Flyers explode for 9 goals and dominate Blue Jackets, 9-2

Vindication and domination.

Those were the themes Saturday as a sellout crowd watched one of the Flyers' easiest victories in franchise history, a 9-2 wipeout of sad-sack Columbus at the Wells Fargo Center.

Rookie Sean Couturier had his first two-goal game, Jakub Voracek and James van Riemsdyk each had a goal and two assists, and defenseman Erik Gustafsson was plus-6 - the first time a rookie had that figure since 1984 - as the Flyers cruised.

Eight Flyers scored goals, equaling a franchise record that was done four other times.

It was the first time the Flyers had nine goals since a 1997 win over Montreal.

Voracek and, in effect, Couturier were acquired from Columbus for Jeff Carter last June. Couturier was used with the eighth overall pick in the first round.

"Obviously," Voracek said when asked if he got extra satisfaction beating the Blue Jackets. "I was very excited for this game."

Voracek bent down and pumped his fist - with extra gusto - after ending a 10-game drought and scoring in the first period.

The Flyers winger was celebrating because the goal came against his former team - and the coach, Scott Arniel, who had chastised him after last season, saying he wasn't in shape.

Voracek's goal made it 5-0 with 35 seconds left in the first, and the route was well under way.

"We played really solid hockey as a team . . . That's what matters," said Voracek, whose team fell short of the largest margin of victory in franchise history (11 goals) - done in 1977 and 1984.

Columbus captain Rick Nash had a different perspective on the game.

"Guys are embarrassed by the effort we put forth for the coaching staff and management," he said.

Voracek's first assist was a pretty feed that sent Max Talbot in alone for a goal that gave the Flyers a 3-0 lead.

On Friday, Voracek said he wanted to prove "they made a mistake" by trading him to the Flyers.

"This is my new lifestyle and my new hockey team and I'm focusing on that," he said on Saturday.

The Flyers also got first-period goals from van Riemsdyk, Jaromir Jagr (power-play tally, thanks to a deflection off a Blue Jacket) and Claude Giroux.

It was the Flyers' highest-scoring first period of the season, topping the four they scored during a 7-2 win in Ottawa on Oct. 18. It was the first time they had a 5-0 lead after the opening period since April 3, 2009 en route to an 8-5 conquest of Toronto.

Talbot's goal was his fifth. He is known as a defensive specialist, but he is on 29-goal pace.

Signed as a free agent in the offseason, Talbot was a scoring machine in juniors, but he never scored more than 13 in his six previous NHL campaigns. He netted eight goals for Pittsburgh last year.

"We brought him in here to do exactly what he's doing, which is to provide a spark in a lot of different areas," coach Peter Laviolette said. "He's a heart-and-soul guy. You've got to give Max a lot of credit because we bump him around to different positions and different roles and he's responded."

Giroux's goal was his ninth and fourth in the last five games. He entered the night second in the NHL with 17 points.

Jagr also continued his hot streak. It was his sixth goal, and it gave him points in seven straight games.

Steve Mason allowed the first three goals and was relieved by Allen York with 6 minutes, 51 seconds left in the first. York gave up two goals, and Mason re-entered at the start of the second period. He was shelled again, triggering derisive, singsong chants of "Ma-son, Ma-son."

The Flyers increased the lead to 8-0 on second-period goals by Couturier (shorthanded, on a clever feed from Braydon Coburn), Wayne Simmonds (first goal in last nine games) and Matt Carle. It marked the first time the Flyers had an eight-goal lead after two periods since they had a 9-1 cushion over Vancouver on Oct. 18, 1984.

"The whole team stepped up and brought their 'A' game," Couturier said.

Columbus (2-11-1), which has the NHL's worst record, has never beaten the Flyers in Philadelphia since it joined the league in 2000, failing in five tries.

In Columbus, there has been speculation that Arniel could be on his way out and that Ken Hitchcock, the former Flyers coach, will return to direct the Blue Jackets.