PHILADELPHIA -- Claude Giroux is excited about the way the Philadelphia Flyers are playing. Wayne Simmonds had two goals and an assist to lead the Philadelphia Flyers to a 4-1 win over the Minnesota Wild on Monday night, extending their home win streak to nine games. "We got the four lines rolling. Everybodys playing great," Giroux said. "I think when you have a team effort like tonight, its a really good feeling. We can take it in for a couple days for Christmas here, and be ready to go on the road." The Flyers brought their record back above .500 (17-16-4). Luke Schenn scored first for the Flyers, on the teams first shot of the night, giving them a lead they never lost. Scott Hartnells assist on that goal was the veteran Flyers 500th career point. "It was a big win, more importantly," Hartnell said. "Its kind of cool to hit a century mark, but we wanted to end into this Christmas break with a big win. Everybodys got a lot of smiles on our faces. That was an amazing effort and a big win. Its huge." Giroux had a goal and an assist, extending his scoring streak to eight games, a new high for the Flyers captain. While the Flyers will be using their three-day break to celebrate, the Wild will have plenty of time to consider whats gone wrong for them in recent days. Mondays loss was their third in a row, a stretch of games during which theyve scored only four goals and sank to fourth place in the Central Division. "Its a good time for the break," Kyle Brodziak said. "We need a few days to really find what we need to do, and what every guy in the room really needs to do, however we need to do it, to break out of whatever funk we are in right now." With the loss, the Wild are 1-7-1 in their last nine games on the road. They fell to 2-7-0 lifetime at the Wells Fargo Center. Theyve lost six of their last 10 games. Mikael Grandlund scored the Wilds lone marker in the first period, a power-play goal during a 1:40 two-man advantage that cut the Flyers lead to 2-1. But after that goal, scored late in the first period, the Wilds offence all but disappeared. The Wild travelled to Philadelphia after falling to the New York Rangers 4-1 Sunday. Back-to-back games can be difficult, and goaltender Niklas Backstrom started both. He, along with many teammates, seemed tired. Wild head coach Mike Yeo wasnt about to use fatigue as an excuse. "Im not going to paint a rosy picture and Im not going to make any excuses," Yeo said. "Flat out, we need to be better. Its every one of us. It starts with me. We have to be better. What I mean is, this is not us. Plain and simple, this is not us." Across the ice, however, the Flyers felt as if Mondays effort was perfectly representative of their team identity. They scored on the power play (Simmonds first-period goal), they kept their defence tight and they played hard right up until the final horn sounded. They feel theyve managed to turn around a dire start to their season. "No one wants to let anyone down in here -- turning the puck over, making soft plays," Hartnell said. "When youre accountable to your teammates, the guy next to you in the dressing room, you play hard, you play smarter. Weve got to eliminate some simple penalties that weve been taking lately, but its been a lot of fun here at home. Weve got to take this show on the road here." Both teams will return from the days off with games in Canada -- the Wild in Winnipeg, the Flyers in Edmonton. But only the Flyers will be riding the momentum of a complete-game victory. "We definitely needed that," Simmonds said. "You guys asked if we were worried, I said no. We know what were capable of." NOTES: Zach Parise missed the game with a lower-body injury. . 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Pittsburgh Penguins Gear .ca has you covered for whos in, whos out and what to expect from all 30 teams.CHICAGO -- Donnie Murphy has thrived in late-game situations over the last month. Murphy capped a four-run seventh inning with a two-run homer as the Chicago Cubs rallied for a 9-7 victory over the Miami Marlins on Wednesday. Since joining the Cubs in early August, Murphy is hitting nearly .400 from the seventh inning on and Wednesdays home run was his sixth in the seventh inning or later. "Ive come through in those situations before and for some reason Im comfortable in em," he said. "I just like the situation. I like the game on the line. Its not pressure on me. Someone else has to throw the pitch over the plate. Its pressure on them sometimes and I just like the situation." Murphy has been one of the few bright spots for the Cubs in an otherwise dismal second half. Since being called up from the minors in early August, hes been one of the teams best hitters and certainly the best clutch hitter. Not bad for a guy who essentially was on baseballs scrapheap this season after bouncing around for much of his career since making his major league debut in 2004. "Throughout the rest of his major league career, hes been hurt and on the (disabled list) and never really got a chance," Cubs manager Dale Sveum said of Murphy. "Hes obviously getting a chance here and is making the most of it." The Cubs certainly made the most of some shaky pitching by the Marlins. Rookie left-hander Brian Flynn lasted just four-plus inning in his debut, giving up three runs on six hits. The bullpen was worse and couldnt protect 6-3 and 7-4 leads. "Theyve been pretty consistent for us all year, but today wasnt one of our better days," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said of his bullpen. The Cubs pounded out four home runs, with Sterlin Castro, Dioner Navarro and Ryan Sweeney adding solo blasts. The Marlins went deep twice. On the strength of a grand slam by Adeiny Hechavarria and a two-run shot by Logan Morrison, they led 7-4 when reliever A.J. Ramos entered the game in the seventh and walked the first two batters he faced, Darwin Barney and Anthony Rizzo. After a passed ball advanced the runners, Navarro hit a dribbler off the end of the bat down the leftt-field line for a single that scored both runners and made it 7-6.dddddddddddd That was all for Ramos as Ryan Webb came on. He didnt fare any better as Murphy, who played with the Marlins last season, hit the first pitch from Webb (2-6) into the left-field bleachers. "I know that guys a sinker ball guy," Murphy said of Webb. "I was looking for a sinker, he gave it to me and I put a pretty good swing on it." The Cubs added an insurance run in the eighth on Castros double. Carlos Villanueva (4-8) got the win. Kevin Gregg, despite walking the potential tying runs on base, worked out of a jam for his 29th save in 34 chances. But, of course, the star of the game was Murphy, who was considered nothing more than a placeholder for the remainder of the season when he arrived but now has to be considered for the future even though hes no youngster at 30. "I dont want to get too far ahead of myself and starting thinking about it a little too much and maybe its affecting my play on the field," he said of next season. "I dont want to do that, but at the same time, its at that part in September when it does start to get in the back of your mind a little bit more." NOTES: Before the game, the Cubs claimed RHP Daniel Bard off waivers from the Boston Red Sox and selected the contract of RHP Chang-Yong Lim from Triple-A Iowa. Bard, 28, was first-round pick (No. 28 overall) of the Red Sox in 2006 and was one of organizations most highly-regarded prospects at one point. To make room on the 40-man roster, the Cubs designated outfielder Cole Gillespie, who originally was in the lineup Wednesday, and RHP Michael Bowden for assignment. ... Rob Brantly, the Marlins opening-day catcher before being sent to the minors, is back with the expanded roster and eager for a second chance. "The biggest problem I had at the beginning of the season was I was trying to do too much," he said. ... Both teams are off on Thursday. The Cubs host the Brewers on with LHP Chris Rusin (2-3) taking on RHP Kyle Lohse (9-8), while the Marlins open a home series against the Nationals with RHP Jose Fernandez (10-6) facing a pitcher to be announced by Washington. ' ' '
