After a disappointingly close loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday afternoon, the Flyers continued their homestand with a victory against the San Jose Sharks. The Flyers were the better team all around, outshooting, outscoring, and blocking the Sharks’ star Macklin Celebrini from earning any points.
The Flyers came out hungry and dominant. Even though San Jose’s Collin Graf was able to kick off scoring for the night, the Flyers managed to lead the shooting 10-0 in the first 10 minutes of play. Graf got lucky with a wide open half the net to give the Sharks an early 1-0 advantage. Yet late in the period, Dvorak was able to mend a seemingly dead play to tie the game for the Flyers. Dvorak was an offseason addition looking to add some depth to the Flyers’ offense with some cheap guys with some experience under their belts, yet he has seemed to fit in seamlessly with this team. Him and Zegras have played wonderfully together and have undeniable chemistry. Zegras and Konecny earned assist points on Dvorak’s goal, earning Konecny his 500th career point.
Dvorak had an outstanding first period overall, earning 4 of the Flyers’ 16 shots and going 6 for 6 on the faceoffs. His linemate Zegras also played well, earning 3 shots and 1 point in the first period.
Early in the 2nd period, Grundstrom earned his first goal this year in his second game with the Flyers against his former team. He deflected Seeler’s shot to give him and Sanheim assist points. Konecny took a penalty later in the period for hooking, and San Jose seemed as though they were about to earn their 2nd point of the night until Hathaway blocked a shot. The Sharks were only able to earn 2 shots on goal in their powerplay, as the Flyers would go on to be 2 for 2 on penalty kills for the night.
With another late goal, Cates recorded his 7th goal of the year with assists from Bobby Brink and Jamie Drysdale. I’ve been a Drysdale fan since he came to Philadelphia, but he’s really lived up to it this year. He’s proved himself to be a vital piece in our plays, recording 10 assists on the season so far, tied with Sanheim for the most of Flyers’ defensemen this year. He’s a strong 2-way player with a strong hockey IQ, who only seems to improve each year.
The Flyers finished out the game with a slightly messy 3rd period, with a few messy plays almost costing them the 3-1 lead. Luckily, they continued to fight and did not allow San Jose to succeed on any chances. Konecny earned another point on the night with an empty netter late in the period, a successful pattern for the night. The Flyers closed the game with a 30-18 shot advantage over the Sharks.
The Flyers pressured the Sharks into 11 turnovers in the first 2 periods as they played strong defense and made all the chances for themselves. This was an aspect of their play that they did not perform well with on Sunday, luckily changing things up for Tuesday night’s faceoff. Hopefully this carries over into tonight’s game.
The Flyers take on the Vegas Golden Knights tonight at 7:00pm in what was going to be Carter Hart’s return to Philadelphia, yet he will not be getting the start after all. The Flyers will have to keep up their hunger, as they have gone 7-3 in their last 10 games compared to the Golden Knights’ 5-2-3.
Philly's Next Shift 