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The Noise: Flyers take 5, familiar Hurricane resurfacing

John Russell / National Hockey League / Getty

theScore's new series, "The Noise," is published every Monday. It kicks off each week with a quick look at three teams or players making headlines, good or bad.

Philadelphia Flyers

The hottest team in the NHL resides in the City of Brotherly Love.

Philadelphia is riding a five-game win streak following back-to-back victories over the Chicago Blackhawks and Nashville Predators over the weekend.

How have they done it?

The Flyers are filling the net at a rate eclipsed by only three other teams - scoring 3.11 goals per game - but they've also allowed the fourth-most at 3.07 per contest.

Only the Columbus Blue Jackets have a more efficient power play, but Philadelphia's penalty kill is ranked in the bottom-third of the NHL.

Steve Mason is on an impressive run that earned him first star of the week honors, but he'll continue to be relied upon heavily while Michal Neuvirth is on the shelf.

Even after his stellar week, the ever-inconsistent Mason is 9-8-3 with a 2.76 GAA and a .904 save percentage. Rookie backup Anthony Stolarz is largely unproven, and he's filling in for Neuvirth, who struggled mightily before suffering an apparent knee sprain last month.

All these issues make it hard to believe Philadelphia's run is sustainable, but for now, the Flyers are clearly doing something right.

Anaheim Ducks

The Ducks' visit to Alberta did not go well.

Anaheim was embarrassed in Calgary on Sunday night, surrendering five goals in six minutes during an 8-3 rout at the hands of the Flames.

Jonathan Bernier allowed all eight goals and looked like a goaltender who hadn't played in over a week.

The destruction came on the second night of a back-to-back for the Ducks, who also lost to the Edmonton Oilers in overtime Saturday night.

Despite the losses, the Ducks currently find themselves in playoff position, but they're lucky the Pacific Division is the worst in the NHL.

Anaheim has a couple of days to ponder what went wrong in Calgary, before hosting Carolina on Wednesday.

Cam Ward

Speaking of the Hurricanes, it's been an up-and-down season for Carolina - but its veteran netminder is pulling his weight.

The Hurricanes are 10-10-5 through 25 games, and while Ward is only 8-7-4, his peripheral statistics provide a better indication of his early impact.

Nearly one-third of the way through the season, he's putting up numbers - a 2.09 GAA and .924 save percentage, to be exact - that would be career highs, if he can sustain them into the spring.

Ward made 30 saves in a shutout victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday, snapping a personal four-game losing streak in which he allowed only eight goals.

Not bad for a 32-year-old in his 12th NHL campaign.

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