NHL 20 Simulation: Kevin Hayes scores overtime winner for Flyers

Despite a third period collapse, the Flyers tied it late and won their second straight overtime game.

Looking for their third straight win, the Flyers traveled to New Jersey to take on the Devils. It was a relatively quiet first midway through. The team were tied at three shots apiece.

The Devils has a bit more of the attack time, but nothing to show from it. New Jersey almost took the lead in the dying seconds of the first as Travis Zajac came from behind the net. He snapped it in front but Carter Hart stood tall. They also fired off a shot just before the buzzer, but again Hart made the stop.

New Jersey had the early momentum in that period thanks to some timely turnovers and sharp goaltending from Mackenzie Blackwood.

An early penalty taken by Claude Giroux gave the Devils a chance to capitalize on their momentum. But they couldn’t get much action on Hart. Things got physical as both teams tried to find an edge over the other.

It was the Flyers who broke the deadlock first. Up against the boards, Claude Giroux came away with the puck and got the shot off from just in front of the goal line. Blackwood didn’t have all of the post covered, allowing Giroux to sneak it in.

Joel Farabee increased their lead a few minutes later. Playing catch with Kevin Hayes in the middle of the zone, Farabee blasted the one timer past Blackwood.

And despite getting mostly outplayed up until that point, the Flyers had the 2-0 lead going into the third period.

The Flyers were forced to kill off another penalty as Travis Sanheim was called for hooking. The unit continued its strong play, not allowing the Devils to even set up in the zone.

The Flyers played with fire as they went down on a 5-on-3. Joel Farabee for hooking and Giroux for delay of game moments later.

And the Devils finally cashed in. Miles Wood broke the shutout for Hart. In tight, he managed to fake out Hart and open up the five hole. They were buzzing after getting the first goal. And they tied it up on the second man advantage chance.

Kyle Palmieri grabbed the equalizer as the Devils won the face-off in the zone. Jack Hughes found Palmieri just outside the slot. And he made no mistake in beating Hart. That was two goals in about a minute.

New Jersey continued to take over as Zajac gave the Devils their first lead. Sanheim tried to deflect the puck into the chest of Hart, but he couldn’t control it. Zajac grabbed it and sent the backhand shot into the net.

With the puck in the zone and a minute and a half to go, the Flyers pulled Hart for the extra attacker. And it paid off as Scott Laughton grabbed the tying goal with less than 30 seconds to go. From behind the net, Derek Grant found Laughton all alone at the face-off dot. Blackwood had no chance as Laughton fired it in.

And for the second game in a row, the Flyers went to overtime. The Flyers got a rare 4-on-3 chance as P.K. Subban was called for tripping.

While they didn’t capitalize on the power play, the Flyers would come out with the overtime victory with exactly a minute to go. Along the right wall and into the corner, Farabee saw Kevin Hayes cutting in. Putting the stick out, Hayes deflected the pass over the outstretched leg of Blackwood.

The Flyers won’t get time to rest from this one as they’ll return home to take on the Pittsburgh Penguins tomorrow.