when I can read the play and I can see the guy has got only one shot,” Biron said. “I just have to be careful to not over-challenge or be over-aggressive.”

Actually if what you said was true that would make Niittymaki the better goalie. Flyers defense gives up a lot of big scoring chances and that would mean Niittymaki would be the better choice for keeping us in the game against a high powered offensive team that will run up the quality scoring chances. Your statement would lead me to believe Biron is only as good as the defense in front of him while Niitty can bail out his teams mistakes more often.

However I see it a bit differently. Niittymaki does not let in to many bad goals. If you have trouble with weak NHL shots you will soon find yourself unemployed the myth that Niittymaki can't handle easy shots is highly overblown. Yes he occassionally lets in a few weak goals but natural human error has every goalie let in a few weak ones. You also have to factor in he was playing injured last season and he was the back up. As the back up he was in and out of the line up and when your playing time is in such disorder it sometimes you get rusty and out of rythem. This season Niittymaki is healthy and with Biron looking terrible to start and Niittymaki looking so good if they let Niitty ride this he is a serious threat to Biron in my opinion because he is very capable of stoping those weak goals you speak of.

With Biron he also lets in some weak ones time to time. He has had a few dreadful games with us like he did last night resulting in him getting pulled along with casual weak ones. I wouldn't give him a huge edge on Niitty on those. Biron is a streaky goalie, he always has been in his career you can ask any Sabre fan about him there. That is really just what I see from him. Stretches Biron will make all the easy says and a bunch of spectacular ones. Other stretches he looks like he has more holes then Swiss cheese. I think it is because he is such a small guy he lacks stamina to keep up such an intense level.

Perhaps but as streaky as Biron is, Niitty is even more streaky. Anyway, Stevens has decided to give Biron another shot tonight. I imagine, we could see Niitty tomrrow in Pittsburgh.

I think we all knew this was going to happen, Biron starting again. I just hope he shows up to play this time.

I think he will. Other then that third goal, which I'm still baffeled by, it's not like he was totally asleep. I mean, he did make some saves. They weren't steller, but had he not stopped them, it could have been worse then 4-0 when he got pulled. Didn't Marty say when the team comes to play, he feeds off their energy, or am I thinking of somebody else? IF he did, then as long as EVERYONE shows up to play, & the team plays the game we know they love to play; you know the ones the Canadiens seem to hate? (The physical game of the Flyers. Yes, the Canadiens can be physical, but not as physical as the Flyers!) Then I think the team, including Biron, will have no problems!