Energy is contagious. A spark can light a city.
Tonight, the Philadelphia Flyers (2-2-1) did many things correctly. Defensively, they kept their structure. The penalty kill supported Dan Vladař, who earned a hard-fought victory against the Minnesota Wild (2-3-1). While the energy didn’t derive from the ‘Peco Power Play,’ a few standout performances were the catalyst to complete the comeback.
“Our goalies have been great for us, and Vladdy [Dan Vladař] was fantastic for us tonight. That helps a lot, right? I thought we did a good job. That’s a good hockey team [Minnesota Wild] over there. It’s nice to hold them to that many shots, and then play good defensively.” – Nick Seeler; 10/18/2025
In the defensive end, at even-strength and on the penalty kill, Travis Sanheim and Nick Seeler were standouts. Sanheim looked alive away from the puck throughout the battle versus the Wild, and Seeler was relentless on the penalty kill. Owen Tippett flew around the ice with Trevor Zegras and Christian Dvorak, getting the Flyers back into the game.
“He’s [Owen Tippett] been our most dynamic drive play guy. I don’t know what he played tonight, but it seems like when I moved them around, he helped whoever he was playing with.” – Rick Tocchet; 10/18/2025
Rick Tocchet rolled the forwards who he felt provided the most energy in the third period. That came at the expense of benching Matvei Michkov for the second half of the third period and overtime. However, the result spoke for itself. The discourse will run rampant regarding the usage of Michkov, and there’s justification in the critique. Eventually, Tocchet will have to let Michkov play through his struggles.
Here’s how it all went down from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at the Xfinity Mobile Arena:
First Period
Shots: 6-3, Flyers
Score: 0-0
Travis Konecny had the first good scoring chance for Philadelphia in the first period. Sean Couturier centered the puck where Konecny was located, below the hash marks, but Jesper Wallstedt made the stop. Not long after, Michkov lifted the stick of Zeev Buium, which caught Joel Eriksson Ek in the mouth. Eriksson Ek left for the locker room to get his repairs, then returned to compete for 21:54TOI.
Nicolas Deslauriers entered tonight’s lineup while Nikita Grebenkin and Jett Luchanko watched from the press box. That meant Deslauriers had his union-mandated fight, going toe-to-toe with Marcus Foligno. Neither walked away with a definitive win, but the draw got the crowd at the Xfinity Mobile Arena into the first period. As he went to serve his five-minute major penalty for fighting with Foligno, Deslauriers worked the crowd to create energy.
Bobby Brink looked for Jamie Drysdale in the slot, but the puck leaked through his stick to Noah Cates. Wallstedt made another save on Cates. Minnesota didn’t notch its first shot on goal until 6:57 had elapsed in the first period. Marcus Johansson took the first shot on goal for the Wild. Nonetheless, the Flyers continued to pace the period when Zegras nearly sprung Brink on a mini-breakaway, but Ryan Hartman dove to poke the puck away.
“They’re great. A three-headed monster, those three [Tyson Foerster, Noah Cates, Bobby Brink]. They play the right way, they show the other lines what works, they work really hard, and they work off each other great. It’s nice to have them for sure.” – Trevor Zegras; 10/18/2025
Along the boards, in front of the team benches, Sanheim pushed his way through to recover a loose puck. Tocchet kept reiterating the focus Philadelphia had when hosting the Florida Panthers, and the defense maintained their structure, keeping most of the shots from outside on the perimeter.
“[We’re] just sticking with it, playing hard for each other. [That’s] just kind of the team mindset. [The] motto is, ‘If we stick with it, play our game, play north, you see the results.’ We played really well [in the] first couple [of] games of the year against Florida [Panthers]. Tonight, we had parts and pieces of our game. It’s just got to be consistent.” – Noah Cates; 10/18/2025
Jonas Brodin served a minor penalty for holding. Michkov took the lone shot on the power play, which didn’t convert all evening. The Flyers finished 0/2 (0%) on the power play, where Cates had the lone shot later when Philadelphia went on the man-advantage.
Second Period
Shots: 11-11
Score: 1-0, Wild
Vladimir Tarasenko struck first for Minnesota, 1-0, with 18:05 remaining in the second period. Tarasenko shot from the blue line, and the initial save was made by Vladař. Marco Rossi snagged the rebound, then fed Tarasenko again, who moved up into the high slot. His second effort beat Vladař on the glove side.
Tocchet challenged the goal, suggesting Johansson was offside before Tarasenko scored. The NHL Situation Room declared that Drysdale knocked the puck into the defensive zone, which nullified Johansson being offside. The rule states that ‘if a player legally carries, passes, or plays back into his own defending zone while a player of the opposing team is in such defending zone, the offside shall be ignored and play is permitted to continue.’
Zegras served the minor penalty following the unsuccessful challenge. The Wild still has the top-ranked power play in the NHL, but the Flyers finished 3/3 (100%) on the penalty kill.
Noticeably, the checking escalated in the second period. Noah Juulsen made three hits in the second period, including one on Matt Boldy into the boards. Unfortunately for Juulsen, he turned the puck over after making the defensive play. Konecny threw his body into Brodin in the offensive zone. Sanheim disrupted possessions with his stick checking.
“There’s lots to like about our team [Philadelphia Flyers], but there’s certain things we can go through people a little more. I think we can kill plays a little more. I think we can handle wall work a little better. These are the characteristics that are coached that every day we want to work on. It’s a work in progress that’s going to win you hockey games. We sometimes are not closing out quick enough, and that’s just one thing we got to keep working on. It’s a work in progress.” – Rick Tocchet; 10/18/2025
Philadelphia was gripping its sticks too tightly in the second period. Some passes that should’ve been controlled weren’t, such as another chance from Couturier to Konecny deep in the offensive zone. It was reminiscent of the first period, except Konecny couldn’t control the puck to take the shot on goal.
Third Period
Shots: 20-15, Flyers
Score: 1-1
Couturier had a slight breakaway denied by Wallstedt. It was the best scoring chance for the Flyers since the first period.
Sanheim and Drysdale communicated effectively in the defensive zone. Drysdale particularly did a great job in directing traffic on a transition into the offensive zone. He put Egor Zamula en route to Garnet Hathaway, who moved the puck out of danger. Sanheim effortlessly picked up the puck carrier in the defensive zone. In the third period, Philadelphia allowed just four shots, mostly all from the perimeter or bad angles.
Tippett tied the game, 1-1, with 12:50 remaining in the third period. David Jiříček had his pass intercepted by Dvorak, and that’s where the scoring play began. Entering the offensive zone with a pass to Zegras, one more pass was crisp to Tippett, driving down the slot. Wallstedt made the first save, but Tippett wouldn’t be denied. On the second effort, he backhanded the shot off Wallstedt and in from behind the net.
Cam York showed his hustle in the third period. He had his stick knocked out of his hands after circling the puck behind Vladař in the defensive zone. The best part of the sequence was how quickly York recovered to get back into coverage at the crease, providing support to Vladař. Though shot totals weren’t particularly high, Minnesota made Vladař work between the pipes.
“Very good. Solid. Just like he [Dan Vladař] has from camp in his last three games; [he’s] just a real confident, solid goalie. [He] comes by the bench, [and] cheers the guys on. He’s really done a nice job for us.” – Rick Tocchet; 10/18/2025
Michkov was benched while the game was tied. Tocchet provided Tippett with more shifts while Cates, Brink, and Tyson Foerster remained together.
“We just needed some energy, and I thought once we did that, I went with the nine that I thought started to come. That’s what happens sometimes.” – Rick Tocchet; 10/18/2025
Overtime
Shots: 21-16, Flyers
Score: 2-1, Flyers
Each club took one shot on goal. Boldy took his shot, gloved by Vladař. Cates, on the other hand, buried the game-winner, 2-1, with 2:23 remaining in overtime. Philadelphia secured two points toward the standings with a home win versus the Wild.
Up Next
Next, the Philadelphia Flyers host the Seattle Kraken on Monday, October 20th. The opening faceoff is scheduled for 7pm/ET.
