The Philadelphia Flyers (4-3-0) completed the 2024 NHL Preseason with an undefeated record at the Wells Fargo Center, defeating the New Jersey Devils (1-6-0).
Each team dressed a lineup that more closely represented their AHL affiliate. John Tortorella stressed the eighth defenseman position is wide open, effectively challenging Emil Andrae and Adam Ginning. In addition, Tortorella noted how he wanted to ‘unlock’ more offense from Noah Cates.
“They [the Flyers] realized the team that the Devils sent here came to win the hockey game, to try to prove something. Our guys were talking about it before the game; they got themselves ready, and they went out and played hard.” – Darryl Williams; 10/3/2024
Andrae, Ginning, and Cates all experienced varied success in the win. Here’s how it happened in Philadelphia:
First Period
Sawyer Boulton squared off with Samuel Laberge to set the tone but went down after one right-handed punch. A result as such would typically put the momentum in favor of the Devils, but Olle Lycksell took advantage of Isaac Poulter, who mishandled a shot from Oliver Bonk. Lycksell was in place for the loose puck and backhanded the puck for a lead, 1-0, with 16:00 remaining in the first.
Hunter McDonald and Nathan Légaré tied up. No punches landed, but everyone at the Wells Fargo Center saw a chippy first period between mostly AHL lineups.
Poulter had to make more than a handful of theatrical saves throughout the exhibition. Garnet Hathaway pinned Oscar Eklind on the outside of the crease with a precision pass, but Poulter flashed a leg pad to deny the scoring chance. Nonetheless, Eklind found a soft spot in a high-danger shooting area. It was a notable improvement from the last time the Flyers were home versus the New York Islanders when Eklind littered turnovers.
Mikael Diotte entered the zone with the puck on his stick. He crossed the puck along the high slot to Ryan Schmelzer for the one-timer past Ivan Fedotov, 1-1, with 9:25 remaining in the first. The puck glides behind Jack Malone, taking the scenic route to Schmelzer. Fedotov might have expected the shot from Malone, but the release from Schmelzer was quicker than the adjustment.
“I’m not a goaltender, but I would imagine the more pucks, or the more situations you field a puck, that you’re going to get more involved in a game. They are tougher, and I thought he [Fedotov] did a good job. He stayed involved in the game, and he played good right up until his exit of the game.” – Darryl Williams; 10/3/2024
Brian Halonen served a minor penalty for holding. The Flyers went on their first powerplay, headed by Jon-Randall Avon. He showed his skating prowess but took a sharp-angled shot. Philadelphia could not convert their first extra-man advantage, but Avon kept pushing.
Second Period
Daniil Misyul served a minor penalty for delaying the game after he flipped the puck out of play and over the glass. The Flyers went on their second powerplay, and Avon chose a better shot selection. He sped through the offensive zone and turned around Jakub Zbořil before putting Philadelphia ahead again with a wrist shot, 2-1, with 18:32 remaining in the second.
Boulton and Laberge dropped the gloves for round two. Standing his ground better than in the first round, Boulton did draw the instigation for the scrum. Eklind served in addition, putting the Flyers on their first penalty kill. Fielding a shot, Fedotov was hesitant to cover the puck, inviting pressure from New Jersey. Erik Johnson helped clear the puck out of the defensive zone, contributing to a successful penalty kill.
Garrett Wilson had a tremendous scoring chance on a backdoor feed by Jacob Gaucher, but Poulter sealed the post. As quickly as Wilson generated offense, he created another shorthanded situation. Wilson served a minor penalty for interference.
Alexei Kolosov replaced Fedotov during the penalty kill after the clock stoppage. Philadelphia killed consecutive penalties, but for a moment, it seemed Mike Hardman tied the game. However, the Devils were offside, and the goal was not good.
“It was a little different to have to ask somebody about it instead of getting firsthand from the video guys, but our video guys picked up on it right away and relayed the information. We were pretty sure it was going to get called back.” – Darryl Williams; 10/3/2024
Zbořil continued a rough outing, nearly deked by Hathaway in the offensive zone. Poulter kept sprawling to keep the deficit in reach, denying Anthony Richard.
Kevin Labanc potted the equalizer, 2-2, with 1:24 remaining in the second. Bonk could not sweep the porch for Kolosov, and the screen was successful.
Andrae ripped a wrist shot past Poulter to take back the lead, 3-2, with 1:08 remaining in the second. As long as Labanc contributed to the scoreboard for New Jersey, Andrae helped further the Flyers.
Third Period
Eklind flew under the radar when previewing this exhibition, but his performance against the Devils was his best of the preseason. In addition to finding the soft zones for shooting opportunities, he worked the walls with Andrae, extending offensive possessions on the forecheck.
Légaré served a minor penalty for hooking. Andrae kept his superb play, saucering a pass to the tape of Richard for a one-timer, 4-2, with 16:02 remaining in the third.
Avon and Johnson served minor penalties for holding and roughing. The penalties were not simultaneous but overlapped to generate a lengthy three-on-five penalty kill. Labanc tallied his second goal, a one-timer set by Justin Dowling, 4-3, with 8:41 remaining in the third. Philadelphia finished with a 75% success rate (3/4) on the penalty kill.
A New Jersey bench minor penalty for too many men on the ice put the Flyers back on the powerplay. Rewarded for his play on the forecheck and generating early shooting chances, Cates extended the lead, 5-3, with 1:26 remaining in the third. Philadelphia finished with a 75% success rate (3/4) on the powerplay.
Labanc completed his hat trick bid, putting three pucks past Kolosov. Cam Squires batted a rebound away from Kolosov toward Labanc, who took advantage, 5-4, with 0:11 remaining in the third.
The Flyers led the attack, won at the faceoff dot, and ran away with the special teams battle, but did not protect the puck well overall. It was more or less a sloppy game between the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and Utica Comets, but Philadelphia won.
Next, the Flyers open the 2024-2025 regular season next Friday against the Vancouver Canucks at 10pm.
