Philly Sports Jabronis
Report From Philadelphia Flyers
* Jake Voracek recorded an assist to regain sole possession of the NHL scoring lead with 27 points (7g-20a)… He continued his run of posting at least one point in every game this season in which the Flyers were not shut out.
* Voracek also extended his home point streak to 10 straight games, recording 16 points (5g-11a) in that span.
* The Flyers recorded 39 shots, marking the fourth time this season they’ve recorded 39 or more… They are 1-2-1 in those four games… The Flyers are 14-8-5 when recording 39 or more shots since the start of the 2011-12 season.
* The Flyers played the second half of games on back-to-back nights – they are now 1-3-0 in that scenario.
* Claude Giroux recorded seven shots in the game, the fifth time he’s done that this season.
* In addition to their 39 shots, the Flyers had another 24 blocked.
* The Wild fired more shots on net in the third period (17) than the first two periods combined (13).
* Flyers GM Ron Hextall announced that forward Chris VandeVelde suffered a lower-body injury and is considered day-to-day.
* Defensemen Luke Schenn and Andrew MacDonald each returned from injury in tonight’s game with each player playing around 16 minutes of ice time… Michael Del Zotto missed his first game of the season with a lower-body injury.
GAME RECAP
PHILADELPHIA — Jason Zucker’s goal with 45.4 seconds left in the third period gave the Minnesota Wild a 3-2 win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday at Wells Fargo Center.
Nino Niederreiter had a goal and an assist and Marco Scandella also scored for the Wild. Goaltender Darcy Kuemper stopped 37 shots to help the Wild win their fourth straight game.
Mark Streit and Claude Giroux scored for the Flyers. Goaltender Ray Emery allowed three goals on 30 shots.
Philadelphia has lost four straight.
The game appeared headed for overtime after Giroux’s power-play goal with 3:30 left in the third, but Zucker ruined a night that started with Eric Lindros and John LeClair getting inducted into the Flyers Hall of Fame.
The Flyers lost the puck in the defensive zone in the game’s final minute and a pinching Ryan Suter sent a pass through the crease to Zucker, who jammed it inside the right post.
Giroux tied the game 2-2 when he scored his sixth goal on the power play. Moments earlier, he broke Jared Spurgeon’s skate guard with a hard shot from the left side, making it difficult for the Wild defenseman to defend.
Marco Scandella gave the Wild a 2-1 lead 1:42 into the third period on his fourth goal. Niederreiter started the play by poking the puck away from two Flyers in the Philadelphia zone. The puck rolled to Mikael Granlund on the wall on the right side of the Philadelphia zone. Granlund pushed it ahead to Niederreiter, who sent it across to Scandella. The defenseman stepped into a slap shot from the top of the left circle that beat Emery high over his glove.
After a scoreless first period, Niederreiter opened the scoring with a power-play goal at 10:59 of the second. Wild defenseman Matt Dumba got the puck on the left side of the Philadelphia zone and whipped a pass across to Niederreiter, who one-timed it from the right circle past Emery.
It was the Wild’s first power-play goal on the road this season, on their 33rd attempt.
It was the eighth power-play goal allowed by the Flyers in their past four games, in 16 times shorthanded.
The Flyers tied the game with 5:29 left in the second on Streit’s third goal. Scandella and Dumba misplayed the puck deep in the Minnesota end, and a strong forecheck by Flyers center Scott Laughton dislodged it along the wall on the left side.Wayne Simmonds held the puck in at the point and fired a cross-ice pass to Vincent Lecavalier in the right circle. Lecavalier pulled the puck back and centered it for a cutting Streit, who beat Kuemper to make it 1-1.
“We were on the forecheck and [Simmonds] got the puck on the half wall and made a great pass to Vinny,” Streit said. “He saw me jumping into the play. I tried to deke the goalie and go five-hole and luckily enough the puck went in.”
Each team had chances in a scoreless first period. The Wild had two power plays but managed one shot on each. Their best chance came when Niederreiter made a pass off the right wall to Thomas Vanek alone in the slot. Vanek redirected the puck on net, but Emery made a nice save.
The Flyers’ best chances came early, when Brayden Schenn took advantage of a misplay by Kuemper to set up Giroux for a one-timer, but Wild captain Mikko Koivu got a piece of the shot and deflected into the netting. Then with 90 seconds remaining, Kuemper bounced from post to post to stop chances for Giroux, Voracek and defenseman Andrew MacDonald.
