The Philadelphia Flyers were looking to get their third straight win against Columbus after coming off of wins against the Anaheim Ducks and Florida Panthers. The Flyers played one of their best games of the season against the Florida Panthers Monday night in a comeback 4-3 win. With the team playing back-to-back games, there wasn’t much time to enjoy taking down the defending Stanley Cup Champions before traveling to Columbus, Ohio.
The Blue Jackets were looking for their fifth straight win after most recently defeating the St. Louis Blues Saturday night. They have been one of the hottest teams in the NHL lately. However, last night’s game was neck and neck.
Flyers head coach John Tortorella confirmed the team was going with the same lines from the previous two games, meaning Joel Farabee was healthy and scratched for the third consecutive game. The only difference to the lineup was that Ivan Fedotov would start in net.
Flyers vs Blue Jackets recap
As the match began, Bobby Brink didn’t take long to put the Flyers on the board. It’s been over 20 games since Brink last scored a goal. However, he’s been playing such great hockey, which makes his fifth goal of the season even better. Nick Seeler set up Brink’s goal with a strong feed. The Flyers led the Blue Jackets 1-0. However, they didn’t have the lead until Zach Werenski came off the odd-man rush and banked the puck past Fedotov. After 20 minutes, both teams tied 1-1.
While the second frame was scoreless, both teams fought well but couldn’t execute. This was one of Fedotov’s better periods between the pipes. Columbus, one of the best home teams in the NHL, wasn’t holding back with its aggressiveness in the offensive zone. With a scoreless second frame, the Flyers were looking to capitalize in the final frame.
One of the key moments in the first half of the third period was a diving save by Fedotov. This was the save of the game, without a doubt. Nearing the midway point of the third, Owen Tippett regained Philadlephia’s lead with a tremendous shot from deep, getting the puck past Tarasov. Although the Flyers had a 2-1 lead, they couldn’t hold onto it as Zach Werenski scored his second goal, which tied the game up at two a piece with under five minutes of regulation.
A full 60 minutes wasn’t enough to determine the winner of this contest, so the two Metropolitan teams went to overtime. It was uneventful period as neither team seemed to have any real opportunities to score.
It wasn’t the best night for the Flyers as Konency’s puck hit the crossbar, and Michkov’s shot was denied as he took a tumble down the ice; Columbus could find success getting the puck behind the net and won the shootout. The Flyers ultimately fell to the Blue Jackets 3-2. The one positive is that the Flyers walked away from the game with a point, and Brink gained some much-needed confidence after scoring again.
The Flyers get back to work Thursday night, as they have to travel to Long Island to battle the New York Islanders. The puck drop is at 7:30.
Mandatory Credit: Russell LaBounty-Imagn Images
