You’d never guess the Flyers were 20 points out of first place in the Metro Division or a team going nowhere in a hurry after witnessing Tuesday’s rocking 3-2 overtime win over the Pittsburgh Penguins at Wells Fargo Center.
The Flyers had two power plays in overtime and scored on a Claude Giroux rebound on the second power play.
For so many reasons, the Penguins bring out the best in the Flyers and in this case it brought out a willingness to compete at a higher level we haven’t seen in quite a while. And stand up for each other, as well.
The energy and emotion the Flyers showed in this game was something not seen anywhere all season. The shame of it is it will dissipate over the All-Star break because the next time the Flyers play won’t be until next Tuesday — a full week between games.
There were four fights in the second period, with the angst starting in the opening stanza off a stupid Zac Rinaldo boarding call and game misconduct when he buried Kris Letang with an illegal hit to the head (see 10 Observations).
Two of the unlikeliest combatants dropped gloves — NHL leading scorer Jakub Voracek and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, the mild-mannered forward from Paris.
Flyers goalie Ray Emery and the Pens’ Thomas Greiss each had very strong games.
Shots
The Penguins ripped off 13 consecutive shots (13-0) in the opening period. The Flyers' first shot came with 8:06 left and it was from Giroux. Incredibly, the Flyers scored on their second shot, a point drive from Luke Schenn after a turnover from the Pens’ Beau Bennett. After one period, the shot totals were 17-3. Near the end of the third period, it was 31-31 in shots.
Notable goals
You've got to like Chris VandeVelde scoring a goal for the third consecutive game, with a redirect of Michael Del Zotto’s point shot in the third period to re-tie the game at 2-2.
Goalie report
Greiss had 37 saves, while Emery had 33.
Power play
The Penguins were 0 for 7 on the power play. The Flyers gave up a shorthanded goal for the second straight game. They were 1 for 6 on the power play.
Penalty kill
The Flyers had to kill off Rinaldo’s five-minute major and did so, allowing just four shots. You’d never know this was the worst PK unit in the NHL given how solid they were in this game.
Injuries
Letang left the game with a suspected concussion after the Rinaldo hit.
Fights
Zach Still won a convincing decision over Michael Raffl to begin a wild second period. Voracek destroyed Rob Scuderi after objecting to his hip check in the second period, followed by Luke Schenn destroying Steve Downie after his cheap shot on Del Zotto, which was followed by Bellemare rocking Bobby Farnham.
Scratches
Defensemen Carlo Colaiacovo (left leg), Braydon Coburn (fractured left foot), Nicklas Grossmann (right shoulder) and Nick Schultz (upper body); center Scott Laughton (concussion); and goalie Steve Mason (right knee) are all injured.
Up next
Hey, it’s the All-Star break. The Flyers will go their various directions and reconvene on the ice at Skate Zone in Voorhees, N.J. next Monday morning.