Fans put a smile on my face, says Flyers netminder Brown

After a shaky start, the netminder’s performances have improved throughout the season, with recent displays arguably among his best since joining the club.

In the past four matches, all wins, Brown has made 107 saves from 116 shots for a save percentage of 92.24, significantly higher than his season average of 89.1.

And Fife fans have responded to his top drawer performances with a celebratory “Broony” chant that is becoming something of a post-match tradition.

“The fans have been very supportive of me throughout the year,” Brown told the Press.

“When they get the ‘Broony’ chant going it’s pretty nice to hear - I’ve never had anything like that before in my career.

“It definitely puts a smile on my face, and it’s great to have the support of everybody.”

Part of the secret behind Brown’s recent success, he revealed, has been the growing bond between the goaltender and his defencemen.

“We’ve had some talks and we’re on the same page now with a lot of things,” he said.

“We talk it out in the locker room, and work on different cues for when I say something, or they say something.

“We’ve really worked on the communication. It’s been a huge development for us and it has really shown in the games.

“We’re on the same page, and we’re all battling back there to get the same results. It’s great when it all comes together.”

Brown admitted that the campaign has been tough at times as the team struggled for consistency, but with seven wins in nine, he feels things are now beginning to blossom.

“We were one of those teams that took a little bit of time to grow together as a group,” he said.

“When you come into a new situation there is a little bit of growing pains but we’ve really gelled together and Danny and Todd have done a great job of leading the way and pointing us in the right direction.

“You can see that now, especially the last little while where we’ve been playing good hockey and starting to get the results that we want.”

Brown had to be at his best in the closing stages of the 4-3 win in Braehead Arena on Saturday as Clan piled on the pressure late in the game.

“It was a nail-biter for sure, and play-off style hockey,” he said.

“We knew going in that it would be a battle right to the end, and that’s exactly what it was.

“It was a little bit crazy in the third period but we kept to the game plan and battled right to the end.

“The puck was jumping around a little bit and they were crashing the net pretty hard but the guys did a great job in front of me, letting me see shots, and boxing out the Braehead guys.

“It was a real good defensive effort in the third.”