Flyers Fail to Get 1st W Against Ducks

            Going into last night’s game against the Anaheim Ducks, the Flyers had one goal in mind; get that first win of the season out of the way. The boys came out of the gate strong in the first period. You could sense their hunger for a W as the Flyers aggressively skated up and down the ice full of momentum and passion. That momentum was suddenly stripped away from Philadelphia when Ducks forward Tim Jackman (1^st of season) capitalized on a poor clearing attempt by Steve Mason, and put the puck in the back of the net giving the Ducks a 1-0 with 7:40 left in the 1^st period. As if that was enough of a stab to the chest, Devante Smith-Pelley’s (1^st of season) goal with just over 3 minutes left in the period had to have the Flyers feeling reminiscent of the start to their 2013-2014 season, and the boos coming from the stands could not have been much help.

            Luckily, things started to turn around for the Flyers in the 2^nd period with power play goals from both Mark Streit (1^st of season) and Wayne Simmonds (5^th of Season). The momentum had shifted back into the Flyers favor, and I was getting the feeling the team would not look back and eventually take the lead. This thought was erased with 17 seconds left in the 2^nd period as Matt Beleskey (3^rd of season) found the back of the net to give the Duck a 3-2 lead going into the 3^rd period. In the 3^rd period, it felt like the Flyers were a team destined to get the game back to a tie as they put forth the better effort for most of the 3^rd period. With 5:20n left in the game, the team’s effort finally paid off with a beautiful goal from Jakub Voracek (1^st of season). At the end of the 3^rd, the game was still tied, and the tie would not be broken in overtime. The Flyers eventually lost the shootout in four rounds with a goal from William Karlsson.

            The Flyers seemed to outplay the Ducks for most of the game but fell short where it really mattered. Philadelphia has been experiencing woes in shootouts, and had lost its 2^nd of this season. Although it is too early to panic, starting off the season 0-2-2 four games into the season is unsettling for everybody involved. The Flyers started off last season in similar fashion going 1-3-0 through the first four games and were able to get things back on track. So don’t be worried to much quite yet Flyer faithful. There is still plenty of hockey to be played this season.