Flyers answer test, reel off three goals in 59 seconds to cruise past Sabres originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
Rick Tocchet felt Wednesday night’s game would be a “good test” for his team to see where it was “mentally.”
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The Flyers handled the test pretty well.
They blew out the Sabres, 5-2, at Xfinity Mobile Arena, just a day after they learned Tyson Foerster would miss two to three months with an upper-body injury.
Travis Konecny, Trevor Zegras, Bobby Brink, Noah Cates and Owen Tippett all found the back of the net for the Flyers (15-8-3). Ten players recorded at least a point and five of them had multi-point efforts.
Tocchet said Foerster was in the locker room giving his teammates high fives.
“We all saw him,” Zegras said with a smile. “He’s still here.”
A week and a half after ripping off three first-period goals in 26 seconds against the Devils, the Flyers jumped on Buffalo with three in 59 seconds of the opening stanza. The spurt flipped a 1-0 deficit into a two-goal lead for the Flyers before the halfway mark of the period.
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By second intermission, the Flyers were in total control.
Tocchet had to like his team’s response after it was rolled Monday night by the Penguins, 5-1. The Flyers have dropped consecutive games in regulation only once this season (Nov. 1-2).
“Two points after last game, so really happy about that,” Tocchet said. “I still think we run around too much when the pressure [comes]. There are certain things that we’ve got to clean up with the running around. I don’t know if that’s bad habits from before, but there are chunks [of the game] that we’ve just got to communicate more.”
This was the first of three matchups between the Flyers and Sabres (11-12-4) this season.
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• The Flyers gave Samuel Ersson plenty of run support and he played well with it.
The 26-year-old converted 27 saves on 29 shots.
“He was fantastic,” Konecny said.
Tocchet’s club committed a couple of early penalties and fell down 1-0 on Jason Zucker’s power play goal.
But then Konecny, Zegras and Brink went on that 59-second spree.
The goals by Konecny and Zegras were on the power play. Buffalo was burned when it challenged Konecny’s goal, claiming Tippett interfered with goaltender Colten Ellis. The challenge was unsuccessful, which put the Flyers back on the power play and they capitalized.
“I think we took advantage of our power play chances early,” Tippett said. “That kind of set us up for the rest of the game.”
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Making just his seventh career NHL start, Ellis allowed the Flyers’ five goals on 35 shots.
• The Flyers got the balanced scoring they’ll need in Foerster’s absence.
Cates and Brink looked very good being back on a line together. Nikita Grebenkin, who is set for an expanded role, joined their line and had an assist.
“He showed a lot of talent, a lot of hard work, won his battles, made a lot of good plays,” Brink said of Grebenkin. “It was a treat to play with him.”
Zegras’ goal was his 10th. The 24-year-old forward was also shaken up after being boarded by Rasmus Dahlin with 3:10 minutes left in the second period. Zegras was OK, though, staying in the game, while Dahlin was hit with a five-minute major penalty and game misconduct.
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• Cam York was not on the bench for the third period.
The specifics of his injury are uncertain. The 24-year-old defenseman was involved in a melee after Zegras was boarded by Dahlin.
“We were trying to look for it, but I think he got hit behind the net, a little bit late or something,” Tocchet said. “But I haven’t talked to the doctors.”
• Rasmus Ristolainen, while wearing a non-contact jersey, took part in the Flyers’ morning skate Wednesday.
It was the first time the 31-year-old defenseman participated in a team skate this season. He has been recovering from surgery in March on a second triceps tendon rupture.
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Ristolainen is now working with the Flyers’ assistant coaches rather than in a rehab setting with the club’s player development staffers. Being cleared for contact in practice would be his next step toward a return, which could come at some point during December.
“Do I have an exact date?” Tocchet said after morning skate. “No, but it’s not a month and it’s not a week.”
• After playing six games in 10 days, the Flyers go the next three days without a game before returning to action Sunday when they host the NHL-leading Avalanche (1 p.m. ET/NBCSP).
