Flyers-Senators recap: Epic comeback thwarted by refs

With the help of some highly questionable calls, the Senators managed to halt the Philadelphia Flyers’ impressive comeback and win 5-4.

If referees didn’t irritate you enough, this game probably did the trick. The Philadelphia Flyers, after trailing the Senators big for much of the game, fought back to come within one goal. Then, Sean Couturier stuffed a puck past Craig Anderson that should’ve tied it up, given that replays showed it clearly crossing the goal line:

But as the tweet says, the refs deemed the play “complete,” and the Flyers were sent packing with a 5-4 regulation loss.

The Flyers have gotten the short end of the stick on these sorts of calls since the beginning of time, so it really shouldn’t be a surprise that it happened again tonight. Still, the Flyers deserved at least a point out of this game, and it sucks that the refs, not the opposing players, were the ones who prevented that from happening.

That wasn’t even the only controversial call made in the game. Trailing 4-2 midway through the 3rd, Brandon Manning blasted a slap shot past Anderson with the help of the screening Weal and Simmonds. Well, except Weal was called for goalie interference, and the goal was overturned. Weal definitely backed into Anderson, but it was very much up for debate as to whether or not he cleared out in time. Short end of the stick, again.

Philadelphia Flyers

Game observations

• After an incredibly sloppy first period, which they were punished for with a 3-0 deficit, the Flyers turned things around in a huge way. The Couturier and Laughton lines fueled that comeback, even if it wasn’t reflected on the scoreboard. They were the only two lines able to create sustained pressure, as has been the case for the entire season.
• Radko Gudas got hit with a 5 minute major for charging which was… debatable, to say the least. Gudas’ elbow certainly clipped the Senator, but the result looked a lot worse than the actual hit. I would be appalled if Gudas got suspended for it, but Gudas probably isn’t the most popular guy in the league office.
• The late game drama could’ve all been avoided if Michal Neuvirth had put together a halfway-decent game. Instead, he pitched his first real stinker of the year, giving up multiple soft goals and largely failing to come up with big saves. He’ll need a strong outing next time to re-stake his claim on the starting job.
• The Flyers won the 5v5 Corsi battle 51-36, and the scoring chances battle 24-16. Even if it didn’t seem like it most of the time, they did enough to come away from this game with points.

Most Fly

There’s no stopping Sean Couturier. He’s off to a phenomenal start, adding three more points in this one (1 goal, 2 assists). It should’ve been four points, but a great night for him nonetheless.

Least Fly

You know the answer to this already.

Next: Flyers lose to Ducks in ugly fashion

One-Sentence Takeaway

(Stats via Natural Stat Trick)