‘It’s so aggravating’ — Flyers can’t dig out of hole as 5-game point streak ends originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
After scoring 13 goals over three consecutive wins, the Flyers were quieted for the majority of Monday night in a 3-2 loss to the Avalanche at the Wells Fargo Center.
Trailing 2-0 in the third period, the Flyers went on a four-minute power play. But they squandered the opportunity as Bobby Brink and Helge Grans committed penalties, putting the Flyers at shorthanded.
Colorado then added to its lead and that felt like the game.
Owen Tippett and Tyson Foerster both struck in the final eight and a half minutes to trim the Flyers’ deficit to one. With their net emptied for about the final two minutes of the game, the Flyers couldn’t scratch across the equalizer.
“Obviously they’re a quick team and they transition fast,” Tippett said. “I think we gave them a little more than we should have and we found ourselves behind.”
John Tortorella’s club had its five-game point streak snapped (4-0-1).
“A lot of the game I liked as we kept on going, but goddamn, we do stupid stuff,” Tortorella said. “It’s so aggravating, the stuff that we do that should be out of our game. That’s what aggravates me.”
The Flyers (8-9-2) are 1-1-0 on their five-game homestand. They see the Avalanche (10-9-0) again in February when they visit Colorado.
“It’s a faster team than us — night and day,” Tortorella said. “That’s an elite team. We’re here and that’s where we want to get to.”
• Aleksei Kolosov saw his first game action in 13 days and stopped 26 of 29 shots.
“He fought and played really good,” Tortorella said.
Avalanche star defenseman Cale Makar put the Flyers in a 2-0 hole at second intermission. He nearly notched a hat trick in the middle stanza alone but had a goal overturned for goalie interference after the Flyers challenged the play.
Travis Konecny took the blame for Makar’s first goal. The 2021-22 Norris Trophy winner was left open for a shot between the circles.
“It’s a bad read, I’m puck watching,” Konecny said. “And then it’s frustrating when you look at the end of the game, it’s a one-goal game. For myself, I know that.”
Tortorella was asked about Konecny’s blown coverage.
“It’s dumb,” the head coach said. “He just left the best player in the world to go chase a puck. If we’re going to get over the hump, that can’t happen, not from a guy that we’re depending on.”
Colorado netminder Justus Annunen denied 24 of 26 shots to hold off the Flyers.
• Egor Zamula went up the tunnel in the third period. After briefly returning to the bench, he headed back to the locker room again.
It’s uncertain when or how the 24-year-old defenseman suffered an injury. He has played well of late and the Flyers can’t afford more injuries to their defense.
• Banged up on the back end, the Flyers got a good look at Grans, a 6-foot-4 righty shot who they acquired in the three-team Ivan Provorov trade.
The 22-year-old from Sweden made his NHL debut and finished with an assist and a plus-2 rating.
“I got chills, a lot of them,” Grans said of taking the ice for his first game. “It was pretty amazing to do it.”
• With a pregame ceremony, the Flyers honored Erik Johnson for playing in his 1,000th career game last Saturday night.
They played multiple video tributes featuring the defenseman’s family and some of his former and current teammates. Johnson was joined on the ice by his wife Jackie and parents Bruce and Peggy.
The Flyers and Avalanche both gave him commemorative gifts. Johnson played parts of 13 seasons in Colorado, where he won the 2022 Stanley Cup.
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• Referee Mitch Dunning was stretchered off the ice in the first period after colliding with Avalanche defenseman Josh Manson. More here.
• The Flyers are scheduled to practice Tuesday at noon ET before they welcome the Hurricanes on Wednesday (7:30 p.m. ET/NBCSP).
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