COLUMBUS, Ohio — Maybe they were tired.
They were playing the last game of a five-game road trip that started on the East Coast on Nov. 30. After winging their way through a 1-2 record in California, the Flyers finished the trip with a lackluster effort in a 3-2 overtime loss to Columbus. With the defeat, the Flyers (9-13-5) drop to seventh in the Metropolitan Division.
They were a step slow throughout much of the game, often landing hits on Blue Jackets players after the puck was long gone. The physicality that they are known for was matched by Columbus as the Jackets attempt to erase the horrendous start they had to the season.
Claude Giroux being crunched along the boards by the Blue Jackets' diminutive forward Matt Calvert in the first period typified the tone set by the hometown team. The fact that this happened on a Flyers power play only added salt to the wound. Topping it off, they pretty much stopped hitting the Blue Jackets midway through the second period.
No matter which Flyer brought the puck into the offensive zone, no one could seem to keep it there. Possession was anathema to the Flyers throughout much of the game.
Brayden Schenn tied the score at 2-2 with 55.3 seconds remaining, earning them a point. In the overtime frame, it took just 1:58 for the Blue Jackets to send the Flyers home with a single point.
NHL
Notable goals
Schenn evened the score in the first period. That was half of what the Flyers could muster with a paltry 21 shots on goal.
First goals
Although they scored the first goal in all three games on the West Coast, the Flyers allowed the Blue Jackets to score first on a power-play goal.
Goalie report
Steve Mason, making his first start in Columbus since being traded to the Flyers, was not bad. But he clearly was not good enough. He could have given them a chance to win after facing just 22 shots on goal.
Power play
Going into the game, the Flyers had the third-best power play in the league, converting at 23.3 percent. They went 1 of 4 on the night against the NHL’s 26th-ranked penalty kill.
Penalty kill
The Flyers' 27th-ranked penalty kill allowed two goals on four power plays. Not good by any stretch of the imagination and something that needs to be addressed.
Scratches
Defensemen Luke Schenn and Carlo Colaicovo; forward Vinny Lecavalier.
Up next
The Flyers return home to face the New Jersey Devils on Thursday for their first game at Wells Fargo Center since Nov. 28.