Tony DeAngelo scores overtime game-winner as the Flyers defeat the San Jose Sharks, 4-3

SAN JOSE, Calif. — For coach John Tortorella’s Flyers, one thing is almost always true: even when they’re down, they’re rarely out.

After falling behind 3-1 to the San Jose Sharks in the third period on Thursday night at the SAP Center, the Flyers rallied to tie the game and send it to overtime. With goalie Samuel Ersson pulled, winger Travis Konecny scored his 17th goal of the season on Sharks goalie Kaapo Kahkonen to even the score with 2 minutes, 5 seconds left in regulation. Defenseman Tony DeAngelo scored the game-winning goal off of a feed from defenseman Ivan Provorov 1:10 into overtime.

The victory marked the Flyers’ first in overtime of the season after they previously lost seven contests in the extra frame.

“A lot of points left on the table, so it’s big to get the extra one tonight,” DeAngelo said. “But so many one-goal games lately that we’ve found ourselves in. It’s good to find a way to take two tonight.”

For the 25th game in 36 this season, the Flyers conceded the first goal of the contest to their opponent, this time from forward Tomáš Hertl halfway through the first period. He inflicted plenty of hurt on the Flyers all night long, factoring in on all three of the Sharks’ goals (two goals, one assist).

The Flyers played from behind for the majority of the contest following the initial Hertl goal until DeAngelo’s game-winner.

“We’ve had practice at it,” Tortorella said. “We’ve been down a lot. We’ve chased games all year long. But we continue to play. ... Small, little victories as far as our season has gone this year, how it’s gone, that’s one of them is we just keep on playing.”

Konecny continued his offensive resurgence, especially in the first period as he factored in on several Flyers scoring chances. He broke through less than a minute after the Sharks went up 1-0, helping swing the momentum in the Flyers’ favor.

Halfway through the first period, Konecny won an offensive-zone faceoff, sliding the puck back to DeAngelo at the blue line. DeAngelo fired a one-timer toward the net, catching the blade of Konecny’s stick along the way. The puck deflected past Kahkonen to even the score, 1-1. Konecny’s two tallies brought his scoring total this season to 17 through 30 games, which surpasses his total from 2021-22 in 79 games.

“I’m honestly just trying to stay focused on working hard and playing the right way,” Konecny said. “[I’m] just kind of getting the bounces right now and they’re just going in.”

After allowing five goals in his NHL debut on Dec. 23 against the Carolina Hurricanes, Ersson sought to put together a better starting performance against the Sharks. Despite conceding the first goal, a Tomáš Hertl shot from the slot, Ersson fared well in the early going. He made a flurry of saves less than halfway through the opening frame when the Flyers struggled to get out of their own zone, then denied Hertl later with four minutes remaining in the period on his doorstep.

The Sharks poured on the pressure during a power play late in the second period, peppering Ersson with six shots. He denied each of them, including his glove save on Sharks captain Logan Couture. In total, Ersson denied 25 of 28 shots on goal in his first NHL win.

“Definitely a game I needed to respond in,” Ersson said. “I wasn’t perfect, by a far stretch, but definitely a big step forward. I think that showed coming up big a couple of times. Made some big stops and that’s what I need to do. I’ve got to show that I can help his team win to fight for playing time.”

While the Sharks are the league’s 29th-ranked team, allowing the third-most goals against (131), they boast a formidable power play. Their man advantage, which features the veteran likes of Hertl, Couture, defenseman Erik Karlsson, and winger Timo Meier, has converted on 22.77% of opportunities this season, ranking 14th in the league. The Flyers avoided putting the Sharks on the power play in the first period, but early in the second, defenseman Cam York committed a tripping penalty and headed to the box.

The Sharks made the Flyers pay for the infraction when Meier found Hertl down low from the point. Hertl deflected the puck just below the crossbar past Ersson for his second of the night as the Sharks pulled ahead, 2-1. The Flyers were the better team at five-on-five in the second period, registering 13 shot attempts to the Sharks’ eight, but the Sharks won the special-teams battle. Alas, the penalty kill closed out and went 2-for-3 on the night.

The Flyers continue their California road trip on Saturday when they take on the Los Angeles Kings at 4 p.m. (NBC Sports Philadelphia).