It was only about two weeks ago when the New York Islanders handled the Philadelphia Flyers rather rudely in Brooklyn, winning 3-1. Looking to change that story, it probably didn't give the Flyers a very good feeling to fall behind after only 55 seconds. The Flyers played okay the rest of the first period, but trailed 2-1 after one period. 

The Flyers came out pushing hard in the second, but Steve Mason allowed a soft goal. Dave Hakstol called for the goalie change as the Flyers mounted a furious attack. The fourth line chipped in a goal, and the Islanders survived by the skin of their teeth as the Flyers threw 40 shot attempts towards the Islander net in the second period alone.

The Flyers ultimately tied the game early in the third, but like the second period the Islanders kept finding ways to keep the puck out of their net. That proved to be enough for the Islanders, eventually claiming two points with a shootout victory.

Game Flow

Goals:

0 – 1. Nielsen (Lee, Boychuk). PHI on-ice: 10, 12, 28, 47, 55

1 – 1. SHG, Bellemare (Giroux). PHI on-ice: 28, 78, 15, 47

1 – 2. PPG, Nelson (Leddy). PHI on-ice: 76, 78, 23, 55

1 – 3. Nielson (Bailey, Leddy). PHI on-ice: 76, 78, 93, 15, 47

2 – 3. White (Umberger, Laughton). PHI on-ice: 20, 21, 25, 15, 47

3 – 3. Giroux (Schenn, Manning). PHI on-ice: 10, 12, 28, 23, 53

Forwards

The Flyers received pretty strong efforts from all of their forward lines. The fourth line had the weakest game, although they deserve credit for scoring a key goal early in the second period.

While Claude Giroux scored the game-tying goal in the third, it was was another great night for Couturier's line. They played big minutes and had great possession, all the while matched up against the Tavares line. The Islanders' top line isn't going to score if they're stuck in their own end all night.

Defense

It's a bit of a strange time for the Flyers defensive group. The lineup keeps changing, with Luke Schenn and Mark Streit the current wounded. This meant Andrew MacDonald finally got his chance this season. Naturally, he returns from his AHL banishment to play on the top pair with Michael Del Zotto. He had an eventful night being the ice for four goals, but truthfully he didn't play a direct part in any of them.

The other suprising result was over 22 5v5 minutes for Evgeny Medvedev. He played pretty well in that role, so hopefully his NHL adjustment period is stabilizing.

Marc Naples is a contributor to Flyerdelphia and Sports Talk Philly. Follow him on Twitter@SuperScrub47.