-HEADLINE-
Red Wings 5, Flyers 1
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    DETROIT (AP) _ Steve Yzerman usually raises his stick calmly after his goals.

    It was obvious that this was not just another goal.
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    Yzerman pumped his fist and soaked in the atmosphere created by a jubilant crowd when he scored the go-ahead goal in Detroit's 5-1 victory Friday night over the Philadelphia Flyers.

    The game was Yzerman's third since returning from knee surgery and just his fifth of the season. He hadn't scored since March 27.

    In vintage fashion, Yzerman skated around three Flyers and made it 2-1 from the high slot midway through the second.

    ``I haven't done a whole lot with the puck in the last three games,'' said Yzerman, who also had two assists. ``I tried to hold onto the puck a little longer and make something happen.

    ``I got the puck in the corner and instead of just throwing the puck into the corner or firing it at the net, I decided to hold onto it a little longer and things just evolved from there.''

    Detroit goalie Chris Osgood, who made 29 saves, enjoyed quite a view of Yzerman's goal.

    ``I knew he was going to go high as soon as he got into the slot,'' Osgood said. ``The puck was glued to his stick in the slot and it was a beautiful goal. When he scores a goal like that, it gives the guys a boost and makes all of us play a lot harder.''

    The Red Wings, who were shut out in their last two games for the first time in 10 years, have not lost at home to Philadelphia since 1988.

    Philadelphia coach Craig Ramsay didn't like how his team defended Yzerman's goal or how it responded after it.

    ``We had chances early, but when they scored that second goal we really sagged,'' Ramsay said. ``They took control. The Yzerman goal was a really poor effort. We had the puck in control, whiffed it, turned it over and he walked around three guys who tried to stick-check him. We didn't play the body on him and that's unacceptable.''

    Philadelphia's Brian Boucher could only shake his head when recalling Yzerman's goal.

    ``I've seen a couple of those before,'' Boucher said. ``Anytime you let a guy skate like that, he's pretty dangerous.''

    A few minutes before his goal, Yzerman was called for hooking when Simon Gagne raced past him.

    ``I was caught in between and I had no idea where the puck was,'' Yzerman said. ``He had a step on me and I knew I was in trouble there. Ozzie came out and challenged him pretty good and made the play.''

    The Red Wings scored five consecutive goals for the first time this season after the Flyers took a 1-0 lead on Dan McGillis' goal midway through the first period.

    Detroit's Darren McCarty, Kris Draper, Vyacheslav Kozlov and Brendan Shanahan added goals to give the Red Wings a comfortable cushion.

    ``It was the best game we played in quite awhile,'' Yzerman said.

Notes: Former Red Wings D Gary Bergman, who played in the NHL from 1964-75, died Friday. He was 62. ... Detroit won its second game in 13 contests when the opponent scored first. Philadelphia lost its second game in 14 when scoring first. ... Flyers forward Rick Tocchet, who leads the team with 12 assists, did not make the trip after two of his teeth were knocked out, on a shot from teammate Eric Desjardins, in a victory over Tampa Bay on Wednesday.
-CITY-
DETROIT
-ARRIVALDATE-
12/09/2000
-ARRIVALTIME-
04:45:56
-CATEGORY-
Sports
-SLUG-
HKN--Flyers-Red Wings
-SOURCE-
AP