It appeared the holiday vacation mindset lingered over when it came time to hit the ice. The Philadelphia Flyers (19-11-7) returned to play and were unable to capitalize on chances, leading to a 4-1 loss in a West Coast matchup against the Seattle Kraken (16-14-6) at Climate Pledge Arena on Sunday night.
The Flyers resumed their last four seasons following the Christmas break coming out on top. Unfortunately for the Orange and Black, this time around was more of a silent night. Philadelphia had nothing to show for on the scoresheet until Carl Grundström scored the Flyers’ lone goal with 1:57 left in regulation to extend his goal streak to three games.
Were there chances? Yes. Did the Flyers give an effort? Somewhat. There just wasn’t enough execution by Philadelphia with limited bodies managing to get in front of Seattle netminder Philipp Grubauer, who had his way with the Flyers by stopping 31 of 32 shots.
“I thought we played all right. Just couldn’t finish on our chances. They did. I think it could have went one way or the other if we capitalized a little more on our chances,” Sean Couturier said.
In the first period back for both teams returning from the holiday break, the goalies were the only aspect that was jolly. Grubauer and Dan Vladař traded big saves throughout the entirety of the opening stanza. The Flyers had their opportunities early on with two power plays against Seattle’s 32nd-ranked penalty kill ranked after Nikita Grebenkin drew a holding call and Denver Barkey got held on a breakaway minutes later. Philadelphia had a slew of looks but were mainly kept to the perimeter, in which Grubauer turned aside each shot with ease.
“We were getting some chances and moving the puck well. Obviously, the goaltender played well, and we were not getting the looks with traffic,” Travis Sanheim said.
With a period of hockey underneath each squad’s belt, the scoring began and it would be the Kraken to snap the scoreless bid. Matty Beniers flew into the offensive zone and dropped a pass off to Kaapo Kakko behind the net. Kakko located a wide-open Jordan Eberle after Matvei Michkov left the 16-year veteran uncovered heading towards the slot which gave Seattle the 1-0 lead.
Eberle’s tally marked the 25th game for the Flyers to allow the initial goal.
Trying to maintain their persona as the ‘Comeback Kids,’ the Flyers found themselves on another man advantage following the Kraken taking a too many men on the ice penalty. Grubauer prevented anything from getting behind him and nothing showed on the scoreboard for Philadelphia once more. The Flyers had 11 shots through two periods during 5-on-5 play and were 0-for-3 on the power play, essentially the difference maker as they trailed with the final frame up next.
“You get three power plays, you gotta find a way to score. That’s from net front goals, rebound goals. I don’t think we grabbed a rebound,” said head coach Rick Tocchet.
Pressure ensued from the Flyers out the gates with the third period underway. Couturier, Sanheim, and Rasmus Ristolainen generated chances however the brick-wall between the pipes in Grubauer denied each scoring attempt. The Flyers sustained the forecheck until an aerial alley-oop clear by Adam Larsson landed near Vladař. Eeli Tolvanen retrieved the puck after stripping Sanheim to connect with Chandler Stephenson, which extended Seattle’s lead.
Tolvanen entered the matchup with seven points in his five previous performances. He finished with a pair of empty-net goals when Philadelphia elected to pull Vladař for the extra attacker twice as well as picking up an assist on Stephenson’s game-winner.
One positive to come out of the contest was Grundström breaking up the shutout. Rodrigo Ābols sprung a charging Grundström into the offensive zone who ripped a laser underneath the crossbar. The goal had a brief review to make sure it went in and seconds later Grundström was awarded his sixth goal in 10 outings since being recalled because of Tyson Foerster’s injury.
When the final horn went off, Trevor Zegras’ nine-game point streak came to an end. It also meant Vladař recorded his first regulation loss in six starts and stays put at one win shy of his career-high for now.
The Flyers will aim to get back in the win column as they continue onwards with their five-game road trip. Philadelphia will cross the border to take on the Vancouver Canucks (15-19-3) on Tuesday night at 10:00pm ET.
