Flyers edge Capitals to end six-game skid

PHILADELPHIA -- Cam Atkinson had a goal and an assist for the Philadelphia Flyers in a 2-1 win against the Washington Capitals at Wells Fargo Center on Saturday.

Claude Giroux scored for Philadelphia (16-26-10), which had lost six in a row. Carter Hart made 27 saves after missing two games with an eye infection.
"Guys competed extremely hard tonight, the emotion was there," Flyers coach Mike Yeo said. "Obviously the physicality was there. Great start. It was big getting the win, maybe ... we can start to build some confidence."
T.J. Oshie scored for Washington (28-17-9), and Ilya Samsonov made 20 saves.
"We weren't ready in the first period," Capitals coach Peter Laviolette said. "Thought we got better in the second and third period. We were chasing the game, which is where we've been the last couple now. We are just chasing games. We need a better start."

Giroux gave the Flyers a 1-0 lead 11 seconds into the first period. Atkinson outworked Capitals defenseman Martin Fehervary for the puck in the middle of the Washington zone, spun and passed to Giroux in the high slot. It was the fastest Philadelphia goal from the start of a game since March 7, 1989, when Tim Kerr scored eight seconds into a game against the Edmonton Oilers.
Atkinson made it 2-0 at 18:38 when he scored on an odd-man rush after a Philadelphia penalty ended.
Atkinson, who scored two points in his seven previous games, said his slump had been weighing on him. His fast start Saturday energized him and the Flyers, who outshot the Capitals 14-9 in the first period.
"I think that's what I bring to this team, a lot of energy," he said. "And when I bring it, I hope that I drag guys into the fight just with how I compete and play."
Teammate Joel Farabee said, "He's a momentum-changer. He has the effect to change the outcome of games. So when he's playing well, it definitely helps our team a lot."

Yeo said he had a feeling Atkinson (5-foot-8, 176 pounds) was due for a big game after seeing him take a lighthearted run at defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen (6-4, 221) during practice Friday.
"He's such a competitor, he's such a warrior," Yeo said. "It's a lot easier to come to the rink if you're having fun, you're enjoying yourself, to go out there and perform. Especially for a guy like that who wears his emotions on his sleeve.
"I felt pretty good that he was going to come out and play well today and I was happy to see him get rewarded in the first period."
Oshie scored on the power play to make it 2-1 at 6:53 of the second period. It was his second game after missing 14 with an upper-body injury, and his first goal since Jan. 10.
That energized the Capitals, who outshot the Flyers 16-5 the rest of the game, including three shots on goal and nine shot attempts in the final 2:02 with Samsonov out for an extra attacker.
"That first period is something we want back," Washington forward Carl Hagelin said. "Can't let that happen, the way they dominated us in the first. Dig yourself a hole like that, it's hard to come back. It doesn't matter how well you play the rest of the game."

Yeo said defending less has to be something the Flyers focus on moving forward.
"You can see that we kind of, as the game wore on, especially after they scored the power-play goal, we sort of played on our heels a little bit as opposed to having that attack mindset that we want to have," he said. "We certainly did defend hard, we just defended too much. But the effort of the guys and the play of Carter, that's what got us a big win."
NOTES: Philadelphia won at home against Washington for the first time since Jan. 8, 2020 (five straight losses). ... Farabee had an assist and one shot on goal in 20:28 after missing 11 games with a shoulder injury. ... Philadelphia forward Derick Brassard had one shot on goal in 11:48 after missing five games with a reoccuring hip injury sustained Nov. 23. It was his fourth game since then. ... Flyers forward Travis Konecny (seven points; one goal, six assists) had his seven-game point streak end. ... Capitals defenseman Justin Schultz took warmups but did not play after missing practice Friday for maintenance. Defenseman Michal Kempny replaced him.