POSTGAME 5: Late Comeback Falls Short in 5-3 Loss to Vegas

The Philadelphia Flyers lost to the Vegas Golden Knights,5-3, at the Wells Fargo Center on Tuesday evening. It was a resilient effort for the Flyers, who trailed 4-1 in the third period but made a push to draw back within a goal. There were chances to tie the game before Vegas sealed the win with an empty-net goal (17th ENG against the Flyers this season).

Ultimately, the Flyers' ongoing penalty killing problems -- a major issue since the All-Star break in particular -- were a major setback. So, too, were the ongoing struggles to finish off scoring opportunities -- the Flyers' matched Vegas' 17 high-danger chances with 17 of their own -- and a power play that is a net negative since the All-Star break being unable to capitalize on several prime chances. The Flyers forechecked well in stretches, stuck with decent structure in other junctures but spent the night playing catch-up on the scoreboard.
Pavel Dorofoyev (2nd) scored the lone goal of the first period, giving Vegas a 1-0 lead at 8:34. In the second period, an Ivan Barbashev deflection power play tally (13th) gave Vegas a 2-0 lead at 1:58. A deflected pass attempt by Travis Sanheim (5th goal of the season) bounced the Flyers' way at 8:10.of the middle frame. Vegas restored a two-goal lead at 11:06 after Teddy Blueger (3rd) scored from the low slot.
At 3:01 of the third period, Jonathan Marchessault (22nd of the season) scored a power play goal after the Flyers took a too many men on the ice minor.. At 8:24, a stellar individual play by Nick Seeler (4th) brought Philly back within 4-2. Morgan Frost (13th) made it 4-3 by driving to the back-side post and taking a pass from Brendan Lemieux at 10:15. The Golden Knights received an empty-net goal from Barbashev (2nd of the game,14th of the season) at 18:28 of the third period.
Felix Sandström allowed an iffy first goal to Vegas but was solid the rest of the way in stopping 28 of 32 shots. Jonathan Quick earned the win with 27 saves on 30 saves.
The Flyers went 0-for-2 on the power play. The Golden Knights were 2-for-4.
FLYERS STARTING LINEUP
21 Scott Laughton - 48 Morgan Frost - 74 Owen Tippett
25 James van Riemsdyk - 49 Noah Cates - 86 Joel Farabee
22 Brendan Lemieux - 13 Kevin Hayes - 52 Tyson Foerster
44 Nicolas Deslauriers - 58 Tanner Laczynski - 20 Kieffer Bellows
9 Ivan Provorov - 45 Cam York
6 Travis Sanheim - 55 Rasmus Ristolainen
24 Nick Seeler - 77 Tony DeAngelo
32 Felix Sandström
[33 Samuel Ersson]
TURNING POINT
Minor penalties on the Flyers for Frost closing his hand on the puck and a third period too many men on the ice penalty ultimately proved fatal in a two-goal game. The Flyers first power play unit actually generated a lot of attacking pressure but couldn't put one in the net,
MELTZER'S TAKE
1) The Flyers had three of the game's first four shots. A centering pass to Tippett on the game's first shift didn't quite make connections at the doorstep. Foerster, Hayes and Provorov put shots in net from close range. At the other end of the ice, Sandström stopped Ivan Barbashev.
The Flyer went on the game's first power play at 4:48 aster Nicolas Hague tripped Cates behind the Vegas net. Tippett had a one-timer chance from near the left dot during the front end of the man advantage.
At 7:50, Tippett nearly stole the puck at the defensive blueline. Moments later, Frost sent the puck ahead to Tippett for a rush opportunity in transition.
The Golden Knights took a 1-0 lead at 8:32. Vegas worked the puck down low. Dorofoyev stepped out from the behind the net and beat Sandström upstairs from a tight angle. Reilly Smith earned the lone assist. It was a stoppable shot but Lemieux and othes
Vegas pressed the attack over the next several minutes and took a 7-5 shot on goal edge by the 10:08 mark. At 11:10, Farabee painfully blocked a shot but gritted it out to win a battle and clear the defensive zone. Philly then controlled the next two shifts. Frost stole the puck behind the Vegas net and centered a pass to a pinching DeAngelo. Quick made the save against DeAngelo from the middle slot between the circles.
Vegas made a late push in the final minute after the Golden Knights cleanly won a left circle offensive zone faceoff on a Flyers' incing. Zach Whitecloud put two shots on Sandström while Smith missed the net wide from the center slot.
2) First period shots on goal were 11-9 Vegas. Shot attempts were 19-17 Flyers. Scoring chances were 10-9 Vegas. High-danger chances were 6-5 Flyers. Faceoffs were 11-9 Flyers. As the numbers suggest, it was a back and forth period of mini-swings in momentum. However, the Flyers remained unable to turn any of their five high-danger chances into goals.
3) Frost was called for closing his hand on the puck just outside the defensive blueline at the 37-second mark of the second period. It was a tough shift for Frost who also lost two faceoffs earlier on the shift. The Flyers paid for as Vegas scored on the power play at 1:58. Barabashev tipped home a Shea Theodore shot, Marchessault got the secondary assist. Jack Eichel, who held in a Laughton clearing attempt around the boards, started the sequence.
After Bellows had a giveaway and the Flyers recovered, York turned over the puck in the neutral zone. The Flyers caught a break as the Golden Knights brought the puck in offside. Through 6:53, shots on goal in the second period were 6-1 Vegas.
At 8:10, the Flyers benefited from some self-made puck luck to cut the gap to 2-1. Philly generated a scramble near the Vegas net. The puck went out Ristolainen at the point, who went D-to-D to Sanheim. Pinching in, Sahheim attempted a pass to van Riemsdyk. Instead, the puck went off a Vegas stick and looped into the net past Quick's glove. The goal was unassisted.
Vegas retook a two-goal lead at 11:04. Philly got outnumbered down low and fishing for the puck. Sandström made one outstanding save at the doorstep but a quick pass to Blueger and a finish from the slot opened a 3-1 lead for Vegas. The assists went to Phil Kessel and Paul Cotter.
Hayes went to the net and drew a hooking penalty on Marchessault at 12:12. The Flyers PP1 got the puck to the net and Ristolainen had a crack at it in close. Philly's first unit kep the puck in the offensive zone entire two minutes. The closest to a goal that Philly came was off a Tippett shot from the left side. The puck made it to Foerster in point blank range from near the right post. Unfortunately for the Flyers, Foerster drew iron with his potential first NHL goal on his stick at point blank range. Even after the power play expired, the Flyers continued to apply pressure.
Tippett took the puck to the net at 17:52. With 38.6 seconds left in the frame, Foerster was stopped by Quick on a backhander. With just 2.7 seconds left the period, Laughton was called for hooking penalty on the half boards in the defensive zone. The Golden Knights took 1:57 of carryover power play time into the third period.
4) Second period shots on goal were 14-8 Vegas. Shot attempts were 25-19 Flyers. Scoring chances were 15-14 Vegas per Natural Stat Trick with 10-4 high-danger edge to Vegas. Through two periods, faceoffs were 19-17 Vegas.
5) The Flyers killed off the carryover penalty. Laughton and Sanheim (followup) had a great chance off the rush. At 2:41, the Flyers took a too many men on the ice penalty. For the second time in the game, they paid the price. Vegas scored a tic-tac-toe backdoor goal: Marchessault from Eichel and Chandler Stephenson at 3:01.
The Flyers went offside at 11:52. Shots on goal were 6-3 Vegas.
After being blocked on a shot attempt, Seeler made a sweet west-to-east move and then elevated a shot under the crossbar from the left circle to make it a 4-2 game. The goal was unassisted.
Frost cut the gap to 4-3 at 10:15 on a nicely conceived attack on the rush. JVR started the sequence then Lemieux delivered a tape-to-tape feed as Frost drove the net and scored from near the far-side post. Frost called for the puck as he saw an open lane to the net and Lemieux made a perfect pass.
Tortorella got Frost out again quickly after the goal. No scoring chances for either side ensued. Ristolainen came up with a clutch block. Play settled down for a couple shifts. At 15:36, Tippett had a look from the deep slot.
The Flyers pulled Sandström for an extra attacker. Vegas iced the puck with 2:20 on the clock. The Flyers gave up their 17th empty netter of the season when Barbashev guided a shot home for the neutral zone at 18:28. Marchessault drew the lone assist.
The Flyers called timeout and pulled Sandström again with 42.7 seconds on the clock. Hayes took a hooking penalty with 0.3 seconds left.
Third period shots were 12-9 Flyers Shot attempts were 24-13 Flyers. Scoring chances were 11-7 Flyers. High-danger chances were 7-3 Flyers. Final faceoffs were 26-26.