Sean Couturier

Claude Giroux needs some help. The Flyers captain went into Thursday's game among the NHL leaders by being successful on 55.4 percent of his faceoffs. Despite his success, the Flyers had won just 46.5 percent of their draws, putting them 28th in the 30-team NHL. Put another way: If you take away Giroux, the rest of the Flyers had won just 40.9 percent of their faceoffs. As a result, the Flyers are getting less zone time and frequently seem to be on the defensive side of the puck.

Twelve nights after they routed the Panthers in Florida, the Flyers had to huff and puff to try to get a victory in a rematch Thursday night at the Wells Fargo Center. Didn't happen. Florida jolted the Flyers in a shootout, 3-2, and ended the home team's two-game winning streak. In the shootout, Jonathan Huberdeau and Peter Mueller easily beat goalie Ilya Bryzgalov. Down at the other end, Florida goalie Jose Theodore stopped Matt Read and Claude Giroux, making the Flyers 23-42 all-time in shootouts.

IN AN attempt to project this season's offensive output, the Flyers' brass needed to rely on a handful of players continuing to exceed expectations in order to increase last season's 264 goals. Matt Read, Jake Voracek, Max Talbot and Wayne Simmonds all posted career highs in their first season with the Flyers. Not all of them have pulled their weight this season, which partially explains the Flyers' 25th-ranked offense (2.33 goals per-game) after finishing third last season. Talbot, coming off a year in which he posted career-highs in goals (19)

Hoping to awaken his team's sleepy offense, Flyers coach Peter Laviolette juggled his lines during practice Thursday in Voorhees, moving Danny Briere to the top unit to replace Matt Read. Briere, who said his injured wrist gets stronger each day, played left wing on a line with Claude Giroux and Wayne Simmonds. Giroux and Briere played together in Germany during the lockout, and they have been occasional linemates in the past with the Flyers. "We weren't generating as much as we'd like in New York," Laviolette said about Tuesday's 2-1 loss to the Rangers.

NEW YORK - Ask Flyers sophomore Sean Couturier about his start this season and he will shake his head before offering a gap-toothed grin. Couturier, 20, can't seem to avoid being on the ice when opponents score. Of the 20 goals the Flyers have given up in the first seven games, Couturier has been on the ice for 15 of them. "Everything seems to be going in when I'm out there," Couturier said. "Right now, the bounces aren't going my way. " He continued that trend at Madison Square Garden Tuesday night, racing to the point as Michael Del Zotto's shot slipped past Ilya Bryzgalov to give New York a 1-0 lead less than 2 minutes into the game, and being on the ice for Ryan Callahan's second-period power-play goal.

TAMPA, Fla. - A parade down Broad Street will be a pipe dream if the Flyers' parade to the penalty box perpetuates. The Flyers, far and away the NHL's least disciplined team, found out the hard way with a 5-1 thrashing at the hands of a potent Lightning attack on Sunday night at Tampa Bay Times Forum. Penalties were bound to catch up with them at some point. Tampa Bay scored three times - twice on the power play - in a span of 4:21 in the first period to erase a 1-0 lead Sean Couturier built for the Flyers in the opening minute.

SUNRISE, Fla. - Flyers center Danny Briere, who missed the first four games because of a hairline fracture of his left wrist, made his first appearance of the year Saturday night. Before the game, Briere said he had no problems shooting the puck, but faceoffs still gave him difficulties. He began the night at left wing. Earlier in the day, general manager Paul Holmgren said Briere was "probably a no-go" for Saturday, but Briere apparently talked his way into the lineup. Briere played on a line with center Sean Couturier and right winger Jake Voracek.

SUNRISE, Fla. - Flyers center Danny Briere, who missed the first four games because of a hairline fracture of his left wrist, made his first appearance of the year Saturday night. Before the game, Briere said he had no problems shooting the puck, but faceoffs still gave him difficulties. He began the night at left wing. Earlier in the day, general manager Paul Holmgren said Briere was "probably a no-go" for Saturday, but Briere apparently talked his way into the lineup. Briere played on a line with center Sean Couturier and right winger Jake Voracek.

It doesn't matter how you get there - losing streaks, injuries, labor wars, plague of locusts. Whatever. Going eight months without winning a game is enough to make everybody start thinking dark thoughts. The Flyers came back from the NHL's farcical lockout and immediately lost their first three games. They did not look especially sharp doing it. Was that a side effect of the long layoff and short prep time, or was it a sign that this roster just isn't talented enough to contend?

SCOTT HARTNELL sat out Thursday night with an injury for the first time since joining the Flyers six seasons ago. It was just the fourth game he has missed overall - two due to suspension and one due to illness. Turns out, there's a good reason: Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren revealed Hartnell fractured a left metatarsal bone in his foot, which may end up needing surgery. He suffered the injury with 6:53 to play in Tuesday's loss to New Jersey. The Flyers' leading goal scorer from last season could miss anywhere from 4 to 6 weeks, depending on a possible surgery.