Recap: Coyotes Fall to Flyers, Can't Extend Win Streak to Six Games

GLENDALE -- Alex Galchenyuk and Michael Grabner scored goals for the Coyotes vs. Philadelphia on Monday night, but the Flyers spoiled Arizona's bid for a perfect homestand by handing the hosts a 5-2 defeat at Gila River Arena.
Backup goalie Darcy Kuemper stopped 29 of 33 shots for Arizona, which had won five games in a row, including the first four of a five-game homestand.

"The key now is you can't have a long losing streak," Head Coach Rick Tocchet said. "You have to get back on it, come to practice with good energy. I do like the effort of most of the guys ... but we probably needed more from a couple of guys."
Philadelphia led 2-0 after one period and never trailed. Goalie Cal Pickard was sharp throughout the game and stopped 34 of Arizona's 36 shots.
The teams will complete a cross-country home-and-home series on Thursday at Wells Fargo Center.
"I think it's huge we put five wins in a row, built some momentum and feel good about ourselves but, at the same time, we still have some stuff we can do better on the ice," Oliver Ekman-Larsson said. "We have a lot of confidence in the group right now. Obviously we didn't get the result we wanted, but let's bounce back."

• Trailing 2-0, Galchenyuk scored a power-play goal from the right circle at 1:14 of the second period. Christian Fischer aided the goal by setting a perfect screen in front of Pickard. However, the Flyers answered later in the period when Sean Couturier fired the puck into Arizona's empty net after Grabner collided with Kuemper.

"It was another good effort by us, just all the bounces seemed to go their way," said Kuemper, who played while the Coyotes rested a healthy Antti Raanta. "I felt the same as all the other games, just a couple weird ones ended up being the difference."

• Grabner sliced Philadelphia's lead to 4-2 at 14:04 of the third period, but that was as close as the Coyotes, who are 7-6-0 after 13 games, got to a comeback.
"We wanted to work our way back in the picture and we did that (on the homestand)," said Grabner, who extended his point streak to five games. "We're right in the mix now, but obviously still a lot of games, a lot of hockey left until the end here."
• Defenseman Kevin Connauton returned to the lineup after missing two games because of flu-like symptoms. Connauton skated 17:03, notched four shots on goal and assisted on Grabner's goal.
• The Coyotes killed two of Philadelphia's three power plays, but failed to score a short-handed goal for the first time on the homestand.
• Stats that jump off the Event Summary: Clayton Keller assisted on Galchenyuk's goal to stretch his point streak to five games, Nick Cousins led the Coyotes with six shots on goal, and Niklas Hjalmarsson blocked a game-high four shots.