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Wrap: Flyers Outplay Isles, Settle for Comeback Point in 4-3 SO Loss |
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WRAUP: FLYERS OUTPLAY ISLES, SETTLE FOR COMEBACK POINT IN 4-3 SO LOSS
The Philadelphia Flyers deserved a better fate on Tuesday night. The team outplayed the New York Islanders for most of the night -- especially in a lopsided second period -- but had to battle back from deficits of 1-0 and 3-1 before going down to a 4-3 defeat via shootout at the Wells Fargo Center.
The Flyers outshot the Isles by a 46-26 margin and held a 90-51 shot attempt edge. Throughout the game, the Flyers had success both carrying the puck into the offensive zone and also putting it behind the defense and setting up a forecheck.
"I thought our team played a good hockey game. We deserved better tonight, but that’s the way the game is. The guys competed and battled hard but unfortunately we couldn’t come up with the second point," Flyers head coach Dave Hakstol said.
The Flyers got goals by Pierre-Edouard Bellemare (shorthanded), Ryan White and Claude Giroux in regulation. New York forged its leads on two goals by Frans Nielsen sandwiched around a Brock Nelson deflection power play goal.
Goaltender Jaroslav Halak was brilliant in net for the Islanders, making 44 saves in regulation and overtime before going 3-for-3 in the skills competition. For Philadelphia, Michal Neuvirth came in to relieve starter Steve Mason at 1:14 of the second period and turned back all 16 shots he faced over the balance of regulation and overtime before going 1-for-2 in the shootout.
"It’s tough [coming in cold] and I was just trying to do my warmup. Try to get focused. Obviously, the first shot, and after I made the first save or a couple saves I settled down and I felt good," Neuvirth said.
Mason had a bit of tough luck on the first goal and no chance on the second but should have found a way to stop the third goal he yielded before being pulled. Mason finished with a pedestrian seven saves on 10 shots over 21:10 of play.
“Three goals on 10 shots is not good. I wasn’t good enough tonight. There’s no other way around it, I’ve got to be better," Mason said. "
Apart from the early second period 50-foot goal by Nielsen, the frame was dominated by the Flyers. Philadelphia held a 17-5 shot edge and a whopping 40-13 disparity in shot attempts.
"I think we did a good job with pucks in deep. I think we did a good job of forechecking and getting it back. We had pretty good defense on the other side, too. I’m very happy with the forecheck we were able to have tonight," Giroux said.
The Flyers went 0-for-2 on the power play but generated tremendous puck movement and pressure on Halak.
On their second advantage, Philadelphia had a would-be goal by Wayne Simmonds disallowed for a distinct kicking motion.
"I didn’t kick it. I just put my foot down to stop it. It’s not my decision obviously, that’s their decision [in the Situation Room in Toronto]. Things happen. We came back. We tied it up. We played a good game," Simmonds said.
On the lone Philadelphia penalty kill, the Flyers and Islanders traded off Bellmare's game-tying shorthanded goal for Nelson's goal in the waning seconds as New York emerged having restored a one-goal margin.
Faceoffs ended up in a dead heat, as teams split the draws 32-32. Giroux led all players with a 12-for-19 (63 percent performance).
Just 55 seconds into the game, the Islanders scored on their first shot of the game. As the Flyers made a line change and the mixed-pairing defense tandem of Nick Schultz and Andrew MacDonald (defending the pass) on the ice, the play quickly developed into a one-on-one between Nielsen and Mason, and Nielsen snapped a shot that went in off the goaltender's outstretched left skate. Anders Lee and Johnny Boychuk assisted on the goal: Nielsen's 10th of the season.
Mason tracked a shot through traffic to make a save on Travis Hamonic at 6:23. Shots were 4-3 Islanders as the game reached its first TV timeout. The Giroux line came out with a strong two-shot shift, including a deflection by Giroux in front and a Brayden Schenn snap shot from above the right circle.
Evgeny Medvedev went off for a neutral zone tripping infraction at 8:47. The Flyers scored a big potential momentum goal as Bellemare broke up a play up high in the defensive zone, and went off a 2-on-0 breakaway with Giroux. The puck went from Bellemare to Giroux and deftly back to Bellemare, who chipped the puck upstairs for a shorthanded goal at 9:12. The goal was Bellemare's third of the season. Giroux got the lone assist.
"[Giroux] touched the puck in the beginning. It bounced off my legs. We battled both to get the puck and he realized I could get it first. I got the puck and I gave it back to him. I was just waiting to see if he was going to give it back to me and he did when the goalie was gone. It was a great pass from G," Bellemare said.
The Islanders canceled out the Bellemare tally with a power play goal scored with four seconds left on the man advantage. Nick Leddy pinched up to the left slot and wound up to one-time a shot that Brock Nelson appeared to deflect in front to beat Mason high to the glove side at 10:43. Initially,Leddy was credited with his first goal of the season. The scoring was changed to credit Nelson with his ninth goal of the year from Leddy and Okposo.
“I picked it up at the last second, but on a penalty kill you have to find a way to make a big save," Mason said.
The Flyers went on their first power play at 15:11 as John Taveres drilled Sean Couturier up high behind the Flyers' net. The Isles' captain received a checking to the head minor. The Flyers applied very heavy pressure and had several good looks at the net, but could not bury a shot on three shots and four attempts.
Shots in the first period were 14-9 in the Flyers' favor. Attempts were 21-18 in the Flyers' favor. The Flyers had four attempts blocked and missed the net twice. The Islanders had five shots blocked and four misses.
Couturier had a bang-bang scoring chance near the net on the opening half-minute of the period. At 1:14, the Islanders extended their lead to 3-0 on their 10th shot of the game, Nielsen used Michael Del Zotto as a screen from high in the Flyers zone and rifled a shot that beat Mason cleanly for his 11th goal of the season and second of the game. Josh Bailey and Leddy got the assists.
"I picked it up as it was coming through Delly there, but it’s those saves that you have to find a way to make," Mason said.
At that point, Hakstol pulled Mason from the game and put in Michal Neuvirth in relief. Mason finished with just seven saves on 10 shots in 21:14 of play.
The Flyers came back at the Islanders with extensive pressure on the next several shifts and finally cashed in. R.J. Umberger got to the loose puck first on the rebound of a Scott Laughton shot from the bottom of the right circle, sending the puck to an open Ryan White in the slot. White did not miss, scoring his second goal of the season at the 4:09 mark. Umberger and Laughton got the helpers.
"It was a good, hard-working shift by the guys," White said. "Laughts and Umby did a hell of a job. It was a great play by Umby at the end, picking up the rebound and having the awareness to give it to me on the open side. All I had to do was put it in the open cage."
Philly went right back to the attack, peppering Halak with quality shots. When Halak froze the puck off a Wayne Simmonds right-circle shot for a TV timeout at 6:57, shots for the period were 10-1 Flyers (25-10 for the game at that juncture).
Bellemare kept his feet moving to draw a penalty on Marek Zidlicky for interference at 12:56. The Flyers seemingly cashed it in to tie the game as the rebound of a Jakub Voracek one-timer from the right circle off a pass from Giroux. The puck went in off Simmonds' leg at 13:53 and into the net before he could get a stick on it. The play was reviewed in Toronto for a kicking motion, and was reversed based on an overhead angle.
As the power play resumed, the Flyers spent the entire remaining time in the offensive zone but could not bag a tying goal.
Shots on goal were 17-5 Flyers (32-14 Flyers overall). Attempts were 40-13 in the Flyers' favor (61-31 Flyers overall). The Flyers had 14 shots blocked (18 overall) and missed the net nine times (11 overall). The Islanders had four shots blocked (nine overall) and four misses (eight overall).
In the Flyers' locker room at intermission, the message was to just keep it and a game-tying goal would eventually go in.
"Keep turning up the pace on them. I thought we had a good jump tonight and guys were on the same page. Guys were pounding pucks in the net and just kept going there. Belly’s line had a couple chances in the third by just simple hockey and it could have been the difference in the game. It’s something to build on and just keep going for it," White said after the game.
The Flyer wasted little time tying the game in the third period, as a Giroux shot from up high in the zone deflected off Leddy for certain and possibly an Islander up higher in the zone to tie the game at 3-3. Time of the goal was 2:02. Assists went to Brayden Schenn and Michael Raffl.
Neuvirth faced his first real test since entering the game, as he denied Casey Cizikas on a blocker side shot off a breakaway at 3:54. At 6:26, Neuvirth juggled a left circle shot by Okposo but stayed with it to cover for a stoppage and a TV timeout Shots for the period were 6-6 at this point.
Del Zotto carried the puck up to his favorite shooting spot in the left circle and snapped a shot on net that produced a rebound in front. Both Chris Vandevelde and Bellemare had cracks at the puck. With the puck on its edge, Bellemare chipped it into Halak's glove at 10:43. Bellemare had another crack at a loose puck in front at 12:27 but the puck was deflected into the safety netting.
"I wish I was a little more cool headed," Bellemare said. "The first one bounced on top of me, and the 2nd rebound was blocked in front. There was no hole to put the puck through, you just have to put it on the side and shoot it. That’s something you’ve got to learn right? That would’ve changed our whole game for sure."
Neuvirth ereased a Gostisbehere giveaway with a snapping glove save on a right circle wrister by Okposo. As time ticked down over the final five minutes, New York started to gain a territorial edge but Philly stepped up its shot blocking.
Shots in the third period were 13-11 Flyers (45-25 Flyers through regulation). Attempts were 23-19 in Philly's favor (84-50 overall). The Flyers had six shots blocked (24 overall) and missed the net four times (15 overall). The Islanders had six shots blocked (16 overall) and six misses (10 overall).
With 2:07 left, Voracek got his feet tangled with the Islanders. Simultaneously, the Islanders were guilty of too many men on the ice because Halak never skated off the ice as New York sent out its extra attacker on the delayed penalty.
Giroux twisted and turned on an extended shift in the New York end. No goal resulted.
Shots in the overtime were 1-1 (46-26 Flyers overall). Attempts were 6-1 in the Flyers' favor (90-51 overall). The Flyers missed the net four times (19 overall) and did not have a shot blocked (24 overall). The Islanders, who spent most of the extra frame in their own end of the ice did not have any shots blocked (15 overall) or miss the net (10 overall).
Giroux shot first in the shootout. He just ran out of shooting angle as pulled the puck back in tight and flipped the shot high in the air. In the bottom of the first round, Neuvirth did the splits to rob Nielsen.
In the second round, Simmonds went forehand to backhand to forehand but Halak stayed with him and denied the shooter near the right post. In the bottom of the round, Okposo used great patience to wait out Neuvirth and then put the puck home up high to give New York the lead.
Needing a goal to keep the game going, the Flyers sent out Medevev to shoot. He tried the "Peter Forsberg move" in the top of the third round but did not fool the goaltender.
Explaining his decision to use the defenseman in the shootout, Hakstol said, "He’s a skilled guy with a good quick stick. He’s never done it at the NHL level before but we needed a goal and he’s a guy that can score in that situation.... There's a little bit of the unknown there, but unfortunately it didn’t pay off tonight."
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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