The Philadelphia Flyers (25-20-11) were fortunate to come away with a point in a 2-1 overtime loss to the Ottawa Senators (28-22-7) on Thursday night at Xfinity Mobile Arena. With a sluggish offensive showing, Philadelphia leaned heavily on Dan Vladař, whose performance was the primary reason the Flyers entered the Olympic break with at least something to show for it.
First Period
In a late pregame change, James Reimer got the start for Ottawa after Linus Ullmark was scratched due to flu-like symptoms. With the Senators’ red-hot starter unavailable, the Flyers had an opportunity to jump on, but did anything but that.
Philadelphia didn’t record its first shot on goal until 15:35 into the period, when Denver Barkey finally tested Reimer. By that point, Vladař had already turned aside eight Ottawa shots, setting the tone for a night where he consistently bailed out a sleepy Flyers offense.
At 19:19, Drake Batherson was called for hooking, giving the Flyers their first power play of the night. The man advantage generated little momentum, and the period ended scoreless.
Second Period
The Flyers opened the second period with more power play time but continued to struggle, failing to register a single shot on goal during either portion of their first power play.
At 5:52, Sean Couturier was called for hooking, sending Ottawa to its first power play of the game. The Flyers’ penalty kill came through, with strong defensive efforts from Christian Dvorak, Noah Cates, and Rasmus Ristolainen.
Ottawa broke through at 9:55, when Nick Cousins buried a rebound off a Shane Pinto shot, with Michael Amadio earning the secondary assist.
Despite extended puck possession and a brief advantage when Dylan Cozens lost a skate blade, the Flyers were unable to respond.
After two periods, Philadelphia had just eight shots on goal, while Vladař had stopped 20 of 21, once again keeping the Flyers within striking distance.
Third Period
The offensive struggles continued into the third, with the Flyers registering just three shots on goal in the first ten minutes, one from Travis Konecny and two from Couturier.
Despite a largely uneventful frame, Philadelphia finally found a way to equalize late. With Vladař pulled for the extra attacker, Jamie Drysdale beat Reimer through traffic, with Cam York and Owen Tippett in front. The play developed quickly, as Trevor Zegras fed Bobby Brink before Brink sent it over to Drysdale, who let it rip.
The Flyers were somehow forcing overtime.
Overtime
Claude Giroux won the opening faceoff against Dvorak before heading to the bench, allowing Brady Tkachuk to jump on for Ottawa. The Flyers briefly threatened, including a 2-on-1 chance for Konecny, but the outcome felt inevitable.
Just 47 seconds into overtime, Tim Stützle skated around Travis Sanheim and beat Vladař to end it, with Tkachuk earning the lone assist.
While the final goal went against him, Vladař was far from the problem. He finished the night with 25 saves on 27 shots, many of them high-quality looks, and was the clear reason the Flyers escaped with a point.
Up Next
The Flyers now enter the Olympic break and will return to action on Wednesday, February 25, when they visit the Washington Capitals in Washington, D.C. Puck drop is set for 7pm/ET.
In the meantime, the Flyers will have three players representing their countries at the Olympics: Travis Sanehim, Canada; Dan Vladař, Czechia; and Rasmus Ristolainen, Finland. Head coach Rick Tocchet will also be in Milan, serving as an assistant coach for Team Canada. Sanheim and Vladař will face off in their countries’ opening Olympic game on Thursday, February 12 at 10:40am/ET. Finland sits in a different group, leaving a potential matchup with Risotlainen uncertain.
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