Postgame 5: Flyers Drop 6-5 OT Decision to Rangers

The Philadelphia Flyers lost a seesaw game to the New York Rangers, 6-5 in overtime, at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night. The Flyers played an outstanding first two periods. The third period turned into a wide-open track meet, and Philly recovered from three separate one-goal deficits (3-2, 4-3, and 5-4).

With the Flyers' overtime loss and the Washington Capitals' overtime home win over the Detroit Red Wings, Philadelphia's lead over Washington in the battle for third place was reduced to a single point. Washington, with two games in hand, pulled even with the Flyers in the ROW tiebreaker category.

The Flyers were the better team in a scoreless first period. Philly spent most of the frame in the New York zone. The Flyers generated nearly double the overall scoring chances that the Rangers created -- including a 3-1 edge in high-danger opportunities -- but they were unable to solve Igor Sheshterkin. There were no true A+ chances by the Flyers but there was plenty of forechecking pressure as Philly repeatedly got pucks in behind New York defenders.

In the second period, the Flyers broke through and built a 2-0 lead. The latter portion of the period saw the Rangers step up their game and cut the deficit to one goal.

Philadelphia took a 1-0 lead at 2:58 of the second period. Travis Sanheim started a transition rush from the defensive zone. After taking a pass from Travis Konecny, Scott Laughton -- just on the ice after a partial line change-- rifled home a 24-foot shot from the right circle (13th goal of the season). The assists went to Konecny and Sanheim. The Rangers got caught on a bad change during the sequence.

For the second straight game, the Flyers second power play unit stepped up to deliver a goal. At 11:39 of the second period, a Laughton shot-pass was redirected in front by Ryan Poehling (PPG, 10th) into the net. The assists went to Laughton and Egor Zamula.

The Rangers responded with a power play goal of their own, cutting the deficit to 2-1 at 15:28 of the second period. Mika Zibanejad (PPG, 24th of the season) took advantage of a heavy screen by Chris Kreider in front of Samuel Ersson and found the net. The assists went to Artemi Panarin (100th point of the season) and Adam Fox.

The third period was nothing short of wild: four goals by the Rangers, three by the Flyers.

A turnover in the defensive zone by Flyers defenseman proved very costly at 1:23 of the third period. The puck was claimed by Kaapo Kakko. From behind the net, Kakko saucered a pass over Morgan Frost's stick out to Jonny Brodzinski (6th, who scored from the slot to tie the score at 2-2. The lone assist went to Kakko.

The Rangers took advantage of a crazy bounce and it resulted in an unassisted Alexis Lafreniere goal (21st) at 2:57 as he claimed a desperation clearing attempt by Travis Sanheim to take a 3-2 lead.

The Flyers made it 3-3 at 6:45. Jimmy Vesey fired off an all-advised sharp angle shot that rimmed around the boards. Travis Konecny (31st goal of the season) claimed the puck; He fired off one of his signature shots, beating Sheshterkin over the pads and below the glove.

New York scored a potentially backbreaking shorthanded goal for a 4-3 lead at 9:34 of the third stanza. A pass by Frost intended for Konecny was eventually claimed by the Blueshirts for a 2-on-1 rush. Zibanejad fed Vincent Trocheck (SHG, 25th) at point blank range.

The Flyers kept coming. At 11:45, Philly scored in transition to pull back even. Frost made a gorgeous saucered area pass to spring Tippett on the rush. Tippett finished off the play on a backhanded shot that rattled into the net for a 4-4 tie.

The Rangers got some puck luck to take a 5-4 lead at 13:59 of the third period. New York won an offensive zone draw. Konecny blocked a Panarin shot attempt, going down in a heap. The puck landed directly in front of Lafreniere (second goal of the game, 22nd of the season), who scored an unassisted goal for a 5-4 New York lead.

Philly did not quit. Tenacious work near the net by Garnet Hathaway produced a chance that never crossed the goal line. However, in the ongoing scramble, Tyson Foerster (19th) jammed the puck in the net to make it 5-5. The goal was unassisted.

New York controlled the opening faceoff in overtime and never relinquished puck possession. Poehling appeared to be laboring in pursuing the puck. At the 34-second mark, Adam Fox (15th goal of the season) took a pass from Trocheck and fired the game-winning goal into the net. The assists went to Trocheck and Panarin.

Shesherkin finished with 36 saves on 41 shots. Ersson stopped 21 of 27.

The Flyers went 1-for-3 on the power play with a shorthanded goal allowed. The Rangers were 1-for-1 on the power play.

FLYERS STARTING LINEUP

74 Owen Tippett - 48 Morgan Frost - 11 Travis Konecny
86 Joel Farabee - 21 Scott Laughton - 10 Bobby Brink
71 Tyson Foerster - 25 Ryan Poehling - 19 Garnet Hathaway
27 Noah Cates - 14 Sean Couturier - 62 Olle Lycksell

8 Cam York - 6 Travis Sanheim
5 Egor Zamula - 77 Erik Johnson
50 Adam Ginning - 23 Ronnie Attard

33 Samuel Ersson
[32 Felix Sandström]

TURNING POINT

The first two periods were orderly. The third period was anything but orderly but the Flyers at least able to forge overtime. Fox ended sudden death in 26 seconds.

In overtime -- something that has popped up several times in the last five weeks -- the Flyers lost the opening faceoff, and never got possession.  At the 36-second mark of OT, the game was over.

POSTGAME 5

1)  Adam Fox put a point shot on net on the game's first shift. The second shift was played in the New York zone. After a blocked shot by Konecny in the defensive zone, the Flyers moved up ice. At 2:28, Zamula generated a routine shot on goal for the Flyers' first official shot.

The Trocheck line hemmed in the Couturier line. Shots on goal through five minutes were 5-2 Rangers. The Frost line hemmed the Rangers' third line in their own end for a long shift before the Rangers iced the puck at 7:05. Philly was unable to capitalize. Shots were 5-5 through eight minutes.

Brink stole a puck in the offensive zone from Alexis Lafreniere with a timely poke check. He moved in and was stopped by Shestkertin at 9:22. At 10:32, Tippett was denied from 25-feet as he fired off a shot from the right circle near the hash marks. Shots were now 7-7.

Right off the next faceoff, taken by Konecny, Frost shot the puck from the right circle. At 12:25, Attard snapped off a shot from roughly the same spot as the earlier Tippett shot. Again, Sheshterkin made the save.

Matt Rempe engaged with Hathaway on the side boards in the New York zone, getting away with a trip. Later, the hulking Rangers forward made an unorthodox blocked shot.

At 15:40, after a re-entry pass from Frost, Konecny was stopped by Sheshterkin from 25 feet. A subsequent shot by York was also stopped for Sheshterkin's 13th save of the opening period.

Foerster made a strong move in from the side boards, drawing an Adam Fox hooking penalty at 17:42. During the delayed call, Poehling was unable to get hold of the puck in front. It took three tries for PP1 to gain entry. Tippett was stopped on a left-circle one-timer. 

2) First period shots on goal were 15-9 Flyers. Shot attempts were 25-19 Flyers Scoring chances were 9-5 Flyers. High-danger scoring chances were 3-1 Flyers. Faceoffs were 10-7 Rangers.

3)  Cates won a battle behind the New York net on the second shift of the middle period. Lycksell stepped out in front and attempted a semi-wraparound.  On the next shift, Ersson made a save on a Trocheck re-direct.

Laughton scored in transition at 2:58. The Rangers escaped a sloppy shift immediately thereafter. Through 4:38, shots on goal were 41 Flyers.

The Rangers started to dial up the pressure, gaining entry with more regularity. Sheshterkin triggered a Rangers' rush after corralling the puck in deep. At the other end, Ersson denied a one-time blast by Zac Jones. On the next shift, the Flyers applied heavy pressure. Brink and York had scoring chances. The Rangers iced the puck. Frost won the ensuing draw, but Tippett wasn't able to get much on a shot attempt.

At the midpoint of the second period, shots on goal were 7-3 Flyers (22-12 Flyers for the game). Foerster was tripped in the neutral zone by Trocheck at 10:06. The Flyers went to their second power play. With PP2 on the ice, the Flyers extended their lead.

One shift later, there were back-and-forth chances at both ends. At the end of the sequence, Zamula nearly snuck a shot through Shesterkin. The Rangers goalie was unaware the puck was near his pads.

At 14:40, the Rangers went to their first power play. Foerster was called for a high-sticking minor on Fox near the New York blueline. The Rangers won the first draw and went right to the attack.  The Flyers never got possession. Zibanejad scored at 15:28.

A failed clear by Lycksell caused some nervous moments for the Flyers. So did a Konecny turnover on a lateral pass in dangerous territory near the offensive bueline, which Panarin intercepted. The Poehling line stabilized play with a shift spent in the New York zone.

4) Second period shots on goal were 12-9 Flyers (27-18 Flyers overall). Shot attempts were 22-18 Flyers (47-37 Flyers overall). Scoring chances were 10-6 Flyers (19-11 Flyers overall). High-danger scoring chances were 4-1 Flyers (8-2 overall). Faceoffs were 14-11 Flyers (21-19 Flyers overall).

5)  At 1:32 of the third period, the Rangers turned Johnson's turnover into Brodzinski's tying goal. The Flyers called a timeout immediately after the Lafreniere goal. The Flyers needed a few shifts to stabilize again. Konecny pulled Philly back even at 6:45.

Through 6:45 of the third period, shots on goal were 7-4 Rangers. Foerster was stopped on a backhander in close. At 8:38, Frost made a slick move in the offensive zone and took a high stick from Jones. The Flyers went to their third power play. The Rangers scored shorthanded on a 2-on-1 for a 4-3 lead at 9:34.

Cates created a scoring chance two shifts after the Trocheck shorthander. Tippett made it 4-4 at 11:45. Two shifts later, the Poehling line generated an outstanding forechecking shift. Through 13:06, shots were 9-8 Flyers. The Poehling line came back out after a TV timeout and generated another strong shift.

Lafreniere scored again at 15:59 for a 5-4 New York lead. With 3:31 left, Hathaway's hard work down low and Foerster's jam-in made it a 5-5 game.

Of a neutral zone turnover by K'Andre Miller, Frost intercepted the puck and started a 2-on-1 play with Konecny. TK lost the handle near the net. Shortly thereafter, Hathaway paid the price to block a shot.

Third period shots on goal were 14-8 Flyers (41-26 Flyers overall). Shot attempts were 26-14 Flyers (73-51 Flyers overall). Scoring chances were 12-7 Flyers (31-18 Flyers overall). High-danger scoring chances were 6-4 Flyers (14-6 Flyers overall). Faceoffs were 14-9 Rangers (33-30 Rangers overall).