Flyers extend point streak in 3-2 shootout loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets
The Flyers extended their point streak to three games but shootout goals by Columbus' Kent Johnson and Kirill Marchenko were the difference.
COLUMBUS, Ohio ― It’s been an emotional few days for the Flyers.
They dismantled Cutter Gauthier and the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday before mounting their eighth comeback in the third period — an NHL-best — on Monday against the defending champion Florida Panthers.
Tuesday, they faced a Columbus Blue Jackets team that had won four straight and was sitting three points ahead in the second wild-card spot. The Flyers lost 3-2 in a shootout on goals by Kent Johnson and Kirill Marchenko.
The result ended a two-game winning streak, but extended the Flyers’ point streak to three games; it’s their longest since five straight games with a point from Nov. 23-30.
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Owen Tippett scored in the third period to give the Flyers a 2-1 lead by sending a puck from above the circles past the screen of Blue Jackets defenseman Dante Fabbro. The play started when Morgan Frost picked off a pass by Columbus’ Zach Werenski intended for Zach Aston-Reese in the neutral zone.
But the Blue Jackets — who are the highest-scoring team at home, averaging 4.18 goals this season — tied things up with under five minutes left. On a late two-on-one, Werenski scored his second of the game after receiving a pass from Marchenko.
Each team had opportunities in overtime, with the Flyers controlling the play. Goalie Ivan Fedotov robbed Werenski of a hat trick as he streaked past Matvei Michkov and then Travis Sanheim made a poke check on former Flyer Ivan Provorov.
Things started well for the Flyers, taking a 1-0 lead off the stick of a player coach John Tortorella said needed to get a goal.
Less than five minutes into the game, the Flyers kept the puck in the zone at the right point before Jamie Drysdale sent a nice chip pass across to Nick Seeler at the left point. The grizzled defenseman skated down patiently into the faceoff circle until he found Bobby Brink atop the crease for the redirect. It snapped a 20-game goal drought for the forward.
The Flyers held the Blue Jackets without a shot until 7 minutes, 13 seconds into the game. Fedotov, making his first start since he faced the Toronto Maple Leafs in a home-and-home Jan. 5 and 7, made a left-pad kick-out save on a shot by countryman Marchenko from the left circle.
Columbus tied things up later after a pass from Rasmus Ristolainen to Noah Cates went off the forward’s skate and Werenski corralled the puck. He raced past Cates and a diving Egor Zamula before beating Fedotov blocker side.
In the second period, the teams traded chances and had opportunities to open things up with each putting on nine shots on goal.
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Brink crashed the left post 4:30 into the frame and just missed the pass; Frost had a deflection chance atop the crease less than 2 minutes later. Fedotov robbed the Blue Jackets’ Jake Christiansen on a two-on-one and less than a minute later, he stopped four straight chances by Columbus around the crease.
Breakaways
Joel Farabee was a healthy scratch for a third straight game. … Frost extended his point streak to four games (three goals, two assists). … Sanheim took a hard hit by Mathieu Olivier — the same guy who crushed Emil Andrae the last time these teams met in Columbus — and came up sore. Travis Konecny went after Olivier and they each took penalties, with Konecny getting the extra two.
Up next
The Flyers head to Long Island to take on the New York Islanders on Thursday (7:30 p.m., NBCSP).