Atkinson Nets Winner as Flyers Down Flames

By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor 

From the start of the season, Cam Atkinson has been a spark plug of sorts for the Flyers. In Tuesday's matchup against the Flames, Atkinson made sure to deposit a rebound that once again allowed the Flyers to bounce back from a loss.

Atkinson's game-winner 45 seconds into overtime lifted the Flyers to a 2-1 win over the Flames at Wells Fargo Center.

The Flames had the early push and got a power play less than five minutes into the game. Though they did not score, they did get solid possession time and continued to pile up shots early.

It eventually led to the first goal of the game, as Oliver Kylington fired a shot through traffic that hit Sean Couturier and went in, making it 1-0 Calgary at 10:31.

The Flyers had a golden opportunity moments later. After Travis Konecny couldn't finish on a chance in front, he was hit head-first into the boards, resulting in a Calgary penalty. A holding the stick penalty gave the Flyers a 5-on-3 for 31 seconds. The struggles on the man-advantage continued, as the Flyers were unable to take advantage. 

They would have another power play late in the period, and again could not score, going 0-for-3 in the period. Through 20 minutes, shots were 12-11 Calgary.

The Flyers came out with improved play in the second, as the two teams traded shots throughout the period. A combined 33 shots were taken in the period, but only one found the net.

At 4:37, Rasmus Ristolainen made a strong play to keep the puck in the zone and got it to Kevin Hayes. Hayes attempted a centering pass that was blocked, then put the puck on net and scored, pointing to the sky and patting his heart in celebration and remembrance for his brother, Jimmy, on his first goal of the season.

Prior to that, the Flyers killed off a penalty, then had a penalty shot awarded when Scott Laughton was taken down on a breakaway. Laughton was stopped with a stacked-pad save from Jacob Markstrom.

Both teams generated chances from there, including another power play for the Flyers that involved a shorthanded two-on-one for Calgary. During that power play, Hayes was tangled up and limped off the ice and immediately to the locker room. He was able to return for the third period. The Flyers also played the second period without Patrick Brown, leaving them with 11 forwards for the remainder of the game. 

Through two periods, shots were 29-27 Calgary. 

Both teams got their chances in the third period as well, as the goalies continued to be the story. As the game entered the final five minutes of play, the Flyers had a 10-5 lead in shots in the period.

The Flyers added four more shots late in the period, but the game went to overtime.

When the Flyers gained possession in overtime, they made the most of their opportunity. A two-on-one rush allowed the Flyers to move up ice with a chance. Couturier fired on goal and the rebound came out to Atkinson, who buried it to win the game.

Carter Hart finished with 33 saves in the win. Markstrom made 41 saves in the loss. 

The Flyers get back on the ice on Thursday night to take on the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Box Score

Scoring Summary

1st Period

• CGY Oliver Kylington (3) (Johnny Gaudreau, Elias Lindholm) 10:31

2nd Period

• PHI Kevin Hayes (1) (Rasmus Ristolainen) 4:37

3rd Period

• No Scoring

Overtime

• PHI Cam Atkinson (7) (Sean Couturier, Ivan Provorov) 0:45

Game Statistics