No harm done; heated Pronger-Giroux exchange helped refocus Flyers

STANDING BEHIND a curtain in the hallway adjacent to the Flyers' locker room, Chris Pronger and Claude Giroux stood nose-to-nose in a heated verbal exchange after Tuesday night's win over Edmonton.

It ended with Pronger saying, "Some people just don't learn," as he walked away.

Whether Pronger was referring to Giroux, or not, is unknown. But Pronger and the rest of his teammates - to a man - were frustrated with the Flyers' sudden penchant for juicy turnovers in their defensive zone.

The impact, whether from Pronger's lips or the mouth of coach Peter Laviolette, was felt immediately in Thursday night's win in Toronto- the Flyers' second in a row, following four straight losses.

"We got away from a lot of things," Scott Hartnell said yesterday after the Flyers wrapped up practice. "But dipsy-doodling and turning pucks over is not winning hockey. We learned it the hard way. I think [Thursday] was a good example of what happens when you manage the puck.

"It was a big confidence builder for all four lines and everyone in here [the locker room]."

Watching the game from a different perspective - as he missed Thursday's win with an upper-body injury - Pronger said he noticed a difference in the Flyers' willingness to protect the puck.

"I thought we rebounded very well," Pronger said. "I think we addressed a lot of our issues in our play. We did a lot better job of focusing in on the things we needed to work on, and the results speak for themselves."

So do the statistics.

The Flyers went from 13 giveaways on the stat sheet Tuesday to only nine Thursday - even though it isn't one of the NHL's more detailed stats. Laviolette's coaching staff breaks down the turnovers, especially those that result in scoring chances, by both player and zone in which they occurred.

"We were much more responsible with the puck," Laviolette said. "I think sometimes you just get away from what you're trying to accomplish. You're never trying to hurt the team, but sometimes the simpler way is the best way. We never try to take away creativity - and we always want to score goals - but there is a method to how we do it, too.

"We've got some great talent in here; that's why we score so many goals. But there is a plan in place."

Laviolette was not singling out Giroux - who was credited with a game-high three turnovers Tuesday - even though Pronger took exception. While the exchange was heated, it was not a fight, and no ill sentiment lingered between Giroux and Pronger. No rift was caused.

General manager Paul Holmgren said dialogue between players of that stature can be healthy for the overall team.

"I think it's great," Holmgren said. "Claude Giroux wants to win, but sometimes he needs to hear it from the older guys on the team that this is how it's done. I don't think it's bad.

"Claude, maybe he didn't like being spoken to like that, but I think he understands what's being said to him, and he'll benefit from that."

The conversation clearly could have taken place with the entire team. And it's something all the players benefited from. Tonight, with a chance to step on Atlanta's throat and crush its playoff hopes, the Flyers would like to keep that momentum going.

"These points are huge," Hartnell said. "It seems like everyone's winning that's trying to catch us. It's time for us to do our part."

While Chris Pronger did take part in yesterday's practice, he was limited to skating on his own with assistant coach Kevin McCarthy while his teammates worked on the power play. That would likely make Pronger doubtful for tonight's game against Atlanta.

"He's the same; nothing's changed," Holmgren said. "He's day-to-day. We'll see how he feels."

Holmgren said he would not rush Pronger, who knows his body best. Pronger offered no comment about his injury status.

"Obviously, he wants to play," Holmgren said. "If he doesn't feel he's ready to play yet, we'll ride it out. It's nothing to be concerned with, long term, it's just kind of a day-to-day thing right now."

Holmgren also said Nick Boynton played "fine" as Pronger's replacement Thursday night, when he made his Flyers debut, playing 11:24 against the Maple Leafs.

"For not playing as long as he did, on a new team, in a tough game, I thought he did fine," Holmgren said.

The Thrashers, whose playoff hopes are on life support, lost in overtime to the Devils last night before traveling to Philadelphia . . . Since the Thrashers joined the NHL in 1999, the Flyers are 29-7-3 against Atlanta, including 14-3-3 at the Wells Fargo Center. The Flyers went 0-4 against the Thrashers last season, but topped them, 5-2, on Jan. 14 . . . Sergei Bobrovsky is expected to start in net tonight. *

For more news and analysis, read Frank Seravalli's blog, Frequent Flyers, at

www.philly.com/FrequentFlyers. Follow him on Twitter at

http://twitter.com/DNFlyers.