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Recap: Bruins 2 - Flyers 1 (OT), Roster Cuts, Prospect Updates |
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RECAP: BRUINS 2 - FLYERS 1 (OT)
In yet another preseason game marked by a constant stream of penalty calls and another tilt that went beyond regulation, the Philadelphia Flyers dropped a 2-1 overtime decision to the Boston Bruins at TD Garden on Thursday night.
The game was scoreless for two periods before defenseman Travis Sanheim gave the Flyers a short-lived lead at 4:47 of the third period. He joined the rush and fired a partially deflection snap shot from above the left circle past Tuukka Rask. Sean Couturier and Ivan Provorov drew the assists.
Boston knotted the game at 1-1 at 6:39 just as a Claude Giroux penalty expired. From center point, defenseman Paul Postma fired a shot through heavy traffic. Flyers goaltender Alex Lyon, who came in for the third period to replace starter Brian Elliott, went low to try to track the puck but the puck went high over him.
In overtime, Giroux and Valtteri Filppula hit the post on good scoring chances and Boston nearly ended the game on a 2-on-1. Finally, after an ill-advised pinch by Flyers veteran defenseman Andrew MacDonald as Philly pressured in the Boston zone, Kenny Agostino was sprung on a breakaway. Moving left, he tucked the puck home before Lyon could get his skate over for a save at 3:20.
The game was, for the most part, staccato in pace. It was marked by too-frequent whistles and very little flow because of all the penalties. The Flyers got plenty of power play practice but generated very few scoring chances in going a much deserved 0-for-9. Boston officially went 0-for-3 but the Postma goal, for all intents and purposes, was a power play goal.
The Flyers had some careless turnovers in the first period but took better care of the puck as the game progressed and were the better team after a sloppy opening 20 minutes. The Flyers started to generate some opportunities off the rush at 5-on-5.
The lack of training camp work on the power play to date -- largely because there have been so many players in camp and relatively few days to get ready for four preseason games in rapid succession -- was quite evident albeit understandable. However, the Flyers lost too many 50-50 puck battles on the power play and the zone entry attempts were lackluster. There were too many easy clears for Boston. That needed to be better over nine power plays, practice time at camp or not.
On the positive side, the Flyers young defensemen (defending Barry Ashbee Trophy winner Ivan Provorov and rookie hopefuls Sam Morin, Robert Hägg and Sanheim) once again looked strong. Nolan Patrick had another strong two-way game. Giroux (who rarely has great preseasons) was skating well, although just a tad rusty in his first appearance of the preseason as did the recently under-the-weather Wayne Simmonds. Travis Konecny (12:08 TOI) made a few good plays in the neutral zone and Jordan Weal was buzzing.
Oskar Lindblom was an offensive zone non-factor in this game and was taken off the power play as the game progressed. As usual, he backchecked well and battled on the walls. He was also credited with two hits.
Making his first start of the preseason, Elliott looked sharp and confident in stopping all 18 shots he faced through 40 minutes. Lyon saved nine of 11 shots. For Boston, Rask made 30 saves.
The Flyers will have a complete off-day on Friday. Practice resumes Saturday and Sunday at the Skate Zone in Voorhees. On Monday and Tuesday, the Flyers play a home-and-home preseason set with the New York Rangers. They'll face off at Madison Square Garden on Monday and the first Wells Fargo Center game of the exhibition slate on Tuesday.
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ROSTER CUTS
Including the injured Anthony Stolarz -- who will be placed on Season Opening Injured Reserve (SOIR) when the Flyers set their opening night roster -- the Flyers now have 36 players remaining in training camp. The team announced 18 roster cuts on Thursday:
The following five players have been returned to their junior team:
(F) Connor Bunnaman (Kitchener - OHL)
(F) Pascal Laberge (Victoriaville - QMJHL)
(F) Ivan Kosorenkov (Victoriaville - QMJHL): released from tryout, no entry-level contract.
(F) German Rubtsov (Chicoutimi - QMJHL)
(G) Carter Hart (Everett - WHL)
The following 13 players have been assigned to the club’s AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, Training Camp:
(F) Nicolas Aube-Kubel
(F) Radel Fazleev
(F) Tyrell Goulbourne
(F) Danick Martel
(F) Carsen Twarynski: not signed to date but age-eligible for AHL play
(F) Mikhail Vorobyev
(D) James de Haas
(D) Mark Friedman
(D) Maxim Lamarche
(D) Philippe Myers
(D) Reece Willcox
(G) Leland Irving
(G) John Muse
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PROSPECT UPDATES: SEPTEMBER 21, 2017
* SHL: Felix Sandström made his first start of the 2017-18 regular season in a 4-2 home loss for Brynäs IF Gävle to HV71 Jönköping on Thursday.The game was a rematch of the playoff finalists from last season. Sandström stopped 27 of 30 shots before HV71 tacked on an empty net goal.
He was beaten over the glove on a first period Robin Figren goal from just outside the left hash marks as HV71 tied the game in the 1st period. In the third period, HV71 took the lead, 2-1, on an unstoppable Max Wärn deflection goal batted out of air just in front of the net at 3:35. Midway through the third period, Sandström was unable to track a relatively routine Dylan Reese point shot from the boards just inside the blueline. There was a screen in front but this was a save that needed to be made, especially since it put BIF down two goals.
Note: For those who have Eleven Sports Network on your cable or satellite systems, SHL and other European league hockey games can be viewed live or via earlier-in-the-day recording. The BIF vs. HV71 game was televised on delay today, while the KHL game between Jokerit Helsinki (ex-Phantom/Flyer Oliver Lauridsen) and CSKA Moscow (ex-Flyer Roman Lyubimov) was televised live.
* SHL: David Kase, playing his second regular season game for Mora IK, scored his first two regular season points since transferring from the Czech Extraliga to the Swedish Hockey League for this season. Taking a centering pass directly in front of the net, Kase pulled the puck from backhand to forehand and flipped the puck home to give Mora a 2-0 lead at 10:15 of the first period. He later added a power play assist in the second period. Mora prevailed over Rögle BK by a 5-1 count.
* SHL: The visiting Växjö Lakers dropped a 5-4 overtime decision to Linköpings HC on Thursday. Nineteen-year-old Flyers defense prospect Linus Högberg was once again confined to third pairing spot duty and logged just 10:11 of ice time. In the season opener, however, he made an impact with a beautiful stretch pass on the tape that produced a goal. If he keeps doing those sorts of things while playing steady defense, his ice time will increase over the course of the season.
* SHL: Djurgårdens IF lost 4-3 in overtime on Thursday to the visiting Malmö Redhawks. Flyers defense prospect David Bernhardt played as the DIF seventh defenseman and barely saw the ice (6:26 of ice time). He took a first period crosschecking minor for his only entry in the box score.
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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