Couturier, Flyers defeat Devils for first win in three games

NEWARK, N.J. - Sean Couturier had a goal and an assist then scored the only goal in the shootout when the Philadelphia Flyers defeated New Jersey Devils 4-3 at Prudential Center on Friday.

Oskar Lindblom also had a goal and an assist, and Joel Farabee scored his first NHL goal for the Flyers (6-5-1), who won for the first time in three games. Carter Hart made 23 saves.
Couturier's shootout goal off a one-handed backhand conjured memories of former NHL forward Peter Forsberg in the championship game for Sweden against Canada at the Lillehammer Winter Olympics on Feb. 28, 1994.
WATCH: [All Flyers vs. Devils highlights]
"Everyone has seen the [Forsberg] goal and we have a lot of fun at the end of practice doing shootouts, and that's one move I never tried in a game so maybe I caught him off guard," Couturier said. "I did that in practice before but never in a game."
Hart said, "He's done it a couple times on me and it can be a tough move because he's a big guy, has a long reach, so once he gets to the one side he can kind of pull you over with one hand and it could be kind of tough. He changed up his breakaway moves, and he's been working hard in practice and he burnt me a couple times so it was nice to see him do it tonight."
Taylor Hall had a goal and an assist, Wayne Simmonds and Sami Vatanen scored, and Mackenzie Blackwood made 28 saves for the Devils (2-5-4). New Jersey is winless in three straight (0-1-2). Kyle Palmieri had two assists for the Devils.

"We work on breakaways every day and like to compete with the guys and have a little fun with it," Hart said. "That's kind of the mindset you go into the shootout with ... go out and make some saves."
Hall gave the Devils a 3-2 lead when he scored on a shot from the bottom of the left circle at 9:58 of the third period.
"No one's feeling sorry for us right now," Hall said. "We know that this is no time to quit on the game plan or quit on each other. It's really just about going out there and doing the things that we're doing well."
Farabee tied it at 11:29 of the third period on a wrist shot from the high slot.

"I was pressing pretty hard lately so to get the monkey off my back, so it felt pretty good," Farabee said. "You always think about your first one, but you don't necessarily think about the play or how it'll happen, but it felt good."
Couturier gave the Flyers a 2-1 lead when his shot from the right circle deflected off Devils defenseman Matt Tennyson and into the net at 7:26 of the second period.
"I thought we controlled most of the game expect maybe for when we were on the penalty kill where we lost momentum and didn't get the job done," Couturier said.
Vatanen tied the game on a power-play goal off a slap shot at 14:28 of the second.
Lindblom scored from the bottom of the left circle at 10:39 into the first period for a 1-1 tie.
"It's frustrating losing games like that and we seem to be on that side of it a lot lately," Blackwood said.
Simmonds scored a power-play goal to give New Jersey a 1-0 lead on his first goal as a member of the Devils against his former team 6:24 into the first.

The Devils received a scare midway through the first period when rookie center Jack Hughes, the No. 1 pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, left the game for concussion protocol after a hit from defenseman Matt Niskanen behind the Flyers net at 11:56 of the first. Hughes returned in the second period.

They said it

"It was a pretty special shootout move [by Couturier]. Not many guys can pull that off. He obviously sold it pretty good and I'm sure we'll be watching it for the next couple of months." -- Flyers forward Travis Konecny
"We got to find a way to keep leads. It's exhausting for us and our fans. There's no better feeling than getting a lead in the third period and holding them down and really playing solid hockey and not really letting them get any chances but right now we're struggling to maintain momentum."-- Devils forward Taylor Hall

Need to know

The Devils acquired goalie
Louis Domingue
from the Tampa Bay Lightning for a conditional seventh-round pick in the 2021 NHL Draft. ... Konecny has seven points (three goals, four assists) in his past seven games. ... Hall has one goal and five assists during a four-game point streak. ... Hughes has six points (two goals, four assists) in his past five games. ... Vatanen has five points (three goals, two assists) in a four-game point streak.

What's next

Flyers:Host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; NHLN, CBC, SNO, NBCSP, NHL.TV)
Devils: At the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; FS-CR, MSG, NHL.TV)