Flyers Fan Reaction (FFR4) Gm 69: PHI 4, NYR 3 (SO) – Collapse-Back

Flyers Fan Reaction (FFR4) Gm 69: PHI 4, NYR 3 (SO) – Collapse-Back

Don’t call it a comeback, because, well, it wasn’t one. The Philadelphia Flyers WIN, 4-3, shootout style for the first time this season, over the New York Rangers. Not only was this the Flyers’ first shootout win of 2021-22, but it was also the first time they even scored in one. Should there have been any need for this game to go beyond 60 minutes? No, although another late Flyers collapse made sure it would. But this time, they buckled down and eeked out a second point against one of the better teams in the East, at least record-wise.

The Flyers continued their recent stretch of solid starts; make it three straight games where their first ten to twenty minutes have been pretty strong. The one thing that changed from those previous two efforts is that the Flyers were able to take advantage of their chances. A Cam York blast off a clean face-off win by Nate Thompson opened the scoring. Just fifty seconds later, Owen Tippett burst into the Rangers zone and buried the rebound of his own centering pass for his first goal in Philadelphia. The underlying numbers didn’t necessarily show it, but the Flyers looked very crisp with the puck and executed some nice passing plays, including one that sprung Hayden Hodgson for a breakaway only a minute or so after the Tippett goal.

However, it was really only a matter of time before the ice started to tilt in the opposite direction. Not only are the Rangers a significantly more talented team than the current iteration of the Flyers, but they were also at home and rested. Philadelphia, meanwhile, was on the second half of a back-to-back. And no matter how many kids you put in the lineup, even the youngest legs get tired at some point.

But the Flyers managed to keep their 2-0 lead intact through the end of the second. Granted, it had more to do with Martin Jones delivering a quality performance, as he somehow stopped all 19 shots fired his way in the middle stanza. Yet a two-goal lead is a two-goal lead. And when it became a 3-0 lead off a gorgeous passing play, with Oskar Lindblom springing the Flyers on a 2-on-1 and Travis Sanheim selling the shot perfectly before hitting Joel Farabee backdoor, it was fair to wonder if the Flyers had built a lead solid enough that even they couldn’t let it slip away.

Narrator: they had not built a lead solid enough that even they couldn’t let it slip away.

Philadelphia’s three-goal edge lasted all of 38 seconds. Jacob Trouba shot wide hoping for a tip and got one from Artemi Panarin. The Flyers kept the Rangers out of arm’s reach until the final five minutes when Mika Zibanejad buried a rebound goal on a 3-on-2 after Rasmus Ristolainen couldn’t control a puck he gloved down at the red-line. And before Rangers fans had even sat back down after the 3-2 goal, Panarin trickled a perfect backhand pass to the net-mouth, and Andrew Copp got inside positioning on Ivan Provorov to chip the puck past Jones. Jaws: dropped. Lead: gone.

An entertaining overtime solved nothing, setting up a near assured Flyers loss. A low-scoring team that entered the night without a shootout goal all season, much less a shootout win, with their backup goalie matched up against the league’s best netminder. So naturally, Jones stopped all three Rangers shooters, while Kevin Hayes beat Shesterkin high-blocker in the third round to lift the Flyers to another improbable outcome.

Nothing about this game much sense. Then again, not much of either team’s season has. The Flyers thought they had at least a playoff contention caliber roster. Instead, they could legitimately finish dead last in the league. The Rangers haven’t made the playoffs (quick bubble trip excluded) since 2017 and are 26th in the NHL in expected goals percentage. Yet they’re a top-five team in the standings. But they also couldn’t beat the Flyers in a shootout of all things. Ok, maybe that part isn’t too surprising. But it all felt like a belated April Fools Day celebration. Perhaps that’s at least better than more of the same old, same old for the Flyers this season.

Lindies

Two of Cam York’s three NHL goals have come against the Rangers; his first NHL goal back in January, and of course, his blast on Sunday.

Tippett’s goal was his first since Jan. 31, breaking a nine-game drought. He easily could have had a hat-trick, as Shesterkin stopped him on a pair of breakaway attempts.

Two new injuries for the Flyers to speak of. Nick Seeler missed Sunday’s game with a lower-body injury. Zack MacEwen sat due to a hand injury from fighting Wayne Simmonds. Guess he didn’t get the memo. Kevin Connauton and Hayden Hodgson checked in for Seeler and MacEwen.

I was surprised to hear that Sunday was just Justin Braun’s second game for the Rangers, as he’s been a frequent healthy scratch in New York. Obviously, the Rangers’ defense is much more talented than the Flyers’, especially on the right side. But given how solid Braun was in Philadelphia, I find it hard to believe he couldn’t make life just a little bit easier for Igor Shetskerin in a regular, third-pair role.

Mika Zibanejad’s 3-2 goal was his 21st point in 11 games against the Flyers over the last two seasons. At least the Flyers managed to keep him under six this time.

3 Stars

3rd: Owen Tippett (PHI) – Goal (7), 3 Shots, 3 Hits

2nd: Artemi Panarin (NYR) – Goal (19), Assist (63), 7 Shots, 23:19 TOI

1st: Martin Jones (PHI) – .935 SV% (43 Saves/46 Shots), 3 GA on 3.69 Expected Goals Against (All Situations), 3/3 Shootout Attempts

Next

PHI: 4/5, 7 PM vs. CBJ (32-32-5, L3)

NYR: 4/5, 7 PM @ NJ (24-39-6, L1)

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