Claude Giroux

There are great plays and then there are plays that announce greatness. Claude Giroux's premeditated playoff killing of the Pittsburgh Penguins was the latter. "When the best player in the world comes up to you and says, 'I don't know who you're planning on starting, but I want that first shift,' that says everything you need to know about Claude Giroux right there," Flyers coach Peter Laviolette said after Sunday's 5-1 rout of the Penguins. "About 10 seconds before they dropped the puck, he came over and told me, 'Watch the first shift,' " Danny Briere said.

Boyd Kane completed a hat trick with the go-ahead goal 15 minutes, 15 seconds into the second period, and the Phantoms went on to a 5-2 win over the Hershey Bears in an AHL game last night at the Giant Center. Claude Giroux scored an insurance goal and Patrick Maroon added an empty-netter as the Phantoms (4-5) completed a five-game trip. Hershey (8-3), with the best record in the AHL, led by 2-1 in the second period before Kane scored two of his goals to put the Phantoms ahead.

Mike Iggulden scored on the power play with 51 seconds remaining in overtime to give the Bridgeport Sound Tigers a 2-1 win over the Phantoms last night at the Wachovia Spectrum. After the Phantoms failed to convert on an early overtime power play, Andreas Nodl's hooking penalty gave the Sound Tigers the man advantage. Iggulden capitalized. Giroux honored. Right winger Claude Giroux was named AHL rookie of the month for December. Giroux, who was recalled by the Flyers on Dec. 26, earned his first career NHL point with an assist Tuesday.

So, with the Flyers done for the season, who are the players fans can look to as the offensive stars of next season? James van Riemsdyk and Claude Giroux are the obvious answers. Here's why: Van Riemsdyk On Friday, he once again led the team in shots in the game, with five; had two hits; and played 25 shifts. He either led the Flyers or tied for the lead in shots in nine of the 11 playoff games. He finished the playoffs with a total of 70 shots over 11 games. He also had seven goals to rank among the playoff leaders.

Ed Barkowitz FLYERS POINTS: 104 EASTERN CONFERENCE FINAL FOUR: Sabres, Flyers, Penguins, Capitals WESTERN CONFERENCE FINAL FOUR: Red Wings, Kings, Sharks, Canucks LEAGUE MVP: Steven Stamkos, Lightning STANLEY CUP WINNER: Penguins FLYERS MVP: James van Riemsdyk BRAYDEN SCHENN POINTS: 33 JAROMIR JAGR POINTS: 68 GAMES CHRIS PRONGER PLAYS: 47 --- Chuck Bausman FLYERS POINTS: 99...

Claude Giroux's eighth-round shoot-out goal sent the Phantoms past the Providence Bruins, 4-3, in an AHL game last night at the Wachovia Spectrum. Giroux was sent down by the Flyers yesterday. The teams each scored two goals in the first period as shots by Patrick Maroon and Jonathon Kalinski kept the Phantoms even. The Phantoms (31-25-2-1) went ahead just past the first minute of the third period, 3-2, on a goal by Jonathan Matsumoto, but the Bruins (34-21-2-3) tied it seven minutes later.

Players to watch FLYERS: Danny Briere Without their leading scorer in Claude Giroux, who was suspended for Game 5, all eyes will be on Briere, the Flyer next likely to make magic. DEVILS: Martin Brodeur The toughest pill to swallow for the Flyers, if they are eliminated, will be the fact that Brodeur has been beatable in this series. They just haven't had the sustained pressure and chances to compete. Three keys to the game   1. The Flyers need to play with desperation, a trait clearly missing in Sunday's dreadful Game 4 loss in Newark.

CLAUDE GIROUX Put simply, the Flyers are 15-1-3 when Giroux scores a goal this season. He is dangerous in all three zones and with 66 points in 71 games, Giroux has been consistent enough to be their leading scorer. JEFF CARTER Carter, a force to be reckoned with when he is skating well, has quietly scored five goals in his last six games. He has 12 points in his last 11 contests and figures to be a key cog in the Flyers' playoff plans. BRAYDON COBURN Sure, Kimmo Timonen has played well in Chris Pronger's absence.

"I think anytime you get a player that is well-versed on the opponent, you spend a lot of time with them. Max and I had a lot of conversations in my office, talking about personnel, players we're not as familiar with that maybe come in because of injury, systems. And we go over it . . . Max was right there . . . So not only was Max great on the ice, maybe one day he'll make a great coach as well. " - Flyers coach Peter Laviolette, after Sunday's 5-1 victory over Pittsburgh.