Recap

Recap: Flyers Win Season Series vs. Red Wings

by
Eric Reese
January 22, 2025

(Philadelphia Flyers/X)

During a pit stop on home ice, the Philadelphia Flyers (22-20-6) won the season series versus the Detroit Red Wings (21-21-5), 2-1.

Rodrigo Ābols made his NHL debut. He is the oldest player to debut with the Flyers since Will O’Neill (2017-2018).

Scott Laughton (personal) and Ryan Poehling (upper body) were not in the lineup. Tapping in with Ābols on the fourth line was Olle Lycksell. John Tortorella attacked with rolling lines.

‘The Most Tortorella Line’ of Tyson Foerster, Noah Cates, and Bobby Brink resembled the starting line for Philadelphia. Sam Ersson won his last five starts. The points streak continues with an overtime win. We’re experiencing the best stretch from the Flyers this season.

First Period

Shots: 8-6, Flyers
Score: 0-0

Cates led ‘The Most Tortorella Line’ deep into the offensive zone. Foerster nearly set up a scoring play for Brink, crashing the crease. Another line featuring Joel Farabee, Sean Couturier, and Matvei Michkov displayed natural chemistry. Michkov had three high-danger scoring chances in the first period. Farabee was an efficient checking forward in the offensive and neutral zones.

“[It’s] nice to see Couts’ [Couturier] line grow a little bit. I wasn’t sure how that was going to work.” – John Tortorella; 1/21/2025

Elmer Söderblom had a quality scoring chance saved by Ersson. Brink centered a turnover to Cates, but Alex Lyon made a save. Each goaltender faced tests, but Lyon was more active.

Cam York used his skating to his advantage on defense. He broke his stick after taking a shot. Then, York beat the Red Wings on the transition, negating a rush without a stick. It was one of the more underrated defensive plays in the period.

Second Period

Shots: 14-11, Red Wings
Score: 1-0, Flyers

Travis Sanheim attempted a centering pass to Travis Konecny but didn’t connect. The space and opportunity were there, but not the execution.

Then, Farabee kept checking and lit his line on the score sheet. His hard work in the offensive and neutral zones wasn’t unnoticed. Farabee kept the puck on the attack with Michkov, and then Couturier led a short, nifty pass back to Farabee for a backhanded goal, 1-0, with 14:39 remaining in the second period.

Despite trailing, Detroit led shot totals. Ersson kept engaged, stopping a succession of scoring chances from Alex DeBrincat and Patrick Kane.

“Any goalie that plays gets into a rhythm. Any player that plays gets in a better rhythm, but we also have to be careful as far as a workload, especially the condensed schedule that we have because of the Four Nations. Ers [Ersson] has steadied himself and looks so much more confident. He’s not busy. When I evaluate Ers, in my mind, just watching him play, when he’s not busy and the puck’s hitting him, you can tell he’s there. He’s giving us some opportunities, made some key saves at the end.” – John Tortorella; 1/21/2025

Dylan Larkin served a minor penalty for slashing. On the powerplay, Konecny hit a post with a shot. Philadelphia finished 0/1 (0%) on the powerplay.

Foerster went to the locker room. He took a puck to the face when Ben Chiarot tried to clear the defensive zone. In no time, Foerster returned to the bench.

Third Period

Shots: 27-21, Red Wings
Score: 1-1

Chiarot sniped the corner on Ersson, 1-1, with 19:30 remaining in regulation. The impact was sudden, but the Flyers kept battling.

Lycksell wrapped around Moritz Seider to check into the boards. He probably should’ve been penalized, but he wasn’t. Philadelphia was able to avoid facing an elite powerplay unit. On the same shift, Ābols took his first shot in the NHL.

“I liked him [Ābols]. He understands the game. [He’s a] big guy. We need to get bigger as a team as we move along. [He] asked the right questions. He handled himself really well; played ten or eleven minutes. I didn’t mind him at all.” – John Tortorella; 1/21/2025

Again, Konecny hit the post. Kane was as close to the go-ahead goal at the opposite end, but Sanheim lifted the stick to disrupt a likely score. In terms of timeliness and simplicity, Sanheim executed the best defensive play in this game on Kane.

Rasmus Ristolainen and Sanheim targeted Lyon toward the end of regulation. Then, with the Flyers hemmed in their defensive zone, Ersson made every save to force overtime.