Photo Credit: FNG’s Rob Windfelder
If you’ve only gotten to watch one Flyers game so far this season I hope it was this one. This game started out innocently enough. Both teams seemed unwilling to take too many risks as they were sizing each other up during the scoreless 1st period.
Morgan Frost
Let’s get this out of the way. You can only imagine Morgan Frost must be playing under a microscope as far as head coach John Tortorella is concerned based on his multiple scratches so far this season. Frost has been playing some pretty good hockey but he’s gotta stay out of the penalty box.
Conventional wisdom has it that you must keep your feet moving to keep yourself physically close to the action. If you find yourself reaching in for the puck your stick is eventually going to get you into trouble. High-sticking, hooking, tripping calls are things that will start to follow you if you don’t allow your feet to fully get you into the play. Frost needs to keep his feet moving and stay out of the box.
First blood
During the 2nd period both teams looked much more eager to open the score sheet. The Flyers have been very successful when scoring first this season. Philly goaltender Samuel Ersson was doing a fine job keeping Pittsburgh’s veteran heavy roster off the board. The Flyers had a fruitless power-play that they followed up with a dominant shift that started as soon as the teams were back at full strength. It makes no sense.
Pittsburgh scored a meritless goal 5:29 into the 2nd period. Kris Letang fired a wrister along the ice from the top of the circle which hit the blade of Travis Sanheim’s stick tipping it up and in high glove side.
The Flyers bounced right back and were swarming at times in the Penguins end. Tristan Jarry stoned Owen Tippett on a breakaway. Tippett had a Penguin on his back and not much time or space to take advantage of.
Take two
Moments later Tippett got a second crack at it. Tyson Foerster made a solid defensive move in the neutral zone stripping a Penguin of the puck and without hesitation threw a stretch pass up the ice to a streaking Owen Tippett. Tippett had a bit more room to work this time and beat Jarry with a backhander. Foerster’s heads up play and quick decision making is something we are getting used to seeing from him.
Less than two minutes into the 3rd period Jake Guentzel was given credit for the second Pittsburgh goal. Guentzel’s contribution to the goal was that he wore ice skates to the game. A shot wide by Erik Karlsson hit Guentzel in the skate and made it’s way passed the Flyers goaltender. Ersson was playing a really solid game only to be stung with not one, but two, unfortunate fluke goals.
Shorty
The Flyers tied the game at two with a short-handed goal by Scott Laughton. Nick Deslaureirs was serving a two minute minor for boarding checking when Nick Seeler threw the puck up ice as the penalty was about to expire. Laughton beat Evenji Malkin in a foot-race for the puck. Laughton powered through and patiently carried the puck across to the far side of the net before beating Jarry under his blocker. It was Scott’s first goal in 12 games.
The Flyers were outshooting the Penguins by double at that point yet the score was tied. Ersson continued to make some really key saves as the shot deferential started to evaporate.
PPG
Pittsburgh’s penalty kill is the old school grip it and rip it style. Nothing too aggressive just get possession of the puck and send it the length of the ice. This was effective against the Flyers until Tyson Foerster beat Jarry high blocker side with a snap shot from just above the dot. Foerster’s renewed confidence has him back in shooting mode, which is where he belongs.
The Penguins spent the last minute of regulation swarming in the Flyers end with their goalie pulled for the extra attacker. The Flyers could not clear the zone and eventually the puck made its way through traffic into the net with just 21 seconds left on the clock. It was Guentzel’s second goal of the game.
OT
The overtime period was fast, furious, and quite dangerous. Ersson was called on to make some really big saves to keep the game going. At one point even Tristan Jarry registered a shot on goal. The Flyers were called for too many men on the ice and played the final minute of OT shorthanded.
Shoot-Out
Sean Couturier scored the lone goal with the same backwards move he successfully used on a penalty shot earlier this season. Ersson stopped every shot. He had a sweet glove save on Sidney Crosby and made a fine pad save on Bryan Rust to end the contest. Samuel Ersson is a perfect 7 for 7 in his two shoot-out appearances so far this season.
Extra Credit: Sidney Crosby and Mario Lemieux are currently tied for most career points against the Flyers. Some night Crosby is going to get the point that breaks that tie. It very easily could have been tonight when the Flyers were short handed in overtime, but it wasn’t. And “that”, as Bernie likes to say, “is a beautiful thing”.
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