The Philadelphia Flyers started 2025 in an ugly fashion. They got off to a fast start but costly turnovers and bad goaltending sent them downhill. They’d lose by a final score of 5-2 and drop below hockey .500 at 17-18-4.
Tyson Foerster gave the Flyers a 1-0 lead just 21 seconds into the first period. Noah Cates took the puck to the front of the net and lost it, but it found Foerster who put a wrist shot past Golden Knights goaltender Ilya Samsonov. Cates and Bobby Brink tallied assists.
The Golden Knights got the game’s first power play as Ryan Poehling got called for goaltender interference at the 17:00 mark of the first period. They didn’t capitalize as the Flyers were strong on the forecheck and cleared the puck when given the opportunity.
The Golden Knights tied the game up at one just 51 seconds into the second period. Owen Tippett tried to pass the puck to Travis Konecny but turned it over. Jack Eichel drove to the front of the net and Mark Stone redirected the puck past Flyers goaltender Aleksei Kolosov. Eichel and Noah Hanifin collected assists.
Nicolas Hague gave the Golden Knights a 2-1 lead at the 2:13 mark of the second period. Keegan Kolesar forced a Joel Farabee turnover and it proved to be costly. Hague’s wraparound attempt went through the legs of Kolosov. The two goals for the Knights were separated by 1:22. Kolesar received the only assist.
Pavel Dorofeyev made it 3-1 Golden Knights at the 18:22 mark of the second period. He ripped a wrist shot past the blocker of Kolosov from the left circle. A nice pass by Shea Theodore set him up. Theodore and Brayden McNabb picked up assists.
The Golden Knights took a 4-1 lead at the 2:46 mark of the third period. Alexander Holtz used Jamie Drysdale as a screen in front and sent a wrist shot over Kolosov’s glove. Hanifin and Alex Pietrangelo tallied assists.
The Flyers got their first power play of the game at the 4:42 mark of the third period as Hanifin got called for holding. They managed to capitalize on the opportunity as Travis Konecny sent a wrist shot from the right circle under Samsonov’s glove. A nice pass by Owen Tippett from the middle set him up. Tippett and Morgan Frost collected assists. This made the score 4-2 Golden Knights at the 4:56 mark.
Stone was called for tripping at the 11:19 mark of the third period, which gave the Flyers their second power play. They didn’t capitalize on the opportunity but had a few good chances around the net.
The Flyers pulled Kolosov with 2:19 remaining in the third period in favor of the extra attacker. However, they couldn’t put anything more past Samsonov. Instead, Tanner Pearson scored an empty-net goal at the 19:24 mark of the third period to give the Golden Knights a 5-2 lead. Stone and Jack Eichel received assists.
The Flyers went one-for-two on the power play and killed off Vegas’ lonely advantage.
Kolosov ultimately struggled in net even with his team not helping him out. He saved 22 of 26 shots, giving him a .846 save percentage.
Goal Summary
1st Period:
Tyson Foerster (11) Assists: Cates (8), Brink (15)
2nd Period:
Stone (9) Assists: Eichel (39), Hanifin (13)
Hague (3) Assists: Kolesar (8)
Dorofeyev (14) Assists: Theodore (27), McNabb (5)
3rd Period:
Holtz (3) Assists: Hanifin (14), Pietrangelo (18)
Konecny (18) (Power Play) Assists: Tippett (13), Frost (11)
Pearson (8) (Empty Net) Assists: Stone (23), Eichel (40)
Flyers Next Game
Flyers next game is Sunday, Jan. 5 in Toronto against the Maple Leafs.
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