Postgame 5: Flyers Lose to Bruins, 6-2

On Mark Recchi's induction day in the Flyers Hall of Fame, the current Flyers fell to the Boston Bruins,6-2, at Wells Fargo Center on Saturday afternoon. A four-goal lead set by Boston in the first period dug too deep of a hole for Philadelphia.

Tyson Foerster scored twice in a losing cause for the Flyers after Boston led 5-0. David Pastrnak notched two goals and an assist for Boston. The Bruins also received tallies from Charlie McAvoy (1g. 1a), James van Riemsdyk (1g. 1a), Danton Heinen and Charlie Coyle.

The Flyers navigated the first 14 minutes of the game well but Boston pulled away at the ends of the first period. The game went from scoreless to a 4-0 Boston lead.

David Pastrnak (31st goal of the season) gave the Bruins a 1-0 lead at 14:09 of the first period. Using Travis Sanheim as a screen, Pastrnak fired the puck between the defenders legs and into the net. The assists went to Pavel Zacha and  Charlie McAvoy. Zacha made a nice kick pass on the sequence to get Boston on the attack.

Boston generated three separate scoring chances on a single shift and struck paydirt on the third to open a 2-0 lead at 15:46. Charlie McAvoy (7th) pinched in and took a feed from Zacha, sliding the puck into the open side of the net. The lone assist went to  Zacha. A secondary assist initially credited to two-stint former Flyers' winger James van Riemsdyk was deducted after the period.

Boston made it 3-0 at 16:47 of the first period on a triple-deflected puck off an initial shot by Brandon Carlo. First it went off a Flyer and then, near the net, went in off Danton Heinen's stick and then his face (9th goal of the season). The lone assist went to Carlo. 

At 18:36, the Boston lead grew to 4-0. Boston's van Riemsdyk won a battle down low. Zacha was stopped by Ersson but Pastrnak (second of the game, 32nd of the season) was there to pot the rebound from the low slot.The assists went to Zacha and JVR.

Flyers starter Samuel Ersson (10 saves on 14 shots) was replaced by Cal Petersen at the start of the second period. It was not because of how Ersson was playing, but as a reset for the team.

Petersen took himself well out of position in a scramble near the Flyers net after an initial shot by Lindholm. Pastrnak got the puck to van Riemsdkyk (8th), who stashed the puck into the cage for a 5-0 lead at 1:15 of the second period. The assists went to Pastrnak and Lindholm.

Tyson Foerster (8th) won a battle on the boards, pulled off a nice toe-drag move in the right circle and scored to get the Flyers on the scoreboard at 15:23. The lone assist went to Travis Sanheim, who sent the puck up the right boards to Foerster.

Foerster (second of the game, 9th of the season) scored from the slot on a puck that bounced in off Matt Grzelcyk's stick at 11:24 of the third period. The assists went to Sean Couturier and Olle Lycksell.

Charlie Coyle (18th goal of the season) made in 6-2 Boston on a sequence in which Sanheim accidentally took out Petersen. The assists went to Trent Frederic and van Riemsdyk.

Linus Ullmark made 35 saves on 37 shots to earn the win for Boston. Petersen finished with 12 saves on 14 shots over 40 minutes of play.

The Flyers went 0-for-3 on the power play. The Bruins went 0-for-3 including a two-man advantage.

FLYERS STARTING LINEUP

27 Noah Cates - 14 Sean Couturier - 11 Travis Konecny
86 Joel Farabee - 48 Morgan Frost - 89 Cam Atkinson
71 Tyson Foerster - 25 Ryan Poehling - 62 Olle Lycksell
44 Nicolas Deslauriers - 21 Scott Laughton - 19 Garnet Hathaway

6 Travis Sanheim -- 9 Jamie Drysdale
24 Nick Seeler -  26 Sean Walker
8 Cam York - 55 Rasmus Ristolainen

33 Samuel Ersson

[40 Cal Petersen]

TURNING POINT

Things were going fine for the Flyers until the first Pastrnak goal opened the floodgates. Boston scored three more times in rapid succession.

POSTGAME 5 

1) The Couturier line generated a scoring chance on the opening shift. On the second shift, Poehling nearly scored on a wraparound.

Laughton was called for hooking Hampus Lindholm at 2:14. The Flyers generated a 3-on-1 as the penalty expired. Hathaway was denied by Ullmark. Two shifts later, Farabee and Konecny had chances. Shots on goal were 5-1 Flyers through 6:51.

Ersson bailed the Flyers out of a defensive miscue with a save on Jeser Boqist at 8:21. Farabee tried the Michigan but it was snuffed out at 10:44. Ersson made a 10-bell save on Pavel Zacha at 13:28 but then Pastrnak scored later in the shift.

Pastrnak attempted a semi-wraparound at 15:25 but was stopped by Ullmark. Zach had a scoring chance moments later off a centering pass by Zacha. Finally, McaAvoy scored on Boston's third scoring opportunity of the shift. Then, at 16:47, made it 3-0 on a multiple-deflected puck. 

2) First period shots on goal were 13-12 Flyers (led by four Farabee shots on net). Shot attempts were 22-18 Flyers. Scoring chances were 10-7 Bruins. High-danger scoring chances were 7-4 Bruins. Faceoffs were 16-3 Flyers.

3) Boston's van Riemsdyk made it 5-0 at 1:15 of the second period. Ullmark stopped a Frost deflection at 3:39 and then a Lycksell rebound chance at the doorstep at 3:40 for his toughest saves since before Boston got their first goal. At 5:59, Konecny was denied from close range. 

The Flyers received their first power play at 8:11. McAvoy interfered with a forechecking Foerster. Couturier deflected a point shot on net. Frost was stopped from above the left hash marks. Atkinson deflected a Frost shot-pass on net  as the power play expired.

Drysdale and Frost combined to set up an eventual one-timer chance for Atkinson. On the next shift, Lycksell had a scoring chance and then Foerster scored at 15:23. Atkinson had another chance, this time from near the left dot, at 16:49.

4) Second period shots on goal were 16-5 Flyers (28-19 Flyers overall). Shot attempts were 33-14 Flyers (54-33 Bruins overall). Scoring chances were 16-6 Flyers (23-17 Flyers overall). High-danger scoring chances were 6-4 Flyers (12-10 Bruins overall). Faceoffs were 11-7 Boston (23-14 Flyers overall).

5)  A line of Farabee, Frost and Atkinson line created pressure and drew a tripping penalty on Morgan Geekie at 1:56 of the third period. Just as the penalty was set to expire, a near tic-tac-toe goal for Poehling was stopped in close.

At 4:59, the Flyers went back to the power play as  Kevin Shattenkirk high-sticked Poehling. On a Frost dump-in, Ullmark stopped the puck behind the net and fired a pass out to Heinen for a breakaway. That was the lone scoring chance for either side.

Konecny was called for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty at 7:01. Laughton missed the net on a shorthanded scoring chance and then was called for goalie interference as Ullmark tripped. Boston had a 27-second 5-on-3. As the Konecny penalty expired, Petersen stopped a Pastrnak one-timer from the left circle. Later, he stopped a Shattenkirk one-timer from center point.

After play moved back to 5-on-5, Foerster scored again to make it a 5-2 game. Immediately on the next shift, Frost deflected a puck on net that Ullmark barely fought off. Coyle scored at 14:45.

Third period shots on goal were 10-9 Flyers (37-28 Flyers overall) .Shot attempts were 19-18 Bruins (72-52 Flyers overall). Scoring chances were 12-10 Flyers (35-27 Flyers overall). High danger chances were 5-3 Flyers (15-15 overall). Final faceoffs were 31-22 Flyers.