Flyers rally for fourth straight win
For the Flyers, Operation Playoff Push is gaining momentum. Getting third-period goals from Wayne Simmonds and Mark Streit, they recorded their fourth straight win Wednesday, jolting the Boston Bruins, 3-2, at the reverberating Wells Fargo Center.
For the Flyers, Operation Playoff Push is gaining momentum.
Getting third-period goals from Wayne Simmonds and Mark Streit, they recorded their fourth straight win Wednesday, jolting the Boston Bruins, 3-2, at the reverberating Wells Fargo Center.
Simmonds and Streit scored on rebounds 1 minute, 22 seconds apart, lifting the Flyers to their sixth consecutive victory on home ice. The win moved them within two points of Boston in the crowded race for an Eastern Conference playoff spot.
"This was probably a must-win for us," goalie Steve Mason said after making 30 saves. "... The guys worked hard for some greasy goals."
Streit scored on a rebound with 8:28 left, his first goal since Oct. 30. He missed about six weeks after undergoing pubic-plate surgery and was playing his sixth game since his return.
"We came back against a very good team, and this is a huge win for us," said Streit, who joined the rush and scored on a rebound after a second-effort to get into position. "Two or three months ago, this game would maybe end on a different note, but I think we've improved a lot. We don't lose faith and stick with the game plan and eventually it pays off."
The Flyers' top line, which has struggled recently, got goals from Jake Voracek and Simmonds. Claude Giroux (three assists), the line's center, and Voracek each had three points.
"I think tonight was a great example of a team win and supporting each other - and believe our system is going to let us win the game," said Giroux, who had just three points in his previous 11 games.
Simmonds, speeding down the right wing as a two-on-one was developing with Voracek, scored on his own rebound with 9:50 remaining in regulation, knotting the score at 2-2 and jolting the crowd to life.
Voracek and Giroux had assists on Simmonds' goal, which was scored after the Flyers killed a Boston power play.
The Flyers were outshot, 32-21.
"On a night like this when we're not at our best - through most of this game, we lost more of the puck battles and 50-50 pucks than we won - but there's still a confidence within the group just to stay with it," coach Dave Hakstol said. "They did that tonight and ultimately we were rewarded, so it's a positive step."
Earlier, Boston took advantage of its first power play of the night, needing just 25 seconds to take a 2-1 lead with 3:34 left in the second period. Loui Eriksson scored on a rebound, showing why the Bruins have the NHL's best power play, clicking at over 28 percent.
Kevan Miller tied the game at 1-1 by scoring on a drive from above the right circle with 11:22 left in the second. It came after a turnover by Mason and a bad line change by the Flyers, who had just four skaters on the ice.
Voracek had given the Flyers a 1-0 lead, marking the fourth straight game they had scored the first goal.
The left winger pounced on a rebound of a right-circle shot by Giroux, and, with four Bruins around him, used his long reach to put the puck into the net with 2:32 remaining in the first.
Wednesday was the Flyers' first meeting against the Bruins since they registered a 5-4 overtime win on Oct. 21. In that game, Boston's Zac Rinaldo, a former Flyer, concussed Sean Couturier with a head hit.
Rinaldo was booed loudly every time he touched the puck Wednesday. He had a great scoring chance 27 seconds into the second period, but Mason stopped him as he cruised toward the net on a two-on-one.
Two minutes later, with the Flyers on a power play, Boston had a three-on-one shorthanded break. Again Mason came up big, turning aside Landon Ferraro from the right circle and not allowing a rebound.
The saves proved critical as the Flyers rallied and beat Boston for just the second time in their last eight meetings. The Flyers overcame a 4-2 third-period deficit in their October win in Boston.
Wednesday's comeback followed a similar, dramatic script.