On the second night of a back-to-back, the Philadelphia Flyers found a way to secure another two points, defeating the Minnesota Wild in a shootout on Thursday night. After battling back from a one-goal deficit in the third period, the Flyers leaned on strong efforts from guys like Dan Vladař and Owen Tippett before Travis Konecny sealed the win in the shootout.
First Period
The Wild received the first power play opportunity of the night at the 8:00 mark when Matvei Michkov was called for slashing. With Minnesota entering the game with the fourth-best power play in the NHL, the Flyers’ penalty kill was immediately put to the test. Philadelphia managed to hold strong, though, with clears from Sean Couturier and Christian Dvorak helping kill off the penalty.
Philadelphia got its first power play chance at 10:52 when Marcus Johansson was sent to the box for hooking. The Flyers were unable to generate much offense during the opportunity, however, with Tippett recording the only shot on goal.
The Flyers eventually broke through late in the period. At 18:35, Emil Andrae, who entered the lineup in place of Noah Juulsen, opened the scoring. After battling along the boards to keep the puck in the offensive zone, Trevor Zegras found Andrae joining the play. The defenseman skated into the slot and beat Jesper Wallstedt to give Philadelphia a 1-0 lead heading into the intermission.
Second Period
Minnesota got another opportunity on the power play at 8:14 when Nick Seeler was called for slashing.
It did not take long for the Wild to capitalize. Just 25 seconds into the power play, Matt Boldy tied the game with a power play goal at 8:39. After the Flyers briefly cleared the zone, Minnesota quickly re-entered and Boldy fired a shot past Vladař before the Flyers could fully reset defensively. The goal was assisted by Mats Zuccarello and Quinn Hughes.
Minnesota took the lead later in the period. At 17:50, Kirill Kaprizov made it 2-1 after collecting a pass from Brock Faber. Hughes’ initial shot from the point was blocked by Rasmus Ristolainen, but the rebound was collected by Faber, who quickly found Kaprizov. Kaprizov patiently worked around traffic before beating Vladař to give the Wild their first lead of the night.
Third Period
Early in the third period, the Flyers were given another power play opportunity when Robby Fabbri was called for tripping at 1:54. They was unable to generate much offense during the two minutes and did not record a shot on goal.
6:08 into the period, Konecny was sent to the penalty box for interference, putting the Flyers back on the penalty kill.
Luckily, at 7:58, Tippett tied the game with a shorthanded goal. As the Wild attempted to move the puck up the ice, Tippett disrupted the play and helped create a turnover. Travis Sanheim moved the puck to Carl Grundström, who quickly returned it to Tippett. Tippett wound up and blasted a slapshot past Wallstedt to even the score at 2-2.
The Wild were later called for too many men on the ice at 19:08, giving the Flyers a late power play and a chance to win the game in regulation. Philadelphia could not convert before time expired, though, sending the game to overtime with the power play carrying over.
Overtime
The Flyers were unable to capitalize on the remaining time of the power play to begin overtime, with Zegras recording the only shot during the opportunity.
Philadelphia received another chance with the man advantage 1:35 into overtime when Hughes was called for holding. The Flyers generated several strong chances during the power play, with shots from Konecny, Michkov, and Noah Cates, but Wallstedt held firm to keep the game tied.
With neither team able to score in overtime, the game moved to a shootout.
Shootout
Attempts from Zuccarello, Michkov, Kaprizov, Zegras, and Boldy were all unsuccessful.
Konecny stepped up as the final shooter and delivered the deciding goal, beating Wallstedt to secure the victory for Philadelphia.
It was a strong team effort for the Flyers. Tippett led the way offensively with six shots on goal, Andrae made an impact in his return to the lineup with a goal on three shots, and Vladař stopped 21 of 23 shots for a .913 save percentage.
Up Next
The Flyers return home to face the Columbus Blue Jackets (33-21-11) on Saturday, March 14 at Wells Fargo Center. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30pm/ET. The Blue Jackets currently sit four points ahead of Philadelphia in the standings, making it an important matchup for the Orange and Black.
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