A powerhouse in the Eastern Conference, the Flyers fared well against Boston this season.
While the Flyers dominance over the Capitals turned out to be more obvious, the series against Boston saw close games every time.
While the Flyers did earn a victory in the season series, they had to try hard to do so. Coming out 2-1-0, it took back to back shootouts to pull out those two wins.
And it involved having to come back and push past blown leads. It was the latter that the Flyers had to deal with during the first game of the series.
Scoring two goals in the first, the Flyers were able to rid that all the way through the second period. They weren’t able to hold Boston off in the third period, however. Goals by Danton Heinen and Brad Marchand tied the game midway through.
Boston had a chance to take the lead when David Pasternak earned a penalty shot with five minutes to go. Carter Hart was able to stay strong, denying him of the go-ahead goal. The Flyers also killed a late power play, forcing the game to overtime.
With nothing happening in the extra period, the two teams were faced with a shootout. It was the Flyers second consecutive shootout, having just beaten the Leafs the night before.
Joel Farabee would score the only goal, giving the Flyers the 3-2 shootout victory. It wasn’t the last time these two teams would need extra time to determine a winner.
No one will forget the Flyers shootout victory in January. To get there, they had to battle back from multiple multi-goal deficits. The biggest being a 5-2 hole they found themselves in during the second period.
Travis Sanheim was a star in this one, grabbing two goals. He scored the all-important tying goal in the third period. And then came the shootout. After Travis Konecny put the team up as the ninth shooter, it came down to Marchand.
Except he forgot a vital part on his shootout attempt. You have to pick up the puck to score a goal. His stick ghosted over the puck, pushing it just enough to count as an attempt. That gave the Flyers a big 6-5 victory.
An important thing to note is that the Flyers faced Jaroslav Halak in both games. They had yet to see Tuukka Rask this season. They would in the final game as he would prove to be the difference maker in a tough loss.
The Flyers were surging when they met Boston for the third and final time. They were winners of the last nine in a row and were once again looking to take over first in the division.
This would turn out to be their final game before the season was paused days later. And despite a strong effort, they were unable to get a single goal past Rask.
After a scoreless first period, Boston grabbed the only goal they would need late in the second period. It came after Justin Braun was called for interference. Matt Grzelcyk would score during the dying seconds of the power play.
While that was all they needed, Patrice Bergeron added an insurance goal in the latter stages of the third period.
The Flyers looked good in this game, despite the final result. But it proved they were able to hold their own against one of the best teams in the league.
Boston is typically a tough team to face. The Flyers showed they are ready to become a contender in the Eastern Conference. They will have a chance to once again prove that to the Bruins during round-robin.
While it will only be one game, it will give the Flyers a chance to show that their season series victory was no fluke.