With 3:10 to go in the second period of Wednesday night's 6-3 win over the Buffalo Sabres, the Philadelphia Flyers were leading 5-2, and the game already looked out of reach. That was when a frustrated Rasmus Dahlin followed Trevor Zegras into the end boards and laid a nasty hit.
Zegras, who had just gotten a shot of, had his head turned toward the boards and did not see Dahlin coming. Dahlin then leveled Zegras face-first into the boards, prompting an immediate response from the Flyers.
Rasmus Dahlin received a five-minute major and a game misconduct for this hit on Trevor Zegras. pic.twitter.com/oW7BejM2xl
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) December 4, 2025
As Zegras took a minute to get back up and skate over to the bench, the Flyers went after the Sabres' star player. This was exactly the response Flyers fans expected, as everyone at Xfinity Mobile Arena leaped to their feet and started cheering their team's reaction while subsequently booing Dahlin.
The Sabres, obviously, jumped in to defend Dahlin, who had taken a hit from Nick Deslauriers in a previous shift. Still, Dahlin's retaliatory strike was uncalled for, especially with Zegras slowing up as he skated toward the boards. Had Dahlin given Zegras a chance to know the hit was coming, Zegras could have absorbed the blow. But Dahlin instead decided to take out his frustrations.
Dahlin ultimately received a misconduct for his actions, and there's a good chance this bad blood will carry over when the two teams face off again in Buffalo on Dec. 18. Should the Flyers keep up their winning ways and if the Sabres keep getting frustrated with their lackluster play, there is no doubt what you saw last night won't be the last time a fight breaks out between both teams this season.
Philadelphia Flyers need to keep showing the league they won't be bullied
This is an important aspect for a young team outplaying expectations to have. Older, more experienced teams that could be surefire playoff contenders will try to use the intimidation factor on the Flyers. And if those teams didn't get the message following their quick response to Dahlin's hit, then they need to do the same thing if it happens again.
Luckily for the Flyers, players like Nick Deslauriers and Garnet Hathaway are in the lineup, with Deslauriers taking the ice in select games and Hathaway a fixture playing fourth-line minutes. Both players are seasoned veterans who can hold opponents accountable if they decide to lay dirty hits on star players.
Still, the youth must keep responding with tenacity no matter what, especially since the game will get a lot more physical should the Flyers be lucky enough to stay in contention for the playoff race. Should the Flyers stand up to those older, more experienced teams, it will force those opponents to outplay them on the ice, not throw them off their game by outmuscling them and winning the intimidation battle.