The luck of the Irish seemed to be in the air for the Bruins last Saturday in a home game against the Philadelphia Flyers. Whether it was truly the magic of St. Patrick's Day or due to the loud, rowdy chants of "let's go Bruins," Boston managed to end their season-long four-game losing streak in a 3-2 shootout win over the Flyers. Philadelphia gave the Bruins all it could handle, forcing a shootout. However, the Bruins drew upon some holiday spirit, winning the shootout 3-2 to improve their record to 41-27-3.

Boston jumped right out of the gates, notching two goals in the first period alone. The Bruins finally clicked on offense, especially after being outscored 12-2 in their Florida road trip last week. At the six minute, 23 second mark, Philadelphia goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov saved a shot from Boston left wing Benoit Pouliot, but center Chris Kelly put in the rebound for his 17th goal of the season.

About halfway into the first period, the Bruins conceded a key opportunity after committing a penalty. After a scramble for the puck, Boston surprisingly had a chance at a shorthanded goal, but Bryzgalov notched the save. However, at 17:07, Bruins center Tyler Seguin took a pass from center Patrice Bergeron to secure his 25th goal of the season.

"We knew they were going to be desperate," Flyers forward Scott Hartnell said. "They have not been playing too well as of late. ... We knew they were going to come out with a big effort. They smoked us the first half of the game."

While a fast-paced tempo was on display during the second period and each team received many scoring opportunities, both squads did not have much to show by the second intermission. However, nine minutes into the second period, the Flyers finally got on the board. Right wing Matt Read deflected a shot from center Danny Briere into the net, cutting the Bruins' lead to one.

Defense proved to be the name of the game for the rest of the second period and much of the third. After the Flyers' second-period goal, neither team managed to slap the puck into the net for 24 minutes. Each team found openings, but the goaltenders on each side set up an iron curtain around the creases. With around four minutes to go, the crowd was confident the Bruins had the game in hand-their defense seemed impenetrable.

However, at the 15-minute mark, Boston would encounter misfortune once again. Boston goaltender Tim Thomas deflected a shot from Flyers defenseman Braydon Coburn, but right wing Jakub Voracek was able to sneak it past a small opening to tie the game.

While the Bruins offense still sputtered, Thomas continued to come through in the clutch. His stellar goaltending effort forced overtime, and even then, the Bruins goalie would carry a lackluster offense.

With the crowd firmly behind them, and the prospects of a shootout looming, Boston's offense came alive once again. Center David Krej?ss?<> and Seguin both scored to open the shootout, but the goals were answered by Read and then by center Claude Giroux.

Bergeron scored the third straight goal for the Bruins, sending the crowd into frenzy. Bri??re had a chance to tie the shootout, but the puck landed into Thomas' mitt, giving the Bruins their first victory since March 8 against the Buffalo Sabres.

Bryzgalov and the Flyers came into the game having won seven games in a row. The slick goaltender allowed an average of just 0.99 goals per game during that stretch, including a franchise-record shutout streak of 249:43. On Saturday, the Bruins managed five total goals against him.

"Sometimes when you lose in a shootout, you take it personally. But if you win you feel real good," said Thomas. "That was a hard, 65-minute effort today."

Boston will embark on a challenging West Coast road trip this week, first squaring off against the San Jose Sharks this Thursday at 10:30 p.m.