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Wrap: Flyers Dig Deep, Force Game 7 |
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Setting a new franchise record for a single series, the Philadelphia Flyers prevailed in double-OT, 5-4, against the New York Islanders on Thursday night for the Flyers third victory beyond regulation in the series. The Philadelphia win tied the series at three wins apiece and forced a seventh and deciding game on Saturday at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto. Saturday's game will start at 7:30 p.m. ET and air on NBC.
New York controlled puck possession for the majority of the game but the Flyers were resilient and battled hard, especially in the absence of top-line center Sean Couturier. It was a bend-but-don't-break night for the Flyers, who saw an early 2-0 lead slip away and then battled back from deficits of 3-2 and 4-3.
"There’s no doubt that this wasn’t one of our better games. At the end of the day, we found a way to come back in the third and tie up the game against a team that doesn’t give up a lot of leads. It took us two overtimes," Flyers head coach Alain Vigneault said.
"We found a way to make a play in the second overtime. Got a great shot and obviously a goal that permits us to have a chance. That’s what we wanted. We wanted to have a chance. If somebody were to ask me in the beginning of the series against a strong opponent, one game winner take all, I would have taken that."
The Flyers went 0-for-4 on the power play to fall to 0-for-11 in the series. New York went 1-for-6 and are 4-for-17 overall. New York's first goal of the game was scored right after a Nicolas Aube-Kubel penalty expired.
Counterattacking goals by Kevin Hayes at 10:16 and James van Riemsdyk at 11:52 gave the Flyers a 2-0 lead in the first period. Derick Brassard got one back at 16:33 on a re-direct right after an Islanders power play expired.
At 1:24 of the second period, Matt Martin tied the game on a counterattack off a blocked shot. A failed challenge for goalie interference on the play resulted in an Anders Lee power play goal at 3:06 to give New York a 3-2 lead. At 13:21, Michael Raffl knotted the game at 3-3. With 30 seconds left in the period, Mathew Barzal used Travis Sanheim as a screen to restore a one-goal to the Islanders at 4-3.
In the third period, the Flyers followed up a successful penalty kill shortly thereafter with a Scott Laughton breakaway goal to knot the score at 4-4. The Islanders, who outshot and outchanced the Flyers in all three regulation periods and the first OT period (despite two Flyers power plays), had numerous chances to put the game away.
The Flyers controlled most of the second OT after getting a lift from a start-of-period penalty kill, and took advantage of a broken Scott Mayfield stick to ultimately win the game. Ivan Provorov scored from high over the middle to end the game at 15:03 of the second overtime.
"I saw their defenseman broke the stick. Hayesy was carrying the puck in and I knew he was going to try to make a play. I was joining the rush. He threw the puck up front. I got it. Their forward was sliding into a lane, so I shot it at the opposite side. Tried to go top corner and got there," Provorov said of the winning goal.
Oskar Lindblom dressed for Game 6 for the Flyers, playing for the first time since he was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma last December and completing cancer treatments two months ago.
"That was a huge boost. This kid has so much courage. He played unbelievable too. He hasn’t played since I’m not even sure, but it’s been a long time. It’s been a long battle. This guy’s heart, you have to see it to believe it," Giroux said of Lindblom.
Lindblom explained that the final decision was not made until after Thursday's morning skate.
"We started talking a little bit yesterday and then took the decision today. It’s hard to step into a playoff game, especially one of these where you have to win. Trying to grind it out and lucky we came out with the win here," he said.
The Flyers also got a lift from the return of Raffl. The Flyers were missing not only Selke Trophy finalist Couturier (suspected right knee injury) but also rookie left wing Joel Farabee (suspected concussion).
Carter Hart authored 49 saves on 53 shots, including numerous season-saving stops. Semyon Varlamov took the loss with 26 saves on 31 shots.
"Carter’s a young goaltender that in my mind is growing and getting better. Without a doubt, without him tonight, we’re not there. He played extremely well. But I’m not going to apologize for good goaltending. That’s what you need. They got outstanding when Thomas Greiss came in goal (for game 4). They have got great goaltending from Varlamov. It’s been a hard-fought series. We need goaltending like anybody else that wins at this time of the year," Vigneault said.
Giroux became only the 4th player in the last 20 years to win 61+% of his draws when taking 39 or more draws in a playoff game, and the first to do it since 2013. Overall, he won 24, lost 15 (62%). Joe Nieuwendyk holds the record.
New York turnovers -- one in the neutral zone, one in the offensive zone set up counterattacks and two goals for the Flyers in the middle of the first period. On the first, Robert Hagg collected the puck and Hayes and Travis Konecny started a give-and-go that Hayes finished off.
On the second, Travis Sanheim made initial play and Jakub Voracek passed to James van Riemsdyk. Channeling John LeClair, van Riemsdyk elected to fire off a slap shot from the bottom of the left circle and fired the puck past Varlamov. An undisciplined retaliatory slashing penalty by Nicolas Aube-Kubel, who had been interfered with moments earlier, set up New York's second power play of the first period. Three seconds after it expired, Brassard re-directed a Devon Toews slap pass that was so hard it broke Brassard's stick blade.
Vigneault is 0-for-3 on challenges in the series; one for offside and two for goalie inteference. Casey Cizikas slid into Hart after falling over Justin Braun's stick and Matt Martin scored through the five hole -- the sequence started at the other end with Braun's shot getting blocked. The unsuccessful challenge produced a delay of game penalty on the Flyers, Lee promptly gave New York a 3-2 lead at 3:06 on the sharp angle rebound of a Barzal shot-pass with Hart's stick up off the ice as the puck went across.
"The replays that I was seeing, I thought that he had pushed Carter. I saw a late replay from behind. I didn’t see it before, so that’s my fault. If I would have seen that one, I wouldn’t have challenged," Vigneault said.
On just the Flyers' 10th shot of the game, after Nicolas Aube-Kubel gambled and won high in the zone, Raffl stuffed home the puck from the doorstep after a partially blocked shot fell at his feet. Ivan Provorov got the secondary assist.
For the second time in the series, the Flyers could see their way to the third period tied but then coughed up a puck and paid the price. Late in a long shift that resulted from a Konecny turnover, Sanheim was too easily taken off the puck by Brassard and, moments later, Barzal used him as a screen to shoot through his legs and beat Hart from the left circle to give the Isles a 4-3 lead with 30 seconds left in the second period.
Cizikas took an overaggressive tripping penalty in the offensive zone early in the third period. Hayes hit the crossbar late in the man advantage. Lindblom made two nice subtle plays on one shift; a neutral zone forecheck play and then one on the backcheck.
Mid-period, Hayes was called for a ticky-tack slash on Eberle at 7:50. As the penalty expired, Giroux sprung Scott Laughton on a breakaway. Going forehand/backhand/forehand, Laughton chipped the puck upstairs to tie the game at 4-4 at 9:53. Later, JVR had a high-tip opportunity and then a followup chance. Braun took a too-blatant-not-to-call tripping penalty with 2:42 left in the third period of a tied game in an elimination game. Hart made three saves in succession. The game went to OT with the Isles holding a 42-17 shot edge.
The Islanders had a 9-6 shot advantage in the first OT. The Flyers surged to an 8-2 advantage in the second OT after killing off a carryover 46 seconds from a Sanheim tripping penalty to prevent a developing shorthanded rush by Barzal with exactly two minutes left in the period.
Hockey is a game of inches. During the second overtime, the Islanders were saved by a puck that was along but not over the goal line. Matt Niskanen narrowly broke up what looked to be a point-blank for Mathew Barzal. Finally, after Scott Mayfield broke his stick on a point shot, Kevin Hayes was able to attack directly up ice as Mayfied tried unsuccessfully to get a new stick. Finally, Provorov fired from deep over the middle and found the net.
"I’ve been on a lot of tight teams and good chemistry. This one here is very special. Before hockey stopped, we were very close and then we get in the bubble. Spending a lot of time with the same guys. We have so much fun. We see each other every day. We just know how to play and stay loose. Make sure we enjoy this bubble," Giroux said.
"We’re exhausted, but they were probably too. You played five periods. The whole game’s kind of a blur. So many things that happened. Power plays. PKs. Big faceoffs in our zone. There’s a lot of emotions going on every time a team has a scoring chance. There’s a lot of highs and lows. I think we did a good job of kind of staying neutral and keeping our eye on the prize."
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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