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Wrap: Hart Earns 40-Save Shutout in 4-0 Win in Winnipeg; Phantoms Update

January 29, 2023, 4:38 AM ET [404 Comments]
Bill Meltzer
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Wrapup: Hart Earns 40-Save Shutout in 4-0 Win in Winnipeg

The Philadelphia Flyers blanked the Winnipeg Jets, 4-0, at the Canada Life Centre on Saturday evening. Philly scored once in the first period, once in the second and twice in the third. The Flyers will take a 21-21-9 record into the NHL All-Star Break.

Brilliant goaltending from Carter Hart, 17 blocked shots in front of him, and offense that was persistent in the scoring areas early and opportunistic later built a lead that Winnipeg was never able to dent.

Philadelphia received hard-working performances throughout the lineup. Eight different Flyers chipped in at least one point, with three players (Noah Cates, Owen Tippett and Rasmus Ristolainen) producing two-point games. Twelve Flyers blocked at least one shot. Twelve produced at least one shot on goal.

Head coach John Tortorella juggled his line combinations throughout the game and got everyone involved. No one played less than 11:15 and no one played more than 21:36.

A Cates first period tally (8th goal of the season) from Morgan Frost and Owen Tippett was the lone tally of the first stanza. A Kieffer Bellows goal (1st as a Flyer and first NHL goal this season) from the slot off a Ristolainen centering feed made it 2-0 at 11:53 of the middle frame. In the third period, a Tippett breakaway goal (14th) off a Ristolainen stretch pass at 3:11 and a Tony DeAngelo tally (9th) on a 2-on-1 feed from Scott Laughton at 6:48 stretched the lead to four goals.

Hart recorded his first shutout of the 2022-23 season, stopping all 40 shots he faced with 16 coming in the first period and 17 in the third period.

Connor Hellebuyck made 26 saves on 30 shots before getting pulled at 6:48 of the third period with Winnipeg trailing, 4-0. David Rittich went the final 13:12, stopping all three shots he faced.

The Flyers went 0-for-2 on the power play. The Jets were 0-for-3.

Zack MacEwen returned to Philadelphia on Friday after sustaining a broken jaw in a first-period fight on Thursday against Minnesota Wild forward Marcus Foligno. On Saturday, he underwent successful surgery. MacEwen is expected to miss five weeks.

Wade Allison sustained a lower-body injury in blocking a shot in the second period of the game in Saint Paul. With both Allison and MacEwen unavailable for Saturday's game, the Flyers dressed 11 forwards and seven defensemen. Bellows and veteran defenseman Justin Braun entered the lineup.

They now have a one-week schedule hiatus overlapping next weekends' leaguewide All-Star break. Kevin Hayes will represent the Flyers in the All-Star Game. The Flyers' game schedule resumes on Feb. 6. They'll have their first post-Break practice one day earlier.

For an in-depth period-by-period synopsis, analysis, highlights and statistics from Saturday's game in Winnipeg, see the Postgame 5 on PhiladelphiaFlyers.com.

**********

Phantoms Drop 5-2 Decision to Hershey

The Lehigh Valley Phantoms (20-16-5) remained winless this season against the Atlantic Division leading Hershey Bears (28-8-5) as Hershey skated to a 7-3 blowout win at the PPL Center on Saturday night.

Rather than starting Samuel Ersson for the third time in four nights, head coach Ian Laperriere gave his team's No. 1 goalie the night off. Veteran backup Pat Nagle was tabbed to start against Hershey. He was strafed for three goals in the first period on the way to yielding seven goals on 28 shots. The score was 4-1 after two periods.

The Phantoms got a second period shorthanded goal by veteran captain Cal O'Reilly (5th) to narrow a four-goal gap to three. In the third period, after the Bears made it 5-1 in the opening minute, Phantoms defenseman Ronnie Attard (7th) reduced the deficit to 5-2. Over the game's final 10 minutes, the Bears sandwiched two more goals around a Jackson Cates (8th) tally.

The Bears went 1-for-2 on the power play, while the Phantoms were 0-for-1. Lehigh Valley's shorthanded goal by O'Brien came during a five-minute kill on a Tyson Foerster boarding major in the second period.

Ethen Frank had a four-point game (2g, 2a) for Hershey. His second goal was Frank's 20th of the season.

Phantoms lineup:

28 Olle Lycksell - 51 Artem Anisimov - 23 Bobby Brink
17 Garrett Wilson - 91 Elliot Desnoyers - 71 Tyson Foerster
24 Adam Brooks - 9 Cal O'Reilly - 42 Hayden Hodgson
20 Max Willman - 18 Jackson Cates - 14 Zayde Wisdom

4 Egor Zamula - 47 Louie Belpedio
37 Adam Ginning - Ronnie Attard
44 Kevin Connauton - 29 Wyatte Wylie

35 Pat Nagle
[30 Samuel Ersson]

Scratches: 1 Troy Grosenick (injury), 3 Adam Karashik (healthy), 6 Linus Högberg (healthy), 13 Ryan Fitzgerald (healthy), 15 Jordy Bellerive, 19 Isaac Ratcliffe (healthy, 12th straight game), 25 Cooper Marody (injury).
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