‘We played a hell of a hockey game’ — Flyers match season-best win streak

‘We played a hell of a hockey game’ — Flyers match season-best win streak originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Flyers decided against practicing Wednesday, staying off the ice for two consecutive days following a busy three-game road trip.

The decision seemed to pay off.

John Tortorella’s team was quick, connected and all over the Stars in a 5-1 win Thursday night at the Wells Fargo Center.

“I’m not going to sit here and try to be a coach and say, ‘Oh, we’ve got to do this’ — we played a hell of a hockey game,” Tortorella said. “I think that’s what the result is.”

Owen Tippett (two), Sean Walker, Cam Atkinson and Scott Laughton found the back of the net as the Flyers (25-14-6) added another signature win to their résumé. They’ve won five straight, matching their season-best winning streak.

Tippett is bubbling with confidence. His second goal capped off the night and was one for the highlight reel.

“He has a chance to be something special,” Tortorella said. “I think he just feels good about his game, hitting the net more with his shot. I haven’t seen a goal like that. I’ve seen a lot of good goals; I haven’t seen one of those in quite a while.”

Tippett may have topped his dazzling move from Monday. He recently had to make a change in sticks. It hasn’t hurt.

“I think he’s using [Travis Konecny’s] stick,” Atkinson said. “He says he’s going to go back to his curve; no one’s going to let him go back to his curve. But, no, he’s playing great. He’s getting the opportunities and we know the type of player he is. He’s finishing and some of these goals are pretty special.”

The Flyers outshot Dallas 43-15. A good start to their four-game homestand.

“I think it’s probably an emphasis for us to be a little bit better at home,” Laughton, who scored on a penalty shot, said at morning skate. “We need to be better at home, we know that. It’s exciting to come back to our fans.”

The Flyers split their two-game regular-season series with the Stars (26-13-5). Back in October, they lost a wild one in overtime at American Airlines Center.

This was the Flyers’ first win over Dallas since January 2019. They had gone 0-6-1 and were outscored 32-12 in their previous seven matchups with the Stars.

Flyers fans chanted “Dallas sucks” during the third period.

“When you come home to a group that’s lively, they’re into the game, it makes it a lot easier for us to keep going,” Tippett said. “It’s fun.”

• The Flyers have seven wins over top-10 clubs. They’re also a top-10 team over halfway through what was viewed by many as a rebuilding season.

Since Nov. 10, the Flyers have gone 20-7-5 for 45 points. Only the Jets and Oilers have more points over that span, each with 46.

Pretty impressive.

“Dallas, I think they’re probably the best team in the league,” Tortorella said. “I’m not sure what the standings are, but I look at their lineup, they’ve got to be one of the best teams in the league. I thought we handled ourselves really well against them tonight.”

• Atkinson’s goal was important insurance early in the third period, extending the Flyers’ lead to 3-1. It came on the power play, giving the Flyers a man advantage goal in six of the last seven games.

Laughton and Tippett added on in the final stanza.

“It was a good team effort, everyone contributed,” Laughton said. “And then you get to watch Tipper go to work at the end there.”

• Samuel Ersson had to make only 14 saves.

He did his job and the Flyers gave him a relatively stress-free night.

Jake Oettinger is one of the better goalies in the league and the Flyers got after him. He faced 43 shots and stopped 38.

The Flyers had 21 more shots (30-9) than Dallas at second intermission.

• After missing the last two games, Sean Couturier and Jamie Drysdale were back in the Flyers’ lineup.

Couturier had been out with an undisclosed injury and Drysdale was battling an illness.

With their returns, Tortorella played 11 forwards and seven defensemen.

Couturier picked up an assist and Drysdale was sound offensively and defensively.

• The Flyers took it to the Stars in the first period and were rewarded for it when Morgan Frost made a sparkling pass.

Along the boards in the neutral zone, Frost played the puck through his legs to a streaking Walker, who buried the shot with a minute left in the period.

The Flyers took a 1-0 lead into first intermission and a 15-1 advantage in shots.

Frost finished the night with two helpers and has four of them over the last three games.

“Confidence is definitely higher than at the start of the season right now,” Frost said, “so hopefully keep building on that.”

• Bobby Brink stayed out for plenty of extra work after the Flyers’ morning skate.

The 22-year-old rookie was a healthy scratch for the second time in the last four games. Over his last five games, he has played only 10:34 minutes per game.

The Flyers have to be talking internally about how they want to handle Brink’s spot right now because playing is imperative for his development.

• The homestand continues with a back-to-back set over the weekend as the Flyers host the Avalanche on Saturday (1 p.m. ET/NBCSP) and the Senators on Sunday (1 p.m. ET/NBCSP).

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