Following a stretch where they went a full month without securing a standard victory, lost 11 out of their last 12 matches causing them to drop out of playoff contention, and witnessed the firing of head coach John Tortorella on March 27, one might think the Flyers would lose motivation for the remaining nine games of the season. However, this wasn’t the case.
Credit where due: The Flyers have gone the other way entirely. Under acting head coach Brad Shaw, they've kept up their recent upward trend. After a slow start on Wednesday night, they managed to come back and beat the New York Rangers. - 5 In a high-scoring affair at Madison Square Garden, Tyson Foerster stole the show with his first-ever hat trick as both squads combined for an impressive total of nine goals during an exhilarating final frame.
Eat your hearts out tankathoners The revitalized Flyers have gone 4-1-0 since Shaw took over.
The Flyers' goalie, Aleksei Kolosov, will be starting on Wednesday against the Rangers; meanwhile, Travis Sanheim and Travis Konecny are set to participate in the 2025 World Championships.Alongside Aleksei Kolosov, who was Making his debut appearance since January 2nd Before the game started, the Flyers didn’t do much to help their rookie goaltender. Just 1 minute and 15 seconds into the first period, Mika Zibanejad received a penalty shot after being slashed during a breakaway by Cam York.
Fortunately for Kolosov, who hadn’t encountered an active NHL shot in 97 days, Zibanejad’s attempt went well wide of the target. Following some careless play from both teams, the Rangers were awarded another breakaway after about 10 more minutes, and this time they made their opportunity count.
During the Flyers' penalty kill, Karsen Dorwart’s misplay along the boards allowed Zibanejad to set up Vincent Trocheck for a shorthanded breakaway. Trocheck faked out Kolosov with a strategic head fake before sliding home a backhand shot to take a 1-0 lead for the Blueshirts.
Midway through the second period, the Flyers equalized thanks to Foerster’s first goal of the evening and his 20th of the campaign. Following a smooth entry into the offensive zone from the right side, Noah Cates identified an open Foerster, who then scored past New York's goalie, Jonathan Quick, with a precise wrist shot. Shortly after, Garnet Hathaway extended the Flyers' lead to 2-1 when he netted a short-handed goal that managed to slip between Quick's legs.
The Rangers equalized thanks to an Artemi Panarin goal at 18:32 of the second period, leading to a back-and-forth final frame as both squads pushed aggressively for attack despite having just a handful of inconsequential matches remaining on their calendars.
Brad Shaw and the Flyers are concentrating on performing 'the correct actions' as they finish out the season.Travis Sanheim, ending up with a plus-four score, put the Flyers ahead at 3-2 just 3 minutes and 5 seconds into the last period when he capitalized on a rebound following his own pass and took advantage of an opportunity created by Cates. However, this lead was short-lived because Jonny Brodzinski managed to score against Kolosov with a difficult angle shot from the left sideboards. Throughout the entire season, Kolosov has had trouble positioning himself properly for such shots amidst heavy traffic.
A minute and 23 seconds later, Kolosov allowed another questionable goal, as J.T. Miller fired a one-timer past the Belarusian netminder from distance. While it wasn’t as bad as the previous goal, the netminder looked to be in position in time to stop Miller’s effort.
However, the Flyers did not exit gracefully. Jakob Pelletier found the back of the net just a minute afterward, tying the game at 4-4. Soon after, Captain Sean Couturier propelled the Flyers into the lead permanently with approximately eight minutes remaining in the match, capitalizing on a generous rebound from goaltender Quick following a shot from Matvei Michkov near the blue line.
To provide the Flyers some space, Foerster increased their lead to 6-4 with his career-best 21st goal at 15:33 into the third period. Although Chris Kreider narrowed the gap for the Rangers shortly afterward, Foerster sealed his hat trick with an empty-net goal scored from center ice.
Unsatisfied after converting the extra point, the Flyers further extended their lead by adding an eighth goal as Owen Tippett impressively scored into the top corner of the empty net from within his own blue line. Since Coach Shaw assumed control, the team has tallied 25 goals across five matches.
To secure his first NHL victory since December 12, Kolosov allowed five goals with 29 shots being directed at him. It remains uncertain whether he'll have another opportunity to play before the season concludes.
The Flyers, possessing one of the league's five worst records with just four games left to play, will head back home on Saturday to face the New York Islanders at 12:30 p.m. on NBCSP.
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