Photo Courtesy of Kate Frese
PHILADELPHIA — For much of 60 minutes, the Flyers were in full control. They led 1-0 thanks to Andrew MacDonald's second goal of the season in the first period, and maintained a dominant grip on puck possession.
It looked like that lone goal would be just enough to skate by with a victory over the Nashville Predators, as they failed to generate quality chances all game. But with 8:14 left in regulation, Filip Forsberg tipped in a Matt Irwin shot from the doorstep to even the score.
Ultimately, the Predators on Thursday were able to come away with the 2-1 win in a shootout, thanks to Ryan Ellis and Pekka Rinne. It's their first win at Wells Fargo Center since Jan. 16, 2014, and snaps a four-game winless skid against the Orange and Black.
The biggest obstacle for the Flyers (19-11-4) all night was the stellar play of Rinne. He turned away 31 of 32 shots faced, including 25 saves over the first two periods. Anything the Flyers were throwing at him, he turned away with relative ease.
MacDonald opened the scoring for the Flyers at 10:32 of the first stanza, firing a rocket from the point that appeared to have tipped past Rinne. The Flyers, who at one point recorded just one shot in the first five minutes of play, ended up taking a 16-8 shots advantage into the first intermission.
Steve Mason certainly held his own for the Flyers, making 26 saves in regulation and stopping all four good chances he saw in the overtime period. His work was nearly cut out for him over the first period (and much of the second), until the Predators (14-12-5) came alive in the third stanza.
Neither team netted any goals on the man-advantage. The Flyers were scoreless on three attempts (including a two-man advantage as Adam Pardy and Roman Josi sat for interference and tripping, respectively), while the Preds missed out on two chances (a Claude Giroux double-minor for hi-sticking).
For the Orange and Black, it's certainly a hard-luck loss, especially as they looked to bounce back from the end of their 10-game winning streak on Saturday against Dallas. When a goalie's as steady as Rinne was, though, it's tough to overcome.
The Flyers next take the ice Wednesday against Washington on home ice, in their penultimate game before the league-mandated holiday break.
[Box Score]Notes: Nick Cousins, Claude Giroux and Jakub Voracek took the shootout attempts for the Flyers. … Ellis and Ryan Johansen shot for the Predators. … The Predators' win is coach Peter Laviolette's second against the Flyers since the organization fired him in Oct. 2013. … Dale Weise, Mark Streit, Michal Neuvirth and Nick Schultz were scratched for the Flyers. … The Flyers' all-time home record against the Predators is now 7-2-4. … The Flyers are now 3-3 in shootouts this season.
