NHL Jackets, Flyers play to 1-1 tie

Columbus goalie Fred Brathwaite was perfect until the final minute.
By TOM WILLIAMS
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
COLUMBUS -- Some ties aren't quite as bad as kissing your sister.
For almost 59 minutes, perennial backup goalie Fred Brathwaite was Cinderella, stopping shots from the Philadelphia Flyers. But with 1:08 to go in Wednesday's game at Nationwide Arena, the clock struck midnight.
The ball closed down when Flyers winger Sami Kapanen slipped a wraparound shot under the Blue Jackets goalie, tying the score at 1-1 and forcing overtime.
In the extra session, Brathwaite stopped eight more shots as the Blue Jackets (8-14-4-1) killed off two Flyers' power plays to preserve their hardest earned point of the season against the league's best team (17-3-7-1).
"Some ties are not good," Blue Jackets coach Doug MacLean said. "This was a good tie against a pretty good hockey team."
Stopped 40 shots
Braithwaite, a 10-year journeyman who joined the Blue Jackets last summer as a free agent, stopped 40 shots to improve to 1-3-1.
"Most of them came from the outside," Brathwaite said. "The guys cleared the rebounds for me very well and they let me see the puck. We got a point, but we should have gotten two. It's kind of disappointing."
MacLean credited the 31-year-old netminder for standing "in there really well for us. He is a big pinch hitter, one of the best in the business. He's been waiting patiently for his chance.
"I thought he made some outstanding saves, his puckhandling was strong," MacLean said.
Brathwaite said Kapanen's goal slipped in because he left the post uncovered.
"They jammed at it and I don't know exactly where it went in, but that's where I need to stick to my post," Brathwaite said.
Nash let one get away
The Blue Jackets had several close calls in the third period. Left winger Rick Nash, who is tied for the league lead in goals scored (18), almost had a breakaway, but the puck slipped off his stick.
Wingers Nikolai Zherdev and Trevor Letowski both rang shots off the goalposts next to Flyers goalie Jeff Hackett (10-2-4), who stopped 19 shots.
Early in overtime, the Blue Jackets were penalized for too many men on the ice. After skating it off, Blue Jackets defenseman Scott LaChance was penalized for boarding when he rammed Flyers winger Mark Recchi.
LaChance admitted he was surprised to get whistled off in overtime, but said, "the way he fell into the boards is why they called it."
MacLean said the bench penalty was deserved because Zherdev jumped over the boards to soon.
Almost seven minutes into the first period, Blue Jackets center Manny Malhotra scored the only goal of the first 58 minutes with a shot just inside the right faceoff circle.
Zherdev, the Russian rookie winger in his second week in the NHL, set up the goal by passing to right winger David Vyborny in the corner. Vyborny sent a sharp pass cross-ice to Malhotra whose quick shot beat Hackett.
It wasn't enough.
"Whenever you give up a goal with a minute to go, it's frustrating," LaChance said. "But the way things have gone for us and [considering] the talent of the team we played tonight, to come out with a tie, there are a lot of positives."
williams@vindy.com