Gustafsson hopes to make mark on defense

Erik Gustafsson was rewarded for his patience.

Gustafsson was one of the Flyers' best defensemen during the latter part of last season, and he then excelled in the IIHF World Championships in May, playing on the top pairing and helping Sweden win the title.

And then he was a healthy scratch in the Flyers' first five games this season.

"Obviously you want to play all the games, but I don't think I played as well as I should have in camp," Gustafsson said after Monday's practice in Voorhees.

Gustfasson, 24, replaced veteran Andrej Meszaros and made his season debut Saturday in Detroit, scoring a goal in the Flyers' 5-2 loss.

"I thought he played well," coach Craig Berube said. "He adds speed back there, puck moving and he's a competitive guy and kind of all-around player."

Meszaros, coming off an injury-plagued season, is an expensive healthy scratch as he earns $4 million this season.

"He's a good player, but I just didn't see enough from him and I wanted to get Gus in there," Berube said. "It's a long year. Mez is working. He worked hard today, skated hard. That's great. He's a good pro."

When Gustafsson wasn't playing, he stayed on the ice longer than most teammates during practices, working on his shooting and skating. He also spent extra time in the gym with Ryan Podell, the team's assistant strength and conditioning coach.

Gustafsson watched the first five games from the press box, and he focused on defensemen Kimmo Timonen and Mark Streit.

Gustafsson and Timonen, two similar players, were paired toward the end of last season and seemed to have good chemistry. They were together again Saturday.

Gustafsson, a compact 5-foot-10, 180-pounder, tries to compensate for his small size in other manners.

"Faster decision-making is a huge part of it," he said. "Also positioning. . . . Maybe stay a little closer [to an opponent], get on the inside. I try to read the play and be there when the puck arrives. Don't give the forward time to protect it or put it away."

Gustafsson said he liked the style used by former coach Peter Laviolette, calling it a "good offensive system. But I think this system suits me as a player better. I really like what [Berube] is doing - high, hard forecheck, a lot of skating. He wants to turn around the play real quick, which suits me as a player."

The Flyers' power play is 2 for 27, second-worst in the NHL, and has failed to connect in its last 15 attempts.

"The power play is all about chemistry, confidence, knowing exactly where everybody is. We didn't practice that in the preseason. At all," Timonen said. "I knew it was going to be trouble early in the year and it has been. Now it's just a matter of getting back to basics and practice, having meetings, talk, see what everybody's doing wrong."

Timonen later clarified his comments, saying the Flyers didn't practice the power play with their regular unit because of preseason injuries to Claude Giroux and Jake Voracek.

Giroux and Voracek are now healthy, but the power play has two other key players injured, Scott Hartnell and Vinny Lecavalier.

With those players sidelined, Tye McGinn and Sean Couturier will try to help get the power play back on track Tuesday against visiting Vancouver (3-3).

Defenseman Mark Streit, whose Flyers lead the league in penalties, acknowledged there is a "fine line" between playing on the edge and playing undisciplined.

"We've got to improve and take less penalties," he said. "Maybe a hooking or other penalties are preventable. We can be a little more disciplined, but at the same time we need to still play physical and play them hard."

@BroadStBull