Philadelphia Flyers, Boston Bruins Recap And Takeaways
Mar 30, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Boston Bruins center Gregory Campbell (11) checks Philadelphia Flyers center Vincent Lecavalier (40) during the second period at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
The Philadelphia Flyers lost to the NHL leading Boston Bruins in a shootout. The final score was 4-3. The Flyers goals were scored by Vincent Lecavalier (x2) and Kimmo Timonen.
The Flyers played a good first period. They came out of the gate quick and took a 1-0 lead. Vincent Lecavalier was centering the fourth line as he received a pass from Adam Hall. Lecavalier took a slap shot that got by Tuukka Rask. About five minutes later, an old friend came back to greet the Flyers as Andrej Meszaros tied the game at one. The Flyers were running around in their own zone when Meszaros got open at the point. He rifled a wrist shot over Mason’s shoulder.
The Flyers looked like they were going to go into the first intermission tied. However, in the waning seconds of the period Jake Voracek made a great play to skate around the Bruins defense. He sent a pass across the ice to a wide open Kimmo Timonen who gave the Flyers a one goal lead.
As has become typical, the Flyers were noticeably bad in the second period. They were being dominated along the walls, the Bruins forecheck was suffocating, and they were the recipient of a few questionable calls. The Flyers allowed two goals and were down 3-2 at the second intermission. The first goal of the period was a power play goal by Zdeno Chara. Timonen could have done a better job in his penalty killing coverage, but credit has to be given to Chara for the great shot. The second goal was a soft goal by Mason. Mason came back to play a great third period and overtime.
The Flyers put the pressure on in the third period. They outshot Boston 17-6 and had numerous scoring chances. The Flyers had a plethora of a great opportunities in the last three minutes as it began to look like the bounces were just not going to go their way. However, with 24 seconds remaining in regulation, Vincent Lecavalier potted his second goal of the game to send it to overtime. The Flyers dominated overtime but were unable to convert. They outshot the Bruins 8-1 in the overtime period.
The shootout was not good to Philadelphia. Lecavalier, Raffl, Read, and Voracek were all denied by Rask, while Giroux was the only player to score for the Flyers. Steve Mason was able to deny Marchand, Iginla, and Krejci, but he was solved by Patrice Bergeron and Reilly Smith.
Takeaways:
-The Flyers hung with the best team in the NHL. It was not pretty at times, but they earned a point and outshot the Bruins 52-30.
-Claude Giroux was held without a point for the second time in three games.
-Jakub Voracek had two primary assists and had himself a great game.
-Vincent Lecavalier has responded nicely since his demotion. He has three goals in two games. Even though only one of those goals was scored while he was actually skating on the fourth line, he has clearly picked up his play.
-With the exception of the Bruins third goal, Steve Mason was spectacular. He made a few momentum saves that kept Philly in the game.
-In the first period Zac Rinaldo made a great play by hitting Jarome Iginla. Iggy did not like the hit and ended up fighting Rinaldo. Later in the game Rinaldo turned down an opportunity to fight Thornton while the Flyers were winning. It looks like Rinaldo is learning to pick his battles.
-The point they earned ties the Flyers with the Rangers momentarily. The Rangers will play the Oilers tonight, allowing the Flyers to keep their two games in hand.