Philadelphia Flyers came out with a lot of jumping on the puck, but the Edmonton Oilers took control midway through the first half after a poor but momentum-building power play, and dominated the game with possession and chances through the first two periods.
Dan Vladar kept the Orange-and-Blacks in the game, allowing only one goal out of 25 shots in the first two periods. The Oilers outshot Philadelphia 44-24 in 40 minutes, but Matvey Michkov's third straight game with a goal gave Philadelphia a chance against the Oilers of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
The Flyers tied the ball in the third, allowing just 5 SOG, and even thought they had won the game, but an offside call canceled out the go-ahead goal with less than 30 seconds left and we ended up with the game going over 60 minutes for the seventh time in 16 contests.
Even though Jack Roslovic survived the first 3-on-3 shift of McDavid and Draisaitl, he became the OT hero after Cam York lost center ice. The bummer ended in a difficult comeback.
First period
Maybe Owen Tippett thinks he's playing post. He gets a chance in the first 90 seconds just ahead of Stuart Skinner and finds the iron for about the 420th time this season. Shortly after, the newly teamed trio of Sean Couturier, Trevor Zegras and Matvey Michkov created a chance when Michkov dribbled the puck to the left, cut in and set up Noah Juulsen, but the red light did not come on. Pretty strong start for Philadelphia.
Another breakaway chance: Travis Konecny found Cam York with a plate spinning across the ice, but he missed the target. The Oilers had a chance, but Dan Vladar was able to turn it away, sending the Flyers back on offense. Back-and-forth hockey in the first 5:30 with Philadelphia getting the better chances and shots tied at three.
Jim Jackson and Brian Boucher are a little surprised that the Flyers are home underdogs, and while yes, they played well at home and Edmonton had to travel across the continent, bookmakers look at these teams and think, “Yeah, the Oilers should win.” I don't think it's crazy.
A slightly confusing sequence ends with Zegras finding Juulsen in the right spot and sending the puck toward Skinner to get Couturier's tip in front, but they couldn't get it through. The Flyers have done a good job so far, especially the Cates and Coots lines.
According to MoneyPuck.comVladar has a .931 high-danger save percentage, best in the NHL, while our old buddy Alex Lyon is second with a sub-.900 save percentage (per broadcast). It seems like the Flyers/NBCS statisticians use some sort of games played or shots played qualifier, but I haven't heard them mention it. Either way, these are doping stats and a pretty strong indication that Kim Dillabaugh has identified something beyond Vladar's numbers in Calgary.
The Coots line is under increasing pressure and attempts, it feels like they are very close. If they play this much in the o-zone the rest of the way, they'll get at least one.
Nick Seeler heads to the box for a hook before a D-zone faceoff, and now Edmonton's terrible power play has taken over the ice, but WITHOUT Connor McDavidwho appeared to have left the bench for the dressing room. This is confirmed to be an issue with McDavid's equipment, as Bush notes that McD uses “old school” skates rather than snap blades, so he has to remove his skates to take care of them. He returned with 47 seconds left on the power play.
In a top-five PP vs. PK matchup, the Flyers win the first battle by saving a penalty. Immediately afterwards, Vladar is hit from the front and becomes uneasy after losing his glove and stick. This is alarming. Vladar looks fine, returning to the net after the commercial break after spraining his wrist.
With four minutes left, Edmonton is gaining ground after a poor power play, but Vladar is up to the task so far, stopping all 10 Edmonton SOG players. There were several tense moments in the defensive zone, and the Flyers went six minutes without scoring.
Evan Bouchard scores in the final minute of the period, and McDavid creates a chance with an easy pass through the neutral zone, steals the puck on the other side and passes it to Bouchard to make it 1-0. It felt like everything was being built in a matter of minutes. Shots – 12-5 in favor of the visiting team. That was Cates' line against McDavid that shift, and for the most part they did a solid job, but it only took one chance and that's what happened.
A really strong first half of the period for the Orange and Blacks, but now all the momentum belongs to Edmonton. The Flyers were good after allowing the first goal, going 5-3-1 in those situations, but scoring the first 10 times in 16 games isn't ideal.
Second period
Okay, the first period recap was too long. I'll try to retreat the rest of the way.
The Oilers pick up right where they left off, pinning the Flyers and outscoring them in puck turnovers. A lot of bad clearances and questionable puck decisions have Philadelphia on their heels in the first three or four minutes. When was our last shot? Yesterday?
The differences in these teams' ability to navigate through traffic are stark. When the Flyers have a chance to advance the puck, they can't do it accurately, while the Oilers show a knack for passing through zones.
Philadelphia is starting to get a LITTLE MORE time in the o-zone, but with 10 minutes left in the period, they still haven't recorded a single shot on Skinner. Zegras almost found Foerster in front with a chance for a tip and it did count as a shot, but it wasn't as dangerous as it could have been. The score is 23-6 with nine minutes left in the period, and Edmonton is back on offense.
The Flyers won four of 22 faceoffs with 7:33 left in the second. This team just needs the damn puck in a bad way. They had already forgotten what it was like to have it on their sticks at this point. It looks like Brink and Zegras have switched places, and Coots with Michkov and Brink actually get some zone time and even a couple of shots on goal! This is progress…
Zegras appears to be dating Tippett and Christian Dvorak.
PEKOOOOOO! Philadelphia gets the power play thanks to Jake Wollman's hook, so let's see if the Flyguys can use the man advantage to gain momentum like the Oilers did in Game 1.
MATVEY MICHKOV IS KILLING! After a short interception between No. 39 and Cam York, Michkov takes the puck to the top of the left wing circle and shoots it over the divider for his third goal in three games. The score is 1-1, despite the shot difference being 24-8. York has now been on the ice for eight of Philadelphia's 10 power play goals for 10 points in 13 games with at least one more period remaining tonight.
Philadelphia seemed to gain some momentum, getting a couple of chances after the tying goal, including Michkov putting Coots ahead, but it didn't last long and the Oilers again had a few shifts with the puck in the Flyers' net. Luckily, Vladar is still in the Flyers net, so the score remains tied as the period winds down. The shot count is 25-11 and the Flyers have a chance to steal two points in a game they have completely lost.
Third period
As impressive as Vladar has been, I really wish he hadn't become a postseason star. Philly's coach gave them a chance, now skaters playing with the jump they had in the first shifts of the game would be a welcome change of pace.
Cates takes the penalty to beat McDavid on the first faceoff of the period, and the Flyers will now start the game third on the PK. Not ideal. Another loss for the Orange and Blacks, but the Oilers keep the pressure on as their lead dwindles. Philadelphia really needs a swing set.
The good guys have improved their control a bit and that leads to more possession as they get sticks on the sticks and spend time on offense, and that leads to another power play opportunity as Ty Amberson tries to hold onto the ball after getting caught up in a scramble with Travis Konecny.
After a mostly boring first 1:20 of power play for Mickov's group, Team Zegras took the ice and prepared, but their best chance was a one-timer from Förster that Skinner glove-flicked. Edmonton wins. We go to commercial with 7:01 left in regulation, still tied.
Zegras, at least on the shift, centers Michkov and Tippett, and it pays almost immediate dividends: Michkov finds Zegras with a pass and Ziggy unloads on the wrist, but he finds Skinner. The group stayed on the sidelines until the o-zone tie, survived an Edmonton breakout, and then came back for a shot attempt that found the net to force the o-zone tie on the Cates line.
The Flyers certainly slowed the Oilers down in the neutral zone during this period, and that resulted in much less defense. Philadelphia is outscoring its opponent 5-3 midway through the frame.
Michkov and Zegras combined for another chance: Michkov found Z for a chance with a pass from under the goal line with about eight minutes left, but Zegras appeared to miss the target. They were certainly active when they played together, but it still seems a little unreliable to keep them together when the game is being played on the defensive side of the red line.
Trent Frederic, fresh off getting his ass kicked by Mathieu Olivier a couple nights ago, “rolls” (thanks JJ) Vladar and the Flyers get it together, but it looks like Frederic will be the only one disciplined and the Flyers are back on the power play PECOOOOO with 5:35 left in regulation. I was definitely screaming, “Fuck it!” on a shot, but failing to do so gives the Flyers a chance to take a late lead. I think I'll accept it, but my nerves get crossed when I see an MVP goalie make contact like that.
Frederic is going to interfere with the goalies, and Matthias Janmark and Emil Andre (playing for Vladar) are also leaving, so, as expected, the game will be 5 on 4.
After some time to prepare, Zegras created a chance for Cates to shoot forward, but Skinner held him out and the penalty time came to an end. It was a very fast two minutes (TWSS). Faceoffs remain a problem for this team as they simply cannot get their initial formation out of the draw.
Vladar makes a huge save from McDavid with 1:25 left when the best player in the world is free on the far side. Curse. If the Flyers win this game, Vladar should receive at least two stars. I'll accept one if they don't.
Flyers lead with 23.5 SECONDS LEFT! Travis Konecny comes to the center with the puck to the point and receives a pass behind Skinner, with Coots also in front! But no! This is an off-game review. It probably won't count. Tippett on the left flank was offside against the wall. This sucks.
Yes, there is no goal. Still 1:1 and we head into overtime.
After a while
Philadelphia got the first chance, surviving the first rotation of McDavid and Draisaitl, but a center ice change by Cam York led to a 2-on-0 in the Oilers' favor when Matty Savoie passed to Jack Roslovic to beat Vladar in a heartbreaking turn of events. Curse.
