Flyers Keep Rolling with Win Over Islanders

By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor 

Unlike their last game in Long Island on Sunday, the Flyers did not get the first goal, but there was no lack of scoring from the Flyers for the rest of the game.

The Flyers closed out the first period with a pair of goals and scored three goals on five shots in the second to pull away in a 5-2 win over the New York Islanders on Saturday night.

The Flyers got off to a slow start and the Islanders got a fortunate bounce to get the game's first goal. A point shot by Scott Mayfield hit the stick of Corban Knight and deflected in to put the Islanders on the board at 6:30 of the first.

The Flyers had a power play midway through the period and didn't generate much, but the man advantage seemed to shift the momentum. With 4:40 left in the period, Ryan Hartman got his own rebound to finish off a nice setup by Ivan Provorov and tie the game at one with his first goal as a Flyer and 11th of the season.

In the final seconds of the first period, the Flyers capitalized again off a perfectly executed rush. Travis Sanheim got the puck to Jake Voracek in the slot and Voracek was able to get a shot off that left a rebound. James van Riemsdyk was in his office to lift the rebound into the net, giving the Flyers a 2-1 lead.

Shots through 20 minutes were 10-6 Flyers.

It didn't take the Flyers long to extend the lead in the second. Voracek set up Sean Couturier in the slot for a one-timer that beat Thomas Greiss for his 28th goal of the season.

Four minutes later, the Flyers padded the lead again. After a close chance for Claude Giroux, the captain got the puck back into the slot where Nolan Patrick was in the right place to put it home and make it 4-0.

The Islanders got an opportunity to get back into the game moments later. Hartman took an unnecessary tripping penalty and Couturier was called for high-sticking 26 seconds later, giving the Islanders 1:34 of 5-on-3 time. The Flyers somehow managed to kill it off, surviving a flurry of chances and getting the benefit of a quick whistle as well.

Brian Elliott remained down for a few moments after the quick whistle and Cam Talbot started to warm up by the bench, but Elliott stayed in the game and finished off the kill. Hartman blocked a shot covering the top of the net for a down-and-out Elliott in the final moments of the second penalty.

With time running down in the period, the Flyers got another great defensive play as Scott Laughton broke up an odd-man rush for the Islanders. Shayne Gostisbehere tipped the puck ahead to Travis Konecny to start a 3-on-1 for the Flyers in transition, and Konecny took it himself and snapped a shot past Greiss to make it 5-1 with 2:34 left in the period.

The Flyers had just five shots in the second period, but scored three goals. After 40 minutes, shots were 19-15 Islanders. Greiss exited the game after two periods, allowing five goals on 15 shots.

The third period was marred by a five-minute interference major on Voracek on Johnny Boychuk. The Flyers killed off the three-minute power play for the Islanders, reduced because of a roughing minor on Josh Bailey. After Voracek exited the box, Mayfield and Leo Komarov each took separate runs at Voracek, setting the tone for a game between these two teams in Philadelphia in two weeks.

The Islanders got a late goal as Nick Leddy scored on a rebound to make it 5-2 with 3:32 remaining.

Elliott finished with 25 saves on 27 shots. Christopher Gibson made 10 saves in relief.

Voracek, Gostisbehere, Sanheim and van Riemsdyk each had two points in the win.

The Flyers return to action on home ice on Monday night when they face the Ottawa Senators.

Box Score

Scoring Summary

1st Period

• NYI Scott Mayfield (4) (Nick Leddy, Mathew Barzal) 6:30
• PHI Ryan Hartman (11) (Ivan Provorov, Shayne Gostisbehere) 15:20
• PHI James van Riemsdyk (20) (Jake Voracek, Travis Sanheim) 19:56

2nd Period

• PHI Sean Couturier (28) (Voracek, Sanheim) 1:34
• PHI Nolan Patrick (13) (Claude Giroux, van Riemsdyk) 5:35
• PHI Travis Konecny (22) (Gostisbehere, Scott Laughton) 17:26

3rd Period

• NYI Leddy (3) (Barzal, Ryan Pulock) 16:28

Game Statistics