Quick Hits: February 13, 2023
1)The Philadelphia Flyers lost to the Seattle Kraken, 4-3, in a Super Bowl Sunday matinee at the Wells Fargo Center. A quick start and a late push weren't good enough. The rest of the game was all Seattle from a puck possession standpoint.
Philadelphia was guilty of 24 recorded turnovers in the game: 14 takeaways by Seattle and 10 giveaways by the Flyers. Two ended up in Philly's net. The Flyers also had a couple of coverage breakdowns that led to goals.
The Flyers had a 1-0 lead on the scoreboard and 4-0 lead in shots through 3:35 of the first period. By the time the period was done, Seattle had a 2-1 lead on the scoreboard and an 11-4 lead in shots on goal. Through two periods, the Flyers had only 20 attempted shots and 10 on net.
Philly got off to a good start with an Owen Tippett power play goal (15th goal of the season) at 2:11 and an early 4-0 shot lead. From there, things went straight downhill -- nine Philadelphia turnovers, an 11-0 shot deficit, and Seattle goals by Jordan Eberle (11th) and Eeli Tolvanen (11th) that sent the Kraken to the locker room with a 2-1 edge.
The Flyers tied the game at 1-1 just 3:33 into the second period on a double-deflection play by James van Riemsdyk (9th goal of the season). The score held until there was 1:01 left in the second period. Jaden Schwartz (11th) restored a 2-1 lead for Seattle.
In the third period, Schwartz (12th) scored again at 1:03 to open a 4-2 lead. A Patrick Brown shorhanded goal (2nd) gave the Flyers a ray of hope. Philly mounted a heavy late push but couldn't muster an equalizer.
Felix Sandström dropped to 1-8-1 on the season. He stopped 17 of 21 shots. At the other end of the ice, Philipp Grubauer denied 16 of 19 Philadelphia shots.
The Flyers went 1-for-2 on the power play. The Kraken were 0-for-1.
For a detailed period-by-period synopsis, analysis, highlights and more, see the Postgame 5 on PhiladelphiaFlyers.com.
2) On the weekly Mondays with Meltzer edition of the Flyers Daily podcast, Jason Myrtetus and I dissected Sunday's game against the Kraken and the now-completed four-game homestand as a whole. To listen, click here.
3) Coming off back-to-back wins against the Hartford Wolf Pack (5-2) and Bridgeport Islanders (4-0) on Friday and Saturday, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms (24-17-5) will play back-to-back road games on Tuesday and Wednesday against the Charlotte Checkers (26-16-4). The Phantoms will enter Tuesday's game three points behind Charlotte for third place in the Atlantic Division.
4) Some Flyers Alumni community news follows below. It may not have been a productive weekend for the current-day Flyers in taking just one of four possible points against Nashville and Seattle. For the Flyers Alumni, however, they went about their usual business of making a direct impact in the community.
* On Saturday, the Flyers Alumni made the 18th adaptive bicycle donation as part of their "Every Child Deserves a Bike" initiative. For a look at how Every Child program has made a direct impact on the quality of life of special-needs children in the Delaware Valley and the partnership between Help Hope Live and the Flyers Alumni, click here.
From Joseph Pennell School to Coatsville PA to present the Alumni’s 18th adaptive bike to Frankie - a great day for sure! @FlyersAlumni @FlyersWarriors @NHLFlyers pic.twitter.com/d3spX2rnkk
— Brad Marsh (@BradMarshNHL) February 11, 2023
* This past weekend, members of the Flyers Warriors and Alumni Association president Brad Marsh went to the Joseph Pennell Elementary School in Philadelphia for the second phase of the school library renovation project spearheaded by the Alumni. The Flyers Alumni Association have donated all of the necessary materials and the Flyers Warriors and Marsh have volunteered their time to do the work. Last weekend, they painted the library. This weekend, they installed new flooring. Phase 3 will be next weekend.
Last week, Marshy and members of @FlyersWarriors painted the library at Pennell Elementary School. This weekend was the next phase of our volunteer renovation project: laying new flooring.
— Flyers Alumni (@FlyersAlumni) February 12, 2023
We supplied the materials and the Flyers Warriors led the painting & floor installation. pic.twitter.com/P9w1SnVZhc
* At Sunday's Flyers vs. Kraken game, the Flyers Alumni welcomed a special guest: Adrian Diaz, the grandson of mid-1990s Flyers alum tough guy Scott Daniels.
The @FlyersAlumni have a special guest at today's game. Adrian Diaz is the grandson of Alumni tough guy Scott Daniels. Adrian does commercials for Children's Hospital in Boston and is quite a young sled hockey player. pic.twitter.com/q35jBI6Vxo
— Bill Meltzer (@billmeltzer) February 12, 2023