First period
- Scott Laughton sends a pass of the post on the Flyers’ second shot attempt of the game, so maybe the Canadiens are going to be the team with the luck tonight.
- At the other end, the Canadiens get a goal on their first shot, a high tip of a Justin Barron shot by Sean Monahan.
- More secondary scoring. An encouraging sign. And it’s also good that Monahan is starting to regain his form to keep every option open as the deadline approaches.
- As we head to the first commercial break, that goal was the only positive moment for Montreal in the opening six minutes. It’s been all Flyers everywhere but the scoreboard.
- Despite all the pressure, Philadelphia is called for the first penalty deep in the attacking zone.
- Ryan Poehling, Montreal’s 2017 first-round pick, gets a short-handed breakaway, but their 2019 selection, Cole Caufield, races back to thwart the chance.
- Not much going on on that power play, except for some Flyers short-handed chances.
- Another point shot, another deflection in front for a Montreal goal. David Saavrd sends one off of Juraj Slafkovský for a 2-0 lead.
- Habs are shooting at 100%. Quality over quantity I suppose.
- The Flyers get on the board after pulling Cayden Primeau out of the crease with a sequence of passes. Owen Tippett scores from a sharp angle into an open net.
- There goes the “multi-” again, but you can’t say this time it was the result of a dip in play.
- Poehling thought he scored late in the period, and he may have, but there were too many bodies in front of all the cameras to see the puck over the line on review.
- Caufield if a split-second too late trying to record a third shot from the blue line to end the frame.
- That might have been the worst period the Canadiens played. Martin St-Louis will have to dip into his secret stash of intermission speeches after that one.
Second period
- They pored over all the offensive play Montreal had in the opening 20 minutes are determined that Savard’s shot didn’t hit Slafkovský but a Flyers defenceman before going in. So that will be Savard’s fourth goal of the year.
- The opening play of the second period is a giveaway from Mike Matheson right onto the stick of a Flyers forechecker in the slot. It isn’t a goal, but it isn’t how you wanted to see the Habs respond after that opening period either.
- Caufield gets a mini break, but Ersson gets his glove on the shot.
- Slafkovsk5 follows up in an effort to get his goal back, but is also denied.
- Another post for the Flyers.
- The Flyers are sealing the boards in Montreal’s zone, and the Canadiens can’t figure out how to deal with that.
- A third ping sounds out from behind Primeau’s glove. Teams know that that’s his weakness.
- Now a puck sits inches in front of the goal line, but the Flyers can’t put it in. It’s a good thing for Montreal that they don’t have a lot of offensive talent.
- Jordan Harris goes for for delay of game as that pressure gets to Montreal’s defence once again. Out comes the league’s 31st-ranked power play.
- And it scores. Jamie Drysdale gets the primary assist on Morgan Frost’s goal.
- Montreal has its first shift of sustained offensive-zone pressure at the game’s midpoint. The Evans line and third pairing gets a few looks.
- Philadelphia’s power play is back on the ice with Savard in the box for holding.
- At least the Canadiens tripled their shot total from the first in the middle period. Eighteen shots in the third?
Third period
- The best start to any period tonight sees consecutive good shifts of chances, first from the top line, then from Evans’s.
- Two straight minutes of offence, which has to math the total Montreal had in the first 40 minutes combined.
- They must just hit those 18 shots.
- This is much better hockey from Montreal. A loss doesn’t seem as inevitable as it did in the second period. It helps that the Flyers aren’t forechecking as ferociously as they were, but Montreal is also trying breakout passes that aren’t exclusively along the boards.
- A fourth post for the Flyers.
- Justin Barron slings a pass right into his own slot and sets up Sean Couturier. Primeau makes the save. Sometimes the play up the boards is the right one.
- The Flyers are pushing in the final six minutes of the period.
- Anderson uses his speed to get a point-blank shot, but can’t convert.
- Those two first-period goals stand up to get Montreal a point. Now we go to overtime, where Montreal has to favoured.
Overtime
- This is a very conservative three-on-three period.
- Primeau is looking solid as the Flyers get a few chances.
- The Canadiens keep looking for that one stretch pass for a breakaway, and it’s not happening.
- Another chance in alone for Anderson, another stop.
- End to end action to end the three-on-three. The goaltender keeps the game alive for a second consecutive overtime period.
Shootout
- Sean Couturier starts things off with a short-side goal.
- Nick Suzuki tried his move, but Ersson followed it so well Suzuki didn’t bother shooting it.
- Travis Konecny hits another post.
- Cole Caufield hits Ersson’s pad.
- Bobby Brnk can win this with a goal. He does not.
- It’s now up to Jesse Ylönen.
- He dekes out Ersson, but just send the puck wide, and the Flyers will win.
EOTP 3 Stars
3) He hasn’t maintained that goals-per-game pace at all
2) He’s one steady guy back there
1) That’s that big body for you. They don’t ask how they ask how manly
