POSTGAME 5: Flyers Ground Jets, 4-0
The Philadelphia Flyers blanked the Winnipeg Jets, 4-0, at the Canada Life Centre on Saturday evening
Brilliant goaltending from Carter Hart, 17 blocked shots in front of him, and offense that was persistent in the scoring areas early and opportunistic later built a lead that Winnipeg was never able to dent.
Philadelphia received hard-working performances throughout the lineup. Eight different Flyers chipped in at least one point, with three players (Noah Cates, Owen Tippett and Rasmus Ristolainen) producing two-point games. Twelve Flyers blocked at least one shot. Twelve produced at least one shot on goal.
A Cates first period power play goal (8th goal of the season) from Morgan Frost and Owen Tippett was the lone tally of the first stanza. A Kieffer Bellows goal (1st as a Flyer and first NHL goal this season) from the slot off a Ristolainen centering feed made it 2-0 at 11:53 of the middle frame. In the third period, a Tippett breakaway goal (14th) off a Ristolainen stretch pass at 3:11 and a Tony DeAngelo tally (9th) on a 2-on-1 feed from Scott Laughton at 6:48 stretched the lead to four goals.
Hart recorded his first shutout of the 2022-23 season, stopping all 40 shots he faced with 16 coming in the first period and 17 in the third period.
Hart had a regulation shutout against the New York Rangers back on Nov. 1, but the Flyers were also blanked in regulation and went on to lose in OT, 1-0. He also carried a shutout bid in Detroit on Jan. 21 for 59-plus minutes until a Lucas Raymond tally at 19:21 of the third period. The Flyers won that game, 2-1.
On this night in Winnipeg, Hart outdueled Connor Hellebuyck. The Jets started made 26 saves on 30 shots before getting pulled at 6:48 of the third period with Winnipeg trailing, 4-0. David Rittich went the final 13:12, stopping all three shots he faced.
The Flyers went 0-for-2 on the power play. The Jets were 0-for-3.
Zack MacEwen returned to Philadelphia on Friday after sustaining a broken jaw in a first-period fight on Thursday against Minnesota Wild forward Marcus Foligno. On Saturday, he underwent successful surgery. MacEwen is expected to miss five weeks.
Wade Allison sustained a lower-body injury in blocking a shot in the second period of the game in Saint Paul.With both Allison and MacEwen unavailable for Saturday's game, the Flyers dressed 11 forwards and seven defensemen.Bellows and veteran defenseman Justin Braun entered the lineup.
The Flyers will take a 21-21-9 record into the NHL All-Star Break. They now have a one-week schedule hiatus overlapping next weekends' leagewide All-Star break. Kevin Hayes will represent the Flyers in the All-Star Game. The Flyers' game schedule resumes on Feb. 6. They'll have their first post-Break practice one day earlier.
FLYERS STARTING LINEUP
There were no real "regular" combinations with the Flyers playing with 11 forwards and seven defensemen.
Tortorella shuffled personnel often during the game. Flyers forwards saw a wide variety of different linemates throughout the night. The combos listed below were together on their respective first -- or second -- shifts. However, "blended lines" is a much more accurate description of the line rotation than listing combos.
Defenseman Braun (11:16 TOI across 17 shifts) and winger Joel Farabee (11:37 TOI across 16 shifts) skated the least ice time among the Flyers' 18 skaters on the night. Scott Laughton (21:36, 27 shifts) and Ivan Provorov (20:58, 24 shifts) had the most ice time.
25 James van Riemsdyk - 49 Noah Cares -11 Travis Konecny
86 Joel Farabee - 48 Morgan Frost - 74 Owen Tippett
13 Kevin Hayes - 21 Scott Laughton - 20 Kieffer Bellows
44 Nicolas Deslauriers - xxxxxx - 38 Patrick Brown
9 Ivan Provorov - 45 Cam York
6 Travis Sanheim - 77 Tony DeAngelo
24 Nick Seeler - 55 Rasmus Ristolainen
61 Justin Braun
79 Carter Hart
[32 Felix Sandström]
TURNING POINT
The Cates power play goal put the Flyers ahead in a back-and-forth first period, and the Flyers never trailed. However, even after Tippett's first period goal and the second period tally by Bellows, the game was still within reach for the Jets after they took a timeout and regained some equilibrium.
Winnipeg stormed out of the gates in the third period. The ice was tilted early. It was when Tippett struck for a breakaway counterattacking goal off a perfectly placed stretch pass up the middle from Ristolainen that the Flyers had the game under their firm control. Hart was in their heads, the Jets were frustrated, and another Philly goal (this time by DeAngelo off a 2-on-1) was the final nail.
Don't be fooled by the third period stats. Hart was richly deserving of his shutout and played magnificently but it was a team win, up and down the lineup, for the Flyers.
MELTZER'S TAKE
1) Laughton won the game's opening faceoff. Laughton, Bellows and Hayes all put shots at the net, with Bellows and Hayes testing Hellebuyck off the bat. At the other end of the ice, Winnipeg had a three-shot volley, including Mark Scheifele following up an Ehlers' attempt.
Through four minutes, shots on goal were 5-4 Jets. At about the 6:30 mark, Konecny fanned on an initial shot in the deep slot and then followed up with a backhander on goal.
Shots on goal through 10 minutes were 10-6 Jets. At 11:34, after a nice keep at the point by Provorov, DeAngelo hit the post with Frost lurking near the net.
The Flyers got the game's first power play at 13:11 as the hulking defenseman hooked Bellows in Winnipeg's defensive zone. The ensuing power play was a roller coaster ride with a satisfying ending for the Flyers.
The first 40 seconds saw the Flyers first unit whip the puck around effectively and generate some looks. Then the middle stages of the power play saw the Jets nearly score -- twice -- on shorthanded attacks. Finally, the Flyers pressed again in the late stages and then scored moments after the 5-on-4 expired.
The Flyers worked the puck low to high. York passed to Tippett, who moved a long stride or so over the middle from well above the circle and then sent a diagonal pass which went off the boards to Frost. Frost studied his options and sent off a later pass (possibly intended for Farabee) that went off defenseman Neal Pionk's skate and directly to Cates, who banged it home on his own rebound from near the right post. Cates' goal at 15:15 was assisted by his former linemates from late last season, Frost and Tippett.
Referee Francis Charron missed a blatant takedown on York by Blake Wheeler. From the Flyers' bench, Farabee barked at the official. Referee Gord Dwyer then called bench minor (served by Farabee) for unsportsmanlike conduct at 16:12.
Late in the period, Hart made tough stops on Ehlers and a one-timer on Connor that was tipped by Dubois.
2) First period shots on goal were 16-15 Jets. Shot attempts were 27-26 Flyers. Scoring chances were 16-10 Flyers. High danger chances were 8-6 Flyers.
3) The Jets got caught out on a long shift to start the second period and then iced the puck. Frost won the ensuing faceoff and Seeler sent the puck behind the net but the Flyers lost a 50-50 battle and the threat ended.
At the 3:00 mark, Deslauriers stepped out in front for a scoring chance. At 4:32, Pierre-Luc Dubois took an unnecessary roughing penalty along the side boards as the Flyers chipped the puck out. On the ensuing power play, the Flyers were not able to generate any significant chances.
Second period shots were 2-1 Jets at 7:07 after a Flyers icing. Brown won the next draw against Scheifele but the Jets had a surge of checking pressure over the next several minutes.
On the next shift, Cole Perfetti generated a look. Nate Schmidt then fired a point shot on net. The Flyers again failed to get the puck over the red line. Hart made saves on Josh Morrissey. The Jets kept up their forechecking. Finally, Brown took the puck away from a Jet and, later, Hart froze the puck after a bounce off the end boards. Shots on goal through 10:42 were 5-1 Jets.
At 11:43, the Flyers made it a 2-0 lead. Ristolainen pinched in deep, dug a puck off the end boards and centered a backhanded pass to Bellows in the lower slot. Bellows finished it off quickly. Ristolainen and Cates earned the assists.
The Jets seemed a little deflated by the Bellows goal. The Flyers pressured heavily on each of the next two shifts, generating four shots on goal in a 90-second span including a Frost deflection from the low slot that Hellebuyck fought off. On the latter shift, the Jets turned two pucks over in their own zone and were back on their heels. Jets head coach Bowness called a timeout at 12:54.
When play resumed, a DeAngelo pass intended for Seeler was picked off by Lowry, who rushed the other way on the counterattack with Seeler hustling to backcheck. Hart made the save and the Flyers benefited from a quick whistle as the puck was about to squirt loose.
Karson Kuhlman fired a shot on net directly off a faceoff win by Adam Lowry against Frost. The puck hit Hart's mask and stayed out, Moments later, another Kuhlmal shot attempt went off the crossbar at 13:59. After a puck deflected out of play, Lowry won another offensive zone draw, this time against Laughton. A Lowry shot attempt at 14:07 hit the post and went wide.
At 14:42, Konecny had a partial breakaway opportunity.JVR dropped the puck to Ristolainen, who sprang Konecny. Denied on his first try, Konecny swung around behind the net and tried a wraparound but tucked the puck across the crease.
Four-or-four play ensued after a scrum in the Winnipeg zone at 15:30. Tippett put a backhanded shot on net from the left side and chopped at Hellebuyck to try to knock the puck free as he skated past. Pionk took exception and gave Tippett some rough treatment in the corner as players from both teams crowded around.
At 15:30, after Tippett put a backhanded chance by Tippett, Tippett Pionk
Laughton had a chance at the doorstep at 17:00
4) Second period shots on goal were 12-7 Flyers. Shot attempts were 25-19 Flyers. Scoring chances were 15-10 Flyers with an 8-7 high-danger edge to Philly. Hart stepped up whenever he had to, and this was a very strong period overall for the Flyers.
5) The Jets pressured immediately on the first shift of the third period. Schmidt fired a point shot by net and Hart scrambled to make a rebound save on Connor. The Flyers iced the puck at 1:27.
Dubois won an offensive zone draw against Brown. The Flyers, for the second time in the game,benefited from a quick whistle as the puck was shot on net but not covered. Brown then won the next draw. At 2:29, Kevin Stenlund crashed the net and knocked the puck off its moorings.
The Flyers made it 3-0 on their first shot of the third period. York won a puck in the defensive zone and sent it to Ristolainen. From there, Ristolainen connected tape-to-tape on a stretch pass to Tippett just past the red line. Going in on a breakaway, Tippett picked a spot to Hellebuyck's glove side and hit the mark. The assists went to Ristolainen and York at 3:11.
Two shifts later, Hart stopped Lowry point blank on an odd-man counterattack off an initial Flyers' scoring chance at the other end. It was the Jets' seventh shot of the period.
The Flyers' lead grew to 4-0 at 6:42 as they scored again on their third shot of the final period. A Scheifele shot attempt went around the wall. Laughton jumped on the puck and led DeAngelo off on a 2-on-1 rush. After a perfect feed across the slot by Laughton, DeAngelo elevated a shot home. Laughton earned the lone helper.
Immediately after the DeAngelo tally, Bowness changed goaltenders. Rittich came in to replace Hellebuyck; the first time this season that Hellebuyck has been pulled from a game he started (for a non-injury reason).
At 7:37, Braun was called for interference for attempting to box an attacker out in the slot near the hash marks with a shot attempt in progress. During the Winnipeg power play, Hart denied Scheifele backhander from the low slot. Late in the kill, Cates made a strong defensive play, tying up his check's stick.
A line combination of Deslauriers, Frost and Bellows generated a 40-plus second forechecking shift that included a scoring chance for Deslauriers. At 12:31, however, Cates took a delay of game penalty for accidentally putting the puck over the glass from the defensive zone.
With 1:16 left on the kill, Hart stopped and covered a full windup slapshot by Ehlers from just above the left circle. Konecny won a neutral zone draw off a Winnipeg offside and cleared the puck all the way down the ice. A subsequent entry attempt was broken up and the penalty ended.
With 53 seconds left in regulation, Hart gloved down a Pionk shot from the point. Cates won the ensuing draw against Lowry. A turnover created a Sam Gagner shot from the left circle. Brown won the game's last faceoff. Pionk put a long distance shot at the net. It was Hart's 40th and final save of the game.
Third period stats were completely a reflection of 'score effects with one team down by multiple goals. Shots on goal were 17-6 Jets. Shot attempts were 31-10 Jets. Scoring chances were 12-5 with a 6-2 high danger edge to Winnipeg.
The bottom line, of course, was this: The Flyers picked the Jets apart on two transition play counterattacks. Hart stopped everything he faced and the only latter period suspense was in whether the goalie would get his first shutout of the season.
