For a minute, it looked like the Flyers might pull off an improbable comeback against the Blue Jackets on Tuesday night.
Then overtime came, and the Flyers’ chances faded. Bell Meltzer of PhiladelphiaFlyers.com wrote, “…the Flyers gave up a pair of 2-on-0 breakaways in overtime. The latter ended in Kent Johnson’s second goal of the game (6th of the season).”
When you give up two big breakaways like that after forging a comeback effort, you won’t beat many teams. Philadelphia learned that the hard way on Tuesday.
Given its remarkable comeback to force overtime that included a goal deflected into the net from Jamie Drysdale with 11 seconds remaining in regulation, easing off the throttle in the extra period is a sign of a job half-done.
Luckily for the Flyers, they have a shot at redemption when they face the Washington Capitals on the road Wednesday night. Still, their near-impossible comeback will sting as they head into the nation’s capital.
Flyers Could Have Entered Wednesday In Prime Position
Philadelphia entered Tuesday night’s contest with nine points and ahead of the Blue Jackets. They were also in a position to tie their points total with the Pittsburgh Penguins, who have 11 on the year. Further, they would have put themselves in position to leapfrog Washington should they have taken two points on Tuesday and won on Wednesday.
Instead, collapsing in overtime means the Flyers, at most, can tie the Capitals in the standings in points as October draws nearer to a close. What’s worse is that Philadelphia’s overtime collapse now marks them letting their last two games slip away.
When Philadelphia faced off with the Ducks on Oct. 24, they took an early 2-0 lead, only for Anaheim to storm back and score five goals. Blowing leads as they did on Saturday and losing when they had momentum in their corner on Tuesday can turn into devastating consequences later in the season.
Teams may look back at games that they should have won. Games where they blew a multi-goal lead or lost steam in an extra period. For the Flyers, however, this can and should be a learning experience.
Growth Opportunities For Philadelphia
At this point, losses like what the Flyers suffered vs. the Ducks and Blue Jackets are forgivable at this stage. Philadelphia is one of the league’s youngest teams — 27.6 per their Hockey-Reference page. Young teams naturally lose winnable games or fail to play an entire 60+ minutes.
As the group gains more experience, fans won’t see them storm back after being down by three goals only to lose in the extra period. They also won’t see Philadelphia give up five goals to another young hockey team after looking like they would enjoy a dominant afternoon.
The question now is a matter of how quickly the Flyers will learn from their two most recent outings. They already proved they can enjoy quick turnarounds after slow starts — Philadelphia started the year 0-6-3 and are 3-1-1 since.
The last two games, especially following such a bizarre ending in their most recent matchup, are opportunities to learn. The Flyers should grasp them starting on Wednesday night.
Flyers’ Comeback Ends With Bizarre Overtime Sequence Against Blue Jackets