Flyers rally late, fall to Islanders, 3-2, in shootout

The general manager called it the most important stretch of the season, so Carter Hart obliged with his best outing in weeks, the captain led an improbable comeback, but it still wasn’t enough as the Flyers lost to the New York Islanders in a shootout, 3-2, Saturday at Nassau Coliseum.

Claude Giroux scored twice in the third period as the Flyers erased a two-goal deficit and forced overtime.

“We knew we were playing great five-on-five. We just had to take that momentum into the third period,” said Hart, who stopped 22 of 24 shots.

New York had been 11-0-1 when leading after two periods. The Flyers were 3-12-0 when trailing after 40 minutes.

But getting two points, not one, is the mission these days.

“Where we’re at this point of season, it’s disappointing not to get that second point,” said Giroux, whose goals came on lasers from the slot.

“We need those extra points. But saying that, I think our game today was our best in a while and we need to build on this.”

The Flyers (17-14-5) are in positional limbo, closer to seventh place than third. GM Chuck Fletcher earlier Saturday said these first three games in April will have a major impact on how aggressive he will be ahead of the April 12 trade deadline. Will there be a significant move or will their orange-and-black flag be traded in for a white one?

They certainly were more competitive than they showed on Wednesday when they were buried by Buffalo, but it wasn’t enough to avoid their 12th loss in 18 games (6-11-1). They remain tied with the Rangers for fifth place, four points behind Boston, which has two games in hand.

“If you look at the way we played five-on-five, I liked our game,” coach Alain Vigneault said. “We generated enough chances, in our estimation, to win the game.”

Though the season is at a crossroads, Hart’s performance on Saturday was encouraging for the Flyers.

Hart started his first game in nine days and looked sharp, making 22 saves. Hart had been given the week-plus off to shake himself out of a slump that’s lasted two months.

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“Carter was solid tonight, he made some big saves for us,” Giroux said. “When we were down 2-0, he made some huge saves. It looks like he didn’t have a lot of shots [24], but the shots that he faced were quality shots.”

A dangerous and late hit by Samuel Morin on Jean-Gabriel Pageau led to an Islanders power play midway through the first. Anthony Beauvillier made them pay with his first goal of the night off a lovely feed from Matt Martin as Oskar Lindblom futilely trailed.

It was Martin’s first power-play assist in 12 years. Someone on social media pointed out that Martin now has more power-play assists this season than Nolan Patrick. Tough town.

Beauvillier also scored in the second period. Four of his eight goals this season have come against the Flyers.

Hart made a handful of nifty glove saves, which had been a target for opponents during the slump, and stopped Mathew Barzal on a breakaway. He again flashed the glove on Oliver Wahlstrom in overtime, before Barzal beat him for the game-winner in the shootout.

“I had a good week of practice,” Hart said. “Got a bit of a mental breather from the game, as well. Just came to practice every day. Not pouting. Having fun with the boys. Showing up to work with my hard hat and lunch pail, you know.”

The Flyers couldn’t convert a two-man advantage that lasted for 64 seconds in the first. Despite officially outshooting the Islanders, 10-3, the Flyers still trailed. The Islanders had four shots, but the stats guys missed one.

The Flyers also missed one. The extra point a win would have given them wasn’t in the cards.

“We’re on the outside right now,” Vigneault said before the game. “We’re trying to get back in. And these next games are extremely important for what Chuck and management are thinking about. So it’s up to us to play the right way and do the right things on the ice and win games.”

Monday’s game is in Boston. They’ll meet the Bruins at the Wells Fargo Center the following night, and again in Saturday, April 10.

“The season is on the line, you know,” Jake Voracek said. “We are in a big hole. We cannot afford to lose any games, basically. That’s the way it is. We shot ourselves in the foot.

“But this could be a good start to get on a winning streak. But we hadn’t done much in March, so we have to make sure we bring the same intensity next game. It’s gonna be a tough three games, but we’ve got to play the same way every game.”

Tanner Laczynski made his NHL debut, centering a line with Lindblom and Nicolas Aube-Kubel. ... Shayne Gostisbehere’s adventurous week continued with his return to the lineup after a one-game demotion and visit to the waiver wire. ... Phil Myers crashed awkwardly into the boards after getting tangled up with Brock Nelson midway through the third period. He returned five minutes later. ... The Flyers had 57 shot attempts, with 32 on net. New York had 36 shots, with 24 on net.