The Philadelphia Flyers traveled to Newark, New Jersey, to take on the Devils Saturday night in their second game of a back-to-back. Dan Vladar got the start in net. Egor Zamula was inserted into the lineup with Noah Juulsen being a healthy scratch. The Flyers took down the Devils once again, handing them their first home-ice loss. Owen Tippett and Matvei Michkov’s two-goal games help lead the team to a five-to-three victory. The orange and black improved to 14-7-3 on the season.
The Flyers got the game’s first power play just 48 seconds into the game as Simon Nemec was called for high-sticking. They got three shots on net, but Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom either saw them all the way or went off him and wide.
Tippett gave the Flyers a 1-0 lead at the 5:18 mark of the first period. Christian Dvorak found Tippett, who was driving to the net. Tippett then put a backhander into a wide-open net. Markstrom was way out of position. Dvorak and Trevor Zegras tallied assists.
The Devils tied the game up at one at the 12:09 mark of the first thanks to Nemec. He took a pass from Jesper Bratt and put a slapshot past the blocker of Vladar. Sean Coutuier lost his stick during the play, and the Devils took advantage. Bratt and Nico Hischier picked up assists.
Michkov got called for cross-checking at the 18:45 mark of the first period, which gave the Devils their first power play. Vladar made two huge saves on Hischier and Timo Meier, and the Flyers did a great job of blocking shots and clearing the puck.
The Flyers took a 2-1 lead just 53 seconds into the second period. Travis Konecny fed Michkov with a pass as he was crashing the net. The puck ultimately rolled through the legs of Markstrom and into the net. Konecny and Travis Sanheim were given assists.
Michkov scored his second of the game at the 3:16 mark of the second to give the Flyers a 3-1 lead. Cam York made a move around a Devil at the blue line and then passed to Konecny, who was at the top of the right circle. Konecny’s snapshot went off Michkov in front and past the blocker of Markstrom. Assists went to Konecny and York.
Zegras made the score 4-1 Flyers at the 13:03 mark of the second period. Tippett fed Zegras with a pass to the left circle, and Zegras put a slapshot off Markstrom’s glove and into the net. This happened just after Bratt put a snapshot off the right post on a breakaway. Tippett was given the only assist.
The Flyers went on their second power play at the 16:04 mark of the second as Brenden Dillon was called for unsportsmanlike conduct and cross-checking, and Couturier for cross-checking. The Devils did a nice job of clearing the puck down the ice, and Markstrom only had to make a save on Zegras.
With 27 seconds remaining on the power play, the Flyers got caught with too many men on the ice. This made the game go to four-on-four, and then the Devils got an abbreviated power play. The Devils capitalised on the power play to get within two. Vladar made the initial save on Dawson Mercer’s tip-in try on Bratt’s pass but allowed a rebound. Meier collected the rebound and put a wrist shot under Vladar’s blocker. This made the score 4-2 Flyers. Mercer and Bratt tallied assists.
Mercer got the Devils within one at the 6:28 mark of the third period. Zegras turned the puck over, Mercer made moves around a few Flyers players, and then put a backhander past Vladar. 4-3 Flyers. The goal was unassisted.
The Devils went on their third power play at the 6:57 mark of the third as Garnet Hathaway was called for delay of game (puck over glass). Vladar stood on his head as he made three big saves to keep the Flyers in front. The Flyers also did their job of clearing the puck down the ice.
York got called for slashing at the 13:16 mark of the third period, which gave the Devils their fourth power play. Vladar made a huge save through traffic, and that’s about it. The Flyers, of course, did a nice job of clearing the puck when given the opportunity.
Markstrom was pulled with 1:02 left in the game in favor of the extra attacker as the Devils were down by one. It backfired, however, as Arseny Gritsyuk tripped Tippett as he was about to go on a breakaway. Tippett was awarded a goal as the Devils net was empty. This gave the Flyers a 5-3 lead. The goal was unassisted.
Flyers went zero for two on the power play but killed off three of the four Devils’ man advantages.
Vladar saved 29 of 32 shots, giving him a .906 save percentage.
Goal Summary
1st Period:
Tippett (7) Assists: Dvorak (10), Zegras (15)
Nemec (6) Assists: Bratt (18), Hischier (14)
2nd Period:
Michkov (7) Assists: Konecny (13), Sanheim (7)
Michkov (8) Assists: Konecny (14), York (11)
Zegras (9) Assists: Tippett (9)
Meier (9) (Power Play) Assists: Mercer (10), Bratt (19)
3rd Period:
Mercer (10) Assists: none
Tippett (8) Assists: none
Flyers Next Game
Flyers next game is Monday, Dec. 1, in Philadelphia against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
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