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Wrap: Flyers Can't Close, Lose in OT to Caps |
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A strong goaltending performance by Alex Lyon and an early third period goal by Scott Laughton brought the Philadelphia Flyers to the brink of a road shutout victory over a woefully shorthanded Washington Capitals team on Saturday evening. It wasn't to be.
After the Flyers staved off a late power play for Washington, a 6-on-5 goal by Lars Eller in the final minute of regulation sent through the game to overtime. With one minute left in OT, Conor Sheary scored off the rush on a shot that dribbled through Lyon's pads and into the net for a 2-1 win for Washington.
The Caps, who needed a regulation win to keep alive their push for first place in the East Division, are now locked into a second-place finish. The Flyers, with a point from regulation, will go into the season finale against New Jersey on Monday with just 56 points in 55 games played (24-23-8). Even if they beat New Jersey on Monday, the Flyers will nonetheless fail to win back-to-games even once in two-plus month span. The Flyers finished their season series with Washington with a 2-5-1 record.
Lyon finished with 38 saves on 40 shots in a losing cause. Brian Elliott will start Monday's game. Soon to be 40 years old, veteran goalie Craig Anderson got the start for the Capitals; his 652nd career game in the NHL. Anderson got the win with 28 saves on 29 shots.
The Capitals, riddled with injuries plus two players in COVID-19 protocol, had to dress just 17 skaters for the game. The absences included Alex Ovechkin. Nicklas Bäckström, John Carlson, Evgeny Kuznetsov (COVID-19 protocol) and goalie Ilya Samsonov (COVID-19 protocol). Tom Wilson left the game after a knee-to-knee collision with Nicolas Aube-Kubel in the first period but returned for the second period and finished the game. T.J. Oshie suffered a lower body injury on a routine hit by Aube-Kubel late in the second period. Oshie had to leave the game.
Despite their decimated lineup, the Caps put on a heavy push against the Flyers in the third period after Philly took the lead. In overtime, Laughton put on a burst of speed but was denied by Anderson. With exactly one minute remaining in the 3-on-3, the Capitals scored off the rush to end the game. Defended by Travis Sanheim, Dowd put a pass to Sheary going to the net. The puck trickled through Lyon and into the net to end the game.