Esche made several outstanding saves for his sixth win in seven playoff starts. He preserved the lead by stoning Clarke Wilm on a point-blank breakaway shot late in the third period.

In the second period, Esche fell to the ice into a seated position and robbed Chad Kilger with a glove save.

Esche outplayed reigning Vezina Trophy winner Martin Brodeur in Philadelphia’s first-round victory over defending Stanley Cup champion New Jersey. He recorded his first playoff shutout with a spectacular 35-save performance in a victory over the Devils that gave the Flyers a 3-1 series lead.

While Esche has been superb, Belfour had another subpar effort. He stopped 22 shots. Belfour, the only goalie still in the postseason who has won a Stanley Cup, had an excellent first-round series against Ottawa, tying an NHL record with three shutouts.

Sundin, Toronto’s leading scorer in the regular season, returned to the lineup after missing four games with a leg injury. But center Joe Nieuwendyk sat out with an undisclosed injury. Also, forward Owen Nolan remained sidelined with a knee injury.

For the Flyers, defenseman Kim Johnsson was scratched for the second straight game with a broken bone in his right hand.

Domi tied it at 1 in the second period with his seventh playoff goal in 94 games. Domi streaked down the center, fought off defenseman Joni Pitkanen and redirected a centering pass from Wilm over Esche’s shoulder and just under the crossbar.

Esche kept it at 1-all with a kick save on a one-timer by Alexei Ponikarovsky early in the third period.

Brashear gave the Flyers a 1-0 lead in the first period, scoring with two seconds remaining on a power play. Brashear outmuscled Leafs defenseman Bryan McCabe in front of the crease, took a pass from Mark Recchi and stuffed it past Belfour.

It was Brashear’s second playoff goal in 37 games.

In Philadelphia’s 3-1 victory Thursday night, defenseman Marcus Ragnarsson’s go-ahead goal was just his second playoff goal in 60 games. In the series-clinching victory over New Jersey, defenseman Danny Markov’s game-winning goal was just his second playoff goal in 45 games.

Notes: After becoming the first team in league history to score first in each game of a seven-game series against Ottawa in the first round, the Leafs allowed the first goal for the second straight game. The Flyers have scored first in each of their seven playoff games. … Brashear’s goal was just his fifth career power-play goal. … The Flyers had just one shot in the second period, tying their fewest amount ever in any playoff period.

AP-ES-04-25-04 2137EDT