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Wrap: Flyers End Winless Streak with 5-2 Win in Calgary |
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WRAP: FLYERS END WINLESS STREAK WITH 5-2 WIN IN CALGARY
A three-goal outburst over 71 seconds in the second period and a 43-save performance by goaltender Brian Elliott were the biggest difference as the Philadelphia Flyers finally brought a 10-game winless streak to an end with a 5-2 road win over the Calgary Flames on Monday night.
The Flyers finally had some fortunate bounces and bad penalty calls go in their favor on this night. But they also had traffic going to the net and skated well. Also of note was a forechecking tweak to play more a 1-2 in the offensive zone with the forwards.
Flyers head coach Dave Hakstol shook up the lineup a bit, breaking up the trio of Claude Giroux, Sean Couturier and Voracek for the first time this season. Voracek skated with Filppula and Michael Raffl, while Wayne Simmonds joined Giroux and Couturier. The Flyers also reinserted Taylor Leier into the lineup, scratching Jori Lehterä. On this night, at least, the Flyers most effective lines at 5-on-5 were the Raffl-Filppula-Voracek and the Scott Laughton units.
Laughton (3rd and fourth goals of the season) tallied twice for the Flyers. Valtteri Filppula (7th goal of the season), Michael Raffl (3rd) and Wayne Simmonds (power play, 8th) scored one apiece. Jakub Voracek (24th, 25th and 26th assists) collected three helpers. Andrew MacDonald (2nd), Raffl (2nd), Sean Couturier (power play assist, 13th), Jordan Weal (5th) and Taylor Leier (3rd) got one assist apiece.
Elliott bounced back immediately from a bad rebound goal that gave Calgary a lead late in the first period. Over the rest of the game, but especially in the second period, he stepped up big in stopping 43 of 45 shots.
Troy Brouewer (1st goal of the season) and Sean Monahan (15th) scored for Calgary. Curtis Lazar (3rd assist), Mark Giordano (6th), Garnet Hathaway (1st) Sam Bennett (6th) garnered assists. Goaltender Mike Smith stopped 16 of 21 shots in a losing cause.
The Flyers went 1-for-3 on the power play. There were 2-for-2 on the penalty kill against a Flames team that burned them three times in the second period of the previous meeting in Philadelphia.
Play was fairly wide open early in the first period. The best early Flyers opportunity was a Jordan Weal breakaway chance off a perfect lead pass by Ivan Provorov. The Flyers had the game's first power play but could not capitalize.
As the period progressed, the Flyers were guilty of multiple turnovers but escaped unscathed.
At 18:15, the Troy Brouwer ended a 32-game goal drought as he beat Travis Sanheim to the fat rebound of an initially harmless unscreened Curtis Lazar shot from the top of the circle. The secondary assist went to Mark Giordano.
With 44 seconds left in the period, Voracek deflected an Andrew MacDonald shot across the crease, where Filppula (just ahead of Raffl) swept the puck over the line to tie the game at 1-1. Raffl, who was initially credited with the goal quipped afterwards to Chris Therien that both he and Filppula should be credited with a half-goal apiece.
First period shots were 14-8 in Calgary's favor.
Calgary got its first power play at of the second period as MacDonald hooked Johnny Gaudreau to slow him down on a breakaway after intercepting a cross-ice pass up high by Provorov. Elliott came up big several times, including on a bang-bang chance off a MacDonald turnover after the penalty expired and the Flames kept pressing.
Play moved the other way and the Flyers scored. A Gostisbehere blast was tipped by Laughton moving in front. Smith got a piece of it but not enough to prevent the puck from trickling over the line just before Laughton jammed it into the back of the net for a 2-1 lead at 7:31. The lone assist was credited to Raffl.
The Flyers quickly scored again to make in 3-1 with a nice goal off the rush. Voracek fed Raffl, who ripped a right slot shot home.
Philly got a power play at 8:32 as Michael Frolik was penalized for high sticking on a play where it was actually MacDonald's stick that caught the Flyers' center. Just nine seconds later, Voracek made a slap pass from up high intended for Couturier. The puck went off Couturier to Simmonds at the right post for a tap-in. The assists went to Couturier and Voracek at 8:42.
A lovely saucer pass by Konecny to Provorov on the rush did not result in a goal. A moment later, Provorov was called on a phantom tripping penalty at 12:58. The Flyers killed it off in good shape.
Elliott made a good save with no rebound on a tough shot by Sean Monahan from the bottom of the left circle with four minutes left in the period. The Flames kept up the pressure for most of the remainder of the period, tilting the ice in their favor.
At 18:45, the Flyers initially got away with a Patrick turnover in the offensive zone late in a shift that led to a 2-on-1 rush the other way. The Flames retained possession and, moving across the right circle, Monahan sniped home his fourth goal in two games against the Flyers to cut the cap to 4-2. Assists went to Garnet Hathaway and Sam Bennett.
Second period shots ended up 21-7 for Calgary (35-15 for Calgary through two periods).
The Flyers' fourth line restored a three-goal lead for the team early in the third period. After a quick Weal backhanded wraparound attempt after Leier sent the puck around behind the net, Laughton rammed home the rebound at 1:51.
Weise took a neutral zone high hit from Travis Hamonic at 1:58. Woozy, he left the ice with trainer Jim McCrossin. After a conference by the officials, Hamonic received a very questionable match penalty for checking to the head. The Flyers got a five-minute power play. The Flames had a 2-on-1 shorthanded rush, which was the best chance for either side during the five minutes. From a Flyers' standpoint, at least one quarter-of the period ticked off the clock but it was a terrible power play with a chance to put the game away.
With the 3-goal lead, Hakstol shortened the bench to nine forwards and five defensemen to try to nail down the win. Sanheim had one 18-second shift early in the third period and MacDonald was double-shifted in his place. There were zero shifts for Konecny. Patrick's only shifts came on the five-minute power play. Weise did not skate another shift after eventually returning to the bench following the hit.
The personnel Hakstol entrusted to close out the game did a good job at keeping Calgary to the perimeter when they got into the Philly zone. Elliott took care of the rest.
Third period shots were 10-6 in Calgary's favor (45-21 Calgary overall).
The Flyers return to action on Wednesday in Edmonton. They are right back again the next night, wrapping up the 3-in-4 western Canada trip in Vancouver.
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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