Last night’s Philadelphia Flyers game in Ottawa was the epitome of sticking with a game and finding a way to earn a win. In a difficult Canadian road environment, Philadelphia was outworked, doubled up on shots, and looked destined for a loss to the Senators trailing by two goals with 10:00 left on the third-period clock. The Flyers struck gold twice in two minutes to tie the game in the final frame allowing Matvei Michkov the provide late drama with a late overtime skate-off victory in Canada’s capital.
With the overtime goal, Michkov cost Philly a chance at tying NHL history with a fourth straight game that went to a shootout. John Tortorella will happily settle for the two points as his Philadelphia Flyers team heads home for a five-game homestand beginning with the Buffalo Sabers tomorrow night in Philly.
Sanheim Opens Up First Period Scoring
If you only looked at the box score from last night’s contest between the Philadelphia Flyers and the Ottawa Senators, you would not have an accurate description of how the game played out. On the surface, the game looked even like a duck calmly gliding across the top of a lake. But Flyers fans who watched the game know things were not easy or breezy for the Flyers last night.
Travis Sanheim opened the scoring in the game with an early goal at 2:31. The Flyers defenseman ripped a puck from the blue line that rocketed past Ottawa goalie Linus Ullmark for a 1-0 Philly lead. The lead was a short-lived celebration as Brady Tkachuk tied the contest three minutes later on a shot that whipped past Ivan Fedotov to the game at one.
Konecky Ties it Late in 2nd
In the second period, Ottawa continued to pressure Fedotov and the Philadelphia defense. A team finally broke through with a man-advantage goal against the Flyers Power Kill, who had killed off 19-straight penalties. Drake Batherson cashed in on the power play near the nine-minute mark for a 2-1 Senators lead.
As he has done most of this season, Travis Konecny brought a spark to the Flyers before the second intermission with his 9th goal converting on a breakaway attempt to tie the game at 2-2. Konecny leads the team in goals, assists, and points over the first quarter of the 2024 NHL season.
Third-period Comeback for the Flyers
Ottawa’s Josh Norris scored at 4:27 of the third period to put the Senators back in front. The Senators center walked in from the blue line and ripped a shot past Fedotov for a 3-2 advantage favoring Ottawa. Adam Gaudatte’s power-play goal double the Senators advantage to 4-2.
Philadelphia picked up their gigantic goaltender by scoring twice in the two-plus minutes. Anthony Richard scored his 2nd of the season on a wrist shot that slipped past Ottawa’s netminder. On their next shift, Richard shot a puck towards the pads of Linus Ullmark that bounced off the Senators goalie towards Bobby Brink and into the net to the the game at four.
Michkov Provides Game Winner in Overtime
Ottawa largely controlled the overtime session; however, a Matvei Michkov shot from an atrocious angle slipped behind Ullmark for the game-winner with 55 seconds remaining in the game. Michkov has attempted shots of this nature from bad angles all season and finally got one to slip past a goalie in a clutch situation. The goal is the 6th of the season for the Flyers rookie. Michkov’s 13 points allow him to keep pace with Dallas’ winger Logan Stankoven (14 points) in the early conversations about the 2024 Rookie of the Year.
With the win, Philly takes one step closer to evening their season record now just one game under the .500 mark at 7-8-2. The Flyers’ 16 standings points place the team sixth in a competitive Metropolitan Division. Philadelphia (7-8-2) will look to improve on the 3-4 home record at Wells Fargo Center starting tomorrow night against the Buffalo Sabres (8-8-1). Philly will play five games on Broad Street over the next nine days between November 16-25.
Mandatory Credit: Perry Nelson-Imagn Images
