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Wrap: Brink Lifts Flyers over Blues, 2-1 |
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Brink Lifts Flyers over Blues, 2-1
Coming off a 25-save shutout of the Boston Bruins, goalie Samuel Ersson took another shutout bid into the third period of the Flyers' Halloween game night on Thursday at home against the St. Louis Blues. The Blues' Nathan Walker finally potted a rebound goal midway through the final stanza, temporarily tying the score at 1-1.
The game seemed to be destined for overtime until Bobby Brink worked an excellent give-and-go with Joel Farabee at 16:59 to put the Flyers back on top to stay. Scott Laughton also assisted on the game-winning sequence.
In the waning half-minute of the game, Ersson made a point-blank save on former Flyers forward Brayden Schenn to preserve the 2-1 lead. Ersson finished with 20 saves on 21 shots, outdueling Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington (19 saves on 21 shots).
Back in the first period, Ryan Poehling made a highlight reel move on an offensive zone entry to feed Garnet Hathaway on the right side for a 1-0 lead at 11:12. Nick Seeler, who made a strong play to trigger the transition rush that produced the goal, got the secondary assist.
For the most part, Thursday's game was rather low-event and a bit dull. The Blues had just come off a horrid blowout loss in Ottawa (preceded by a disappointing performance in Montreal), and are playing without the injured Robert Thomas. They were VERY conservative in this game, seemingly geared first and foremost to staying away from self-inflicted wounds.
Meanwhile, the Flyers were equally focused on maintaining defensive structure and short shifts as their main concerns. At one juncture, with 20 seconds remaining on a power play and an offensive right circle faceoffs coming up, head coach John Tortorella sent out the fourth line and two defensemen, essentially conceding the rest of the 5-on-4. Yes, the fourth line had struck for the 1-0 goal but that was an odd decision in a one-goal game.
During the first period, Matvei Michkov was caught well out position in a puck support situation. He was benched for several shifts although he eventually returned late in the opening period and skating his regular shifts the rest of the night.
Afterwards, Tortorella said that puck support responsibilities in similar situations has come up multiple times with the 19-year-old Michkov. The coach thought it best to do some instructing on the bench (there was no yelling), have Michkov watch the next several shift rotations to observe what Tortorella was talking about, and then to get the player back on the ice.
While I can be critical of Tortorella at times, I must say that I think he handled this situation in just the right way. I have zero issue with it. That was what coaching is about. It was constructive, not punitive.
Long stretches went by on Thursday night with nary a legitimate scoring chance at either end. Lots of perimeter play and one-and-dones by both teams populated much of the game.
The Flyers did have a couple close calls and their ongoing share of "almost" plays. Morgan Frost was stuffed at the right post by Binnington on a between-the-legs shot attempt in tight quarters. Michkov had his best shift of the game on a third period power play. Tyson Foerster had a good look at the net from the slot in the second period. Emil Andrae pinched from the point, took a pass from Frost, and nearly connected with Owen Tippett on the other side down low. Travis Konecny had a near-miss.
But these were isolated moments that perked up interest for a tick or two. Ultimately, the only real takeaways that stood out from an entertainment standpoint were Poehling's setup to Hathaway, Brink's give-and-go tally, and Ersson's dramatic late save on Schenn. The bottom line: the Flyers have won back-to-back games for the first time this season and three of their last four games.
The team is still climbing out of the hole they dug themselves in starting out 1-5-1 through seven games. There's a lot way to go, especially on the offensive side of the puck. On Saturday afternoon, the Flyers will rematch with the Bruins. Boston, which had a major territorial edge over the Flyers on Tuesday despite their low shot total and 2-0 shutout loss, is coming off a horrid blowout loss on Thursday night at the hands of the Carolina Hurricanes.
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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