The Philadelphia Flyers have now lost five straight games after falling by a score of 5-2 against the Ottawa Senators.
Brady Tkachuk opened the scoring just 24 seconds in before a frantic second period saw each team tally two goals apiece. Jamie Drysdale and Rodrigo Ābols got the Flyers on the board before Tyler Kleven and Michael Amadio responded back.
Dylan Cozens then scored a crucial goal midway through the third period before Shane Pinto iced the game with an empty netter.
Anton Forsberg earned his 9th victory of the season as he turned aside 20 shots, while Ivan Fedotov earned the loss after allowing 4 goals on 23 shots.
Looking to get their first win on a season-long 7-game home-stand, the Flyers welcomed Claude Giroux and the Senators into the Wells Fargo Center.
After having rattled off a 5-game point streak that included 4 victories, the Flyers have since dropped 4 straight games, all of which have come on home ice. Two lineup changes were made with Emil Andrae replacing Egor Zamula and Fedotov posting between the pipes.
As for the Senators, they were holding onto the first wild card spot with 71 points, which would be their first berth since 2016-17. They entered tonight on a 3-game winning streak which included a 2-1 win over Detroit last night where Linus Ullmark shined with 48 saves.
Forsberg earned the start on the second leg of their back to back set as he looked to improve on his 8-10-1 record, 2.82 GAA, and .895 SV%. It was also his first start since the 6th of February, in which he allowed 4 goals on 30 shots against Tampa Bay.
Offensively they were paced by Tim Stützle’s 45 assists and 65 points in 63 games – he just had his 14-game point streak snapped on Monday – Brady Tkachuk’s 26 goals and 50 points, and Drake Batherson’s 49 points. Giroux came into Tuesday’s game with 12 goals and 40 points in 63 games.
FIRST PERIOD
The Senators needed just 24 seconds to get on the board after Tkachuk finished off a one-timer from a Giroux feed that went off Fedotov’s mask and in. Travis Sanheim’s pass out of the defensive zone was stopped in the neutral zone and the Senators countered quickly and efficiently as Tkachuk nabbed his 27th of the season.
If that wasn’t bad enough, only six seconds later Nick Seeler took an interference minor, sending a relatively dangerous power play onto the ice. Fortunately it was killed off but the Senators had a few dangerous looks.
Down by one with 12:08 remaining in the period, Stützle was called for a hooking minor. The first unit created a few chances off the stick of Tyson Foerster but they both missed the net, whereas the second unit had issues getting into the zone.
After a quick start to the game and period, the final 19:36 featured one power play and five shots apiece for each team.
SECOND PERIOD
3:05 into the second period, Drysdale was able to get a puck past Forsberg to tie the game up. It was a great passing play as Ryan Poehling entered the zone and fed Olle Lycksell, who then found Travis Konecny before he one-touched it to a streaking Drysdale who snuck one in with a backhand.
1:09 later, Kleven was able to keep a bouncing puck inside the blue-line before firing it through traffic before it slipped under Fedotov’s glove. Sanheim was battling Cozens before he moved out of the way right at the last second, which served as the perfect screen.
The Flyers then tied things up again after Ābols wired a quick one-timer through Forsberg’s five-hole after a great set up from Cam York for his second of the season at the 8:38 mark. It was a great fourth-line shift as they hemmed the Senators in the fourth line before finding the back of the net.
With 9:21 remaining, Stützle was nailed for his second penalty of the game, a tripping minor against Matvei Michkov. The first unit generated one shot from Noah Cates but the best chance from Ottawa after they jumped on an odd-man rush before Fedotov made a big pad save.
After the expiration of the penalty, Stützle jumped on a breakaway but was impeded by Drysdale, leading him to the penalty box for a holding minor. Both teams traded odd-man rushes near the end of the penalty with Poehling being denied by Forsberg twice and David Perron’s shot attempt going wide the other way.
However with the penalty having just finished, Amadio was able to slide one through Fedotov’s five-hole off the wing. Jake Sanderson’s outlet pass was deflected by Adam Gaudette just outside the Flyers zone before Amadio picked it up and deceived Fedotov with a strong power forward move.
A frantic second period came to a close with both teams tallying twice as the Senators took a 3-2 lead into the intermission alongside a 22-16 edge in shots.
THIRD PERIOD
In a game that featured several odd man rushes for both sides, the Flyers came within striking distance but Sean Couturier was unable to finish off the play as Matthew Highmore came to his goaltender’s defense at the very last second.
With just 9:00 remaining, Cozens wired his second goal as a member of the Senators after jumping on a loose puck in the slot. Seeler’s pass to Poehling in the middle of the ice went off his skate, which allowed Cozens to pick up the loose puck and roof one over Fedotov’s blocker for his 13th of the season.
With the goalie pulled at the 16:30 mark, the Flyers had a few chances initially but weren’t able to get a puck on goal for over three minutes. With a shot on goal finally registered, the Senators were able to grab the rebound and take it the other way with Pinto icing the game with his 15th of the season.
UP NEXT
The Flyers host the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday night (7:00pm ET; NBCSP) in the sixth game of their homestand.
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