Cowan's OT goal caps Maple Leafs comeback against Flyers

PHILADELPHIA -- Easton Cowan scored with 2:12 remaining in overtime and the Toronto Maple Leafs rallied for a 2-1 win against the Philadelphia Flyers at Xfinity Mobile Arena on Thursday.

Cowan finished a 2-on-1 rush with John Tavares for the Maple Leafs (21-15-7), who extended their point streak to eight games (6-0-2). Scott Laughton also scored, and Dennis Hildeby made 22 saves.

The rookie forward had missed a breakaway chance earlier during overtime, putting a backhand attempt off the left pad of Flyers goalie Dan Vladar.

"I would have liked that first one back," Cowan said. "Not a great move by me, but great save by 'Beast' (Hildeby) at the other end. And then John made a heck of a play. He's a very good player. He knows the game, puts it right in my gun. Credit to him there."

Toronto's point streak is its longest since a nine-game run (6-0-3) from Nov. 28-Dec. 16, 2023.

"We're really just sticking to our system here, listening to 'Chief' (coach Craig Berube) and the other coaches, and we're playing well," Cowan said. "Our systems have been very good, our trap. Good defense leads to offense, and that's what we've been doing."

Travis Konecny scored, and Vladar made 21 saves for Philadelphia (22-13-8).

Konecny, who is second on the Flyers with 38 points (14 goals, 24 assists) in 42 games, did not return for the third period because of an upper-body injury.

"Something was bugging him, I guess, from early on," Philadelphia coach Rick Tocchet said. "I think he fell or something. I don't know all the details."

Konecny put the Flyers ahead 1-0 by scoring 55 seconds into the second period. Christian Dvorak picked up a loose puck on the left side of the Maple Leafs zone, skated toward the goal line, turned and passed back to Konecny, who beat Hildeby over his blocker from the left face-off circle.

Laughton tied the game 1-1 at 14:04 of the third period with a short-handed goal. Flyers defenseman Travis Sanheim missed the net on a shot from the left face-off circle, and Laughton picked up the loose puck along the far boards. He skated into the Philadelphia zone and beat Vladar with a shot from the top of the left face-off circle.

It was Laughton's first game as an opponent in Philadelphia. He spent nearly 12 NHL seasons with the Flyers before being traded to the Maple Leafs on March 7, 2025.

"It was definitely an emotional start to the game," Laughton said. "Probably took me a period to kind of get going. I think a lot of emotions run through that. ... Getting the start was a nice touch, and then it kind of all floods back to you about most of the memories here and all the people that helped you. So it was an emotional start. And then once the game starts going, it's game on, like any other game. We found a way and that's what you have to do at this time of year."

Philadelphia went 0-for-4 on the power play, including a 5-on-3 advantage for 52 seconds during the third period.

"There's reads there," Tocchet said. "The best way to describe it, the 5-on-3, they had two guys on one side, and if we make one pass, somebody would have been wide open. But we're looking for plays instead of organically playing. ... They had a guy with no stick, and we have the puck on the other side. That's a hard one for me to swallow, because you want the puck on the side of the guy without a stick. You want to pick on him but we have the puck on the other side.

Philadelphia entered the game 30th in the NHL on the power play at 15.4 percent, and now is 1-for-19 on the man-advantage in its past six games, and 4-for-45 (8.9 percent) in its past 16.

"I don't know if it's the pressure with the power play, the guys are squeezing it so much," Tocchet said. "But we need some guys to kind of understand the pressure and convert."

The Maple Leafs carried the momentum from Laughton's goal into overtime, where Cowan scored the winner. The 20-year-old rookie had scored his first NHL goal in Toronto's 5-2 win in Philadelphia on Nov. 1.

"He's awesome," Laughton said. "He's great to be around. He's an unbelievable teammate. He's got great rhythm, and he's just fun to be around. He's an awesome kid, and I'm happy for him."

NOTES: Cowan is the third Maple Leafs rookie in the past 25 years to score in overtime, joining Auston Matthews (Jan. 1, 2017) and Mikhail Grabovski (March 10, 2009). ... The Maple Leafs have won five straight games against the Flyers and are 13-1-0 in their past 14 against them. ... Konecny's goal was his 212th, passing teammate Sean Couturier for 14th in Flyers history. ... The Flyers played without forward Bobby Brink (upper body) and defenseman Jamie Drysdale (upper body), each of whom was injured during a 5-2 win against the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday.