As the Flyers embarked on a 10-game running of the gauntlet of the NHL standings, they traded away one defenseman and lost another to injury. No Sean Walker, no Nick Seeler, two defensemen making their season debut, no problem.
The Flyers hung around with the NHL’s standings leader for the duration of the game, until the final minute delivered the game-winning goal. Garnet Hathaway scored with 21.3 seconds remaining to lift the Flyers to a 2-1 win over the Florida Panthers on Thursday night.
The Panthers opened up a 13-6 lead in shots in the opening 20 minutes, getting several high-quality chances. Sam Ersson took care of them all to keep the game scoreless after one.
Just 10 seconds into the second period, the Flyers grabbed the lead. Ryan Poehling made a great individual effort to get to the net and lift a shot over Sergei Bobrovsky to make it 1-0 on his eighth goal of the season.
As the period neared the midway point, the Panthers started to regain momentum and turned it into the game-tying goal. Gustav Forsling, fresh off getting a contract extension, fired a shot through a screen to make it 1-1 on his 10th of the season.
Through two periods, shots were 23-15 Florida.
The Flyers out-shot the Panthers, 12-7, in the final period, slowly building more momentum throughout the period. It took until the final minute, but the Flyers finally broke through.
A point shot by Marc Staal deflected to the side of the net. Hathaway was there to pick up the loose puck and put it home, giving the Flyers the 2-1 lead with 21.3 seconds remaining.
Ersson took care of one more save with five seconds left in the game, finishing the night with 29 saves on 30 shots in the win. Bobrovsky made 24 saves on 26 shots in the loss.
The Flyers are back on the ice following Friday’s trade deadline on Saturday night against the Tampa Bay Lightning at 7 p.m.
Box Score
| 1 | 2 | 3 | T | |
| Flyers | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Panthers | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Scoring Summary
1st Period
- No Scoring
2nd Period
- PHI Ryan Poehling (8) (Cam York, Travis Sanheim) 0:10
- FLA Gustav Forsling (10) (Aaron Ekblad, Anton Lundell) 7:12
3rd Period
- PHI Garnet Hathaway (7) (Marc Staal, Noah Cates) 19:38
Game Statistics
| Flyers | Panthers | |
| Shots | 26 | 30 |
| Power Play | 0/1 | 0/1 |
| Hits | 31 | 36 |
| Faceoff % | 45% | 55% |
| Giveaways | 4 | 14 |
| Takeaways | 6 | 4 |
| Blocked Shots | 29 | 18 |
| Penalty Minutes | 4 | 4 |
