Flyers at Utah Hockey Club | Recap

SALT LAKE CITY -- Dylan Guenther scored his second goal of the game with one second left in overtime to give the Utah Hockey Club a 3-2 win against the Philadelphia Flyers at Delta Center on Tuesday.

Guenther, who was playing in his first game since Jan. 8 after missing the previous 12 with a lower-body injury, skated in from the neutral zone and scored on a wrist shot near the edge of the right circle. The winning goal came after he tied it 2-2 at 8:40 of the third period, a wrist shot past Samuel Ersson blocker side.

“I was waiting for [Clayton Keller] to get off, and I saw it go in,” said Guenther of the game-winning goal. “Then I saw the clock was at zero, so I was just hoping that it got off in time, and it did.”

Guenther also had an assist and set a career high for points in a season with 37 (18 goals, 19 assists) in 41 games.

“It feels good,” said Guenther. “It's tough getting injured, and I've never really gone through that before. So it's nice that the work that you put in paid off. Just have to keep it rolling here and try to get some more wins.”

PHI@UTA: Guenther's second goal of game lifts Utah Hockey Club over Flyers in overtime

Mikhail Sergachev had a goal and two assists, and Barrett Hayton had two assists for Utah (22-22-9), which ended a five-game losing streak. Karel Vejmelka made 18 saves.

“[Guenther’s] really, really good. But I think it was a team effort,” Utah coach Andre Tourigny said. “I loved the answer [from the last game]. Not just the score, obviously the score is huge. That's what we're playing for. But the intensity, the battle level, the number of battles we won, the way we reloaded, the way we went at the net, the drive to the net we had. I think everybody did their part.”

Tyson Foerster scored, and Rodrigo Abols scored his first NHL goal for the Flyers (23-25-7), who lost their fourth straight. Ersson, who will represent Sweden in the 4 Nations Face-Off from Feb. 12-20, made an NHL career-high 39 saves.

“They're on a path to be a really good hockey club,” Philadelphia coach John Tortorella said. “If you don't make them come [200 feet], it's trouble… We were just too sloppy with the puck as far as turnovers. And let's face it, we're wounded. We've got five or six guys out. The trade, the injuries, we cannot play a style of letting a team play 140 feet, especially a skilled team like that.”

Abols gave Philadelphia a 1-0 lead at 2:02 of the first period on a shot through a screen.

“It's special, obviously. Better than I imagined,” Abols said. “For me, being here, it's a huge privilege that I don't take for granted. Waking up every day when you're in the NHL, it's a great day to start. For me, I just come here, put my work boots on, and whether it's for five, 10, or how many minutes they want me to be out there, I'll do my best and try to help the team win.”

PHI@UTA: Abols kicks off scoring early with first career goal

Sergachev tied it 1-1 at 3:32 of the second period when he sent a one-timer from the top of the circle past Ersson.

Foerster scored 57 seconds later to put the Flyers back ahead 2-1 at 4:29 when he tipped in a shot from Sean Couturier.

Travis Konecny, who will represent Canada in the 4 Nations Face-Off, appeared to score at 8:46, but the goal was overturned after Utah challenged and video review determined the play was offside.

Utah pulled within six points of the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference.

“We still very much believe,” said Tourigny. “We know at this point, we'll need a little bit of help. We didn't take the straight line, but we can make it, and we'll fight for it.
And now we need to go on the road and have a [heck] of a road trip.”

NOTES: Sergachev scored his 10th goal of the season, tying his career high. … Travis Sanheim recorded an assist on Abols’ goal, giving him 155 career assists to pass Behn Wilson for sole possession of eighth place on the Flyers’ all-time list among defensemen. … Abols (29 years, 30 days) became the oldest player to score his first career NHL goal this season. He became the fourth player this season to score his first career goal at age 27 or older.