PHILADELPHIA -- Last night belonged to two former teammates and a hockey city that showed its devotion to each.

Philadelphia Flyers fans cheered R.J. Umberger before the start of the game and, remarkably, littered the ice with orange hats when they thought the Blue Jackets forward had recorded a hat trick in the final minutes.

The biggest ovations in Wachovia Center, however, were reserved for Umberger's friend, Jeff Carter.

The difference in the two performances? Umberger played well, but got little support. Carter played well and barely required any.

The Flyers center scored two unassisted goals, including one directly off a faceoff in the second period, giving them a lead they wouldn't relinquish on the way to a 5-3 win. Carter also added an assist to get the better of his former Philadelphia teammate of three seasons.

"When he's hot, he's an amazing player," Umberger said of Carter. "He has one of the best shots in the game, he skates fluidly and he was inches away from a hat trick. That shot off the faceoff was not lucky. I've seen them try that before."

Carter's second goal at 11:31 of the second period turned the game on its axis. Umberger had scored consecutive goals against a shaky Flyers goaltender Ray Emery to erase a 2-0 deficit. The Jackets were gaining momentum, and a feeling of unease gripped the building.

The mood changed in a drop of the puck.

From the right faceoff circle, Carter, matched against Sammy Pahlsson, made no effort to draw the puck back or push it forward. He won it cleanly and ripped the puck past goaltender Mathieu Garon.

"I was not really set for it," Garon said. "I was turning my head for the faceoff and it was pretty much in already."

After spending 30 minutes digging out from a two-goal deficit, the Jackets sagged noticeably.

"The third goal was the difference," coach Ken Hitchcock said. "We came back and were really playing well and third goal went in and it took the momentum out of it."

Garon surrendered five goals on 30 shots and was lifted in favor of Steve Mason midway through the third period. Garon didn't get a lot of help from his teammates in the defensive zone.

Defenseman Marc Methot (minus-3) turned over the puck at the Jackets' blue line on his first shift and Carter beat Garon with a backhander just 58 seconds in. It marked the fifth straight game the Jackets allowed the first goal -- all within the first 2 minutes, 30 seconds.

The Jackets' second line of Raffi Torres, Derick Brassard and Jake Voracek had a tough night after playing well on Monday against St. Louis. The line was on the ice for two goals against, Brassard took two penalties and Torres coughed up the puck on Daniel Carcillo's goal that made it 5-2.

While Kristian Huselius contributed three assists and Rick Nash had two points, the only Jacket to truly distinguish himself was a former Flyer. Umberger, traded to the Jackets in June 2008, popped in a pair of rebound goals and rued the fact his team couldn't create more chances against a rattled Emery.

"His rebounds were everywhere and I don't think he saw many pucks," Umberger said.

Apparently nobody in the venue saw Nash deflect a shot by Anton Stralman from the point with 1:17 remaining. Fans assumed Umberger, stationed at the top of the crease, had redirected the puck, and they began hurling hats that were distributed as part of a team giveaway.

"I don't know if I've ever seen that before, the welcome they gave an opposing player," said Umberger in his first return to Philadelphia as an opponent. "It really meant a lot to me. I had some great times here and for them to notice the effort I put in here and how much it meant for me to be a Flyer was a great feeling."

treed@dispatch.com