POSTGAME 5: Flyers Drop Homestand Finale, 4-2

The Flyers closed out their season-opening homestand with a 2-1-1 record. On Saturday at the Wells Fargo Center, Philly lost to the Florida Panthers, 4-2.

Ultimately, the Flyers spent too much time in the game killing penalties. They were hurt by two goals in transition by Florida as well as two bounces that went the Panthers' way.
Jonathan Huberdeau (PPG, 1st goal of the season) scored the only goal for either team in the first period. In the second period, goals by Claude Giroux (PPG, 3rd) and Cam Atkinson (SHG, 4th) gave the Flyers a 2-1 lead until Owen Tippett (1st) scored a transition goal off his skate in the final minute to send the game to the third period tied at 2-2.
In the third period, Huberdeau (SHG, 2nd goal of the game) put Florida ahead nearly eight minutes into the third period. Sam Reinhart sealed the win for Florida with an empty-netter in the final 1:12.
Carter Hart played well enough to win. But he absorbed the loss with 27 saves on 30 shots. Sergei Bobrovsky got the win with 27 saves on 29 shots.
The Flyers went 1-for-4 on the power play and 6-for-7 on the penalty kill. Each team scored a shorthanded goal but Florida's decided the game.
TURNING POINT
The Panthers are a deadly team in transition and made some of their own puck luck. Both the goal that tied the score at 3-3 (Tippett's goal) and Huberdeau's shorthanded game-winner started with Flyers turnovers in the offensive zone.
MELTZER'S TAKE
1) The Flyers were called for four separate icings in the first period. Sergei Bobrovsky came up with a rebound stop on Sean Couturier on the Flyers' best early scoring chance, and later authored a good skate save. Nicolas Aube-Kubel wasn't able to do much with a turnover sent directly to him in the offensive left circle. Hart tracked a couple of screened shots over the period but that was ultimately how he was scored upon. First period shots were 10-6 in Florida's favor. Florirda
2) Florida had two first period power plays to one for the Flyers. Philly generated little offensive zone time and no pressure on their first power play, with Anton Lundell in the box for Florida. Philly got through their first penalty kill but yielded a goal just five seconds into the second one. Starting with a left circle faceoff, Aleksander Barkov beat Claude Giroux with help from Patric Hörnqvist sending the puck back to the point. After a pass to Huberdeau, the veteran Panthers forward fired a shot that found the net high to the stick side through a Hörnqvist screen.
3) Florida was held without a shot until 7:07 of the second period (5-0 Flyers at one time) but started to test Hart as the period moved along, in part because Philadelphia was called on three straight penalties. Hart's best save of the period was one-on-one in close with Carter Verhaeghe.
4) At 4:23 of the second period after the Flyers applied heavy power play pressure, the top PP unit finally broke through. Couturier sent a cross-ice pass to Giroux. From above the right circle, Giroux blasted a shot that beat Bobrovsky high to the far side.

Atkinson showed why he's been on the NHL's most dangerous shorthanded threats over the last five-plus years. Intercepting a turnover at the defensive blueline, he soloed on a breakaway, Bobrovsky opened the pads enough for Atkinson to tuck the puck home.

Florida got their transition game going on their second goal. Travis Konecny centered a pass into no-man's land and the Panthers counter-attacked. A MacKenzie Weeger backhanded pass eluded Travis Sanheim, went off Tippett's skate and into the net. Replays upheld that the puck was not directed in by a kicking motion. The secondary assist went to Huberdeau at 19:33.
5) Bobrovsky made multiple excellent saves in the third period. Hart countered, including a great initial skate save on Huberdeau's shorthanded rush. Unfortunately, the puck bounced back to the Panther, and he banked the puck into the net.