AP Photo/Tony Avelar
The Flyers took a 2-0 lead 6:47 minutes into the third period. Unfortunately for the Flyers, things would soon begin to go downhill.
Tomas Hertl put the Sharks on his back getting them back to within one goal just a minute after the Flyers had extended their lead to two. He then tied the game with a little under six minutes to go in the third period.
Hertl wasn’t done there. After forcing the game to overtime, Hertl ended things 24 seconds into overtime electing to shoot on a 2-on-1 rush to complete the comeback and lead the Sharks to a 3-2 victory over the Flyers. It was the 28-year-olds fifth career hat trick.
The Flyers were outshot 47-31 overall and 20-5 in the third period. Two of those shots resulted in goals early on in the third period.
Forward James van Riemsdyk used his speed to put the Flyers up 1-0 off of the rush just over a minute in. A few minutes later, van Riemsdyk scored his second goal of the night when a Cam York shot from the point hit him in front before entering the net. He now has nine goals on the season.
A third period to forget
It was a period to forget for the Flyers.
After going up 2-0 in the third period, the Sharks rattled off two of their own goals and eventually won it in overtime. The Flyers, aside from a few chances, spent most of the period defending in their own zone. They were outshot 20-5 overall in the final period of regulation.
Flyers interim head coach Mike Yeo was not impressed with the Flyers final 20 minutes of play. He believes the Flyers enforced self-inflicted wounds on themselves.
“We put ourselves in a position where we had to defend the entire time,” Yeo said. “You build no momentum and the other team’s feeling good.”
According to Natural Stat Trick, the Flyers gave up 15 scoring chances against in the final period. They only generated five of their own.
“The self-inflicted harm that we’re doing to ourselves is something that we have to get out of our system and something we have to prevent here because you’re not gonna win hockey games,” Yeo said. “Like giving rush opportunities like we did in the third period when the game’s on the line at home and you give up 20 shots, we can’t be doing that.”
Jones does all he can versus former team
Martin Jones spent six seasons with the San Jose Sharks. Last night, he faced his former team for the first time since signing a one-year, $2 million dollar contract with the Flyers this past summer.
During his time in San Jose, Jones compiled a regular season record of 170-121-27 to go along with a 2.66 goals-against average and a .907 save percentage.
The veteran goaltender did all he could to give the Flyers a chance to win Saturday night. He stopped 44 of 47 shots fired his way. He was under pressure all night long as the Sharks fired away from all angles.
“I think between him (Jones) and Hartsy they’ve been our most consistent players the whole year and they’ve given us a chance every single night,” forward James van Riemsdyk said. “Not much we can complain about as far as goaltending, those guys have been tremendous the whole year. I think he was his usual self in that regard. He played really well. Made some big saves for us and gave us a chance.”
So far this year, Jones is 6-5-2 with a 3.33 goals-against average and a .909 save percentage. He’s the backend of the Flyers goaltending tandem along with Carter Hart.
Depleted Flyers
The Flyers were once again forced to play Saturday nights game versus San Jose short-handed. The coronavirus and injuries in general have been a thorn in their side lately.
Claude Giroux, Travis Konecny, Ivan Provorov and Travis Sanheim missed Saturday nights game due the NHL’s Covid-19 protocols. Their number one center in Sean Couturier is on injured reserve and their top defenseman Ryan Ellis is still out with a nagging injury.
Not having some of their key contributors has no doubt hurt them in recent games. They’ve been forced to use reinforcements from their AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
The Flyers don’t play again until Tuesday when they host the Carolina Hurricanes. The hope is that they’ll get reinforcements in time for that game.
York earns first NHL point
Cam York played in his third straight game since making his season debut versus the Anaheim Ducks this past Tuesday.
On the power play in the third period, York got a shot through from the point that went off of forward James van Riemsdyk and into the back of the net. With that assist, York registered his first NHL point.
The 21-year-old defenseman has also been tasked with shutting down the opposing teams top lines. Last night, York played on the top defensive pair with Justin Braun opposite of him. He finished the night with 23:59 of total ice time.
“I mean I’m doing my best,” York said. “Obviously, it’s a challenge especially when you’re playing against other team’s top lines and you’re playing 20 plus minutes a night. It’s the best league in the world.”
What’s Next?
The Flyers wrap up a three-game homestand when they host the Carolina Hurricanes Tuesday night at the Wells Fargo Center. The Hurricanes currently sit atop the Metropolitan Division with 50 points. Their 24 wins are the most in the NHL.
The Hurricanes are led by forward Sebastian Aho. The 24-year-old leads the team in goals (15), assists (22) and points (37).
The Flyers had a full day off today. They’re expected to hold a practice tomorrow ahead of their matchup with Carolina.
Puck drop is slated for 7 p.m. ET Tuesday night from the Wells Fargo Center.
