Biron credits improved play to extra work at carnival

The Philadelphia Flyers have won three straight games and have pulled to within seven points of the first-place New Jersey Devils. The club is starting to get hot at the right time and it may be linked to their goaltender, Martin Biron, getting hot at the right time.

Since February 22, 2009, the date of the Flyer's Wives Fight for Lives Carnival—a player and fan festival raising money for charities in the Delaware Valley, Biron has started 10 games and has won seven. The goalie has also won his last three starts for the team and has compiled and overall 2.71 GAA and .917 SV%.

What happened at the carnival?

Flyers fans taking shots at goalies has become a tradition at the Wive's Carnival. A portion of the ice surface has been left exposed to give smiling children the opportunity to fire a wrist or slap shot against such netminders as Hextall, Cechmanek, Soderstrom, Peeters and now, Biron.

Though the player dunk tank seems more popular, the shot-on-goal event can give a struggling goaltender the extra work that is critical to uncovering their A-game. During the event an astounding one thousand shots can be taken by, often angry, fans.

"I'll never forget the 1990 carnival," said Ron Hextall, the former goalie who spent two separate stints with the team and now serves as assistant general manager in Los Angeles. "I was struggling badly and I was planning on greeting the fans and maybe taking 20 shots. As I was skating off [Bob] Clarke ordered me back into net. I saw over 900 shots that day."

This year estimates put Biron's carnival shot total at 750. That is the equivalent of playing 21 games at 35 shots per contest. Most fans admit that Biron looked sharp during the shot-on-goal event and seemed to improve the longer it lasted.

"It was not only the extra practice I received during the carnival, but also one of the ferocious shooters gave me some great advice," said Biron about his improved play.

The ferocious shooter was Tommy Hartley, 10, a huge fan from Prospect Park, PA in Delaware County. Hartley went 3 for 3 against Biron knocking the water bottle off the top of the net twice. Biron felt better when he learned Hartley is the leading scorer on the Propect Park Salamanders youth hockey club.

"He told me to just be myself." said Biron about his hour long conversation with Hartley at the carnival. "He also said to focus and relax. He's a smart little guy."