At the Wells Fargo Center Philadelphia Arena, the Islanders of New York and Flyers of Philadelphia met Saturday evening. These two teams were neck and neck the whole game, going into the third period tied at 2-2. Neither team was able to convert another goal, forcing the game to go into overtime. Just 3-minutes into OT Flyers center, Scott Laughton, put the puck away, ending the game with a final score of 3-2.
This was a close game all the way around, and despite the Islanders losing streak coming into the game, they came out ready to play and gave the Flyers a run for their money. Early in the first period, Jakub Voracek scored less than 4-minutes into play, assisted by teammates Scott Laughton and Claude Giroux. For the next 10-minutes, the game was back and forth, each team having plenty opportunities, but unable to convert any attempts. With just under 7-minutes to go, the Flyers’ assistant captain, Kevin Hayes, won a faceoff in the neutral zone and made something of it as he scored the second goal of the game, giving the Flyers a 2-0 lead at 13:55 of the first.
Now that Philadelphia had put up a couple points, it was the Islanders’ time to shine. The first few minutes of the second were a little rocky for the Flyers as they let the Islanders gain some hope back, and it showed. Jordan Eberle was able to take the puck and fire it on target, just enough for it to go in the back of the net; teammates Brock Nelson and Adam Pelech got the assists. It didn’t take long for the Islanders to strike again, and less than 5-minutes later, it was Scott Mayfield with 2 shots on goal, and his second able to tie up the game 2-2, Nick Leddy and Matthew Barzal had his assists.
In the final twenty minutes of regulation play, neither team’s offense stood out, but the defense was solid. Each team had plenty of shots on goal but were unable to get any past goalies Semyon Varlamov (Islanders) and Carter Hart (Flyers), sending the game into OT.
Overtime is where the teams would really be tested to see who had the last bit of fight left in them to take home a win. There were only 5-minutes for someone to step up and prove themselves for either team. Flyers’ players Shayne Gostisbehere and Scott Laughton did just that; Gostisbehere threw a connecting pass to Laughton, who scores the game-winner at 3:16 of OT. His team celebrated with him as they skated off the ice, victorious at home once again and ending the Islanders’ hopes of coming out of their losing streak.
Up Next
These same two teams will face off again in Philadelphia on January 31st at 7:00 ET. The game can be watched on NSPA, MSG+, and ESP+.
