Dan Vladař joked that he told Travis Sanheim that once they land in Italy, the Flyers teammates will no longer be buddies, and that he’s blocking his number.
At least … we think he’s joking.
The Flyers goalie and native of Czechia, formerly the Czech Republic, will face Sanheim, Flyers coach Rick Tocchet, and Canada in the opening Group A game for both teams at the Milan Cortina Olympics on Thursday (10:40 a.m., USA, Peacock). Defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen will be suiting up for Finland, which is in Group B and plays Slovakia on Wednesday (10:40 a.m., USA, Peacock).
“That’s going to be a fun one,” Vladař told The Inquirer about playing the Canadians. “You know, I think I know more of his weaknesses than, hopefully, they know about my weaknesses, so I’m going use that power against them.”
And the chatty goalie will 100% throw some chirps Sanheim’s way — maybe even in Czech — if he’s in net. Of course, there are no guarantees that he will be the starter at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena, but there’s a good chance.
His teammate Karel Vejmelka has more games (44) and wins (27) this season than Vladař (17 wins in 33 games), but the Flyers netminder has a better goals-against average (2.47) and save percentage (.905) than the Utah Mammoth goalie and Lukáš Dostál of the Anaheim Ducks.
Flyers defenseman Travis Sanheim is ready to take on Czechia with Team Canada.
“Obviously, you don’t really want to share too much, but he’s been awesome for us this year,” said Sanheim when asked what he’ll tell his Canadian teammates about Vladař.
“He’s a big reason why we’ve been in a lot of games and [I’m] not really looking too forward to going up against him. He’s been playing great — and I don’t score on him too much in practice.”
Prague proud
After toiling behind Tuukka Rask in Boston and Jacob Markström and Dustin Wolf in Calgary, Vladař is getting a chance to be a No. 1 goalie in Philly. And now he’ll get a chance to show his talents on the world stage as he tries to help his country win its first Olympic medal since the 2006 Torino Olympics and its first gold since the 1998 Nagano Games. In the final of that tournament, Dominik Hašek pitched a shutout against Russia, almost six months to the day after Vladař was born in Prague.
“I was too little to remember anything,” Vladař said, “but just watching the highlights, and basically, I think that’s one of the reasons why I’m even playing hockey, is because, you know, obviously, my parents were watching, and the whole country was watching.
“So I’m pretty sure a whole new generation of players are coming from that era. So, obviously, it’s going to be a great time for me, and I’m really proud.”
Vladař is proud of Czechia and his hometown, Prague, and it shines through on his goalie mask. Working with Langhorne’s Franny Drummond of Paint Zoo Studios, who also designed his NHL game mask and worked with the Flyers’ goalies and children on their Hockey Fight Cancer masks, he brought his vision to life — with a twist.
After having to scrap his original mask plan because the International Ice Hockey Federation and the International Olympic Committee did not approve it — Drummond told the Snow The Goalie podcast at the Flyers Charities Carnival that they originally had lions and lightning on the side — Vladař went simple with a tribute to home.
On the sides are the national crest with the skyline of Prague, including Prague Castle and Prašná brána or the Powder Tower — “It’s a piece of my heart, back home, and I’m proud that I can be from the beautiful city like that,” he said — underneath each crest.
Dan Vladař worked with Langhorne’s Franny Drummond of Paint Zoo to design his Olympic goalie mask.
The checker pattern pulled from the team’s jerseys is intermixed, and the back plate sports the names of equipment managers, athletic trainers, and team service members.
“I think they deserve it,” Vladař said.
“Overall, in hockey, they don’t really get enough credit for the time they spend around us, and whatever they do for us. … So this is just a little something that I think I can do for them to get their names out there and just maybe people start recognizing them a little bit more.”
Although he has the Flyers staff on his mask in Philly, there’s a chance he may need to cover the names in Italy based on IIHF and IOC guidelines.
“We couldn’t really go wild with that because they’re pretty strict with the Olympics. But at the same time, I think, it’s simple, but simple is power,” he said.
“I think it turned out to be a pretty cool, simple mask … and I’m always going to look up to it with hopefully a bunch of really good memories.”
Mettle to Medal
Like his friend Michal Krčmář, a Czech biathlete who won silver in the 10 kilometer sprint at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics and is competing on Tuesday, there’s a good chance the Czechs will make some noise.
David Pastrňák (Boston Bruins), Martin Nečas (Colorado Avalanche), Tomáš Hertl (Vegas Golden Knights), and former Flyers Radko Gudas (Anaheim Ducks) and Lukáš Sedlák (HC Dynamo Pardubice) will play in front of Vladař as he goes for his first medal since the 2014 IIHF Under-18 World Junior Championship.
At that tournament, he was the backup to Vítek Vaněček when the Czechs lost to the United States in the gold medal game. That same year, he earned another silver as the starter against Canada in the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament, giving up four goals, with one scored by his Flyers teammate Travis Konecny.
Flyers goaltender Dan Vladař uses his stick to stop the puck against the Ottawa Senators on Feb. 5.
The netminder last played for Czechia at the 2025 IIHF World Championship — his first appearance since the 2017 World Juniors — posting a 3-0-0 record in four games with a 1.09 GAA and a .951 save percentage; Vladař relieved Vejmelka in the Czechs’ quarterfinal loss to Sweden.
“I’m just proud I can be there,” he said of being in Milan. “Obviously, we have a lot of goalies that are successful, whether they are playing in NHL or in the top leagues in Europe.
“So for me, it’s a big honor that I can be part of that group. And, obviously, I’m probably going to have a little tattoo on my body, too, because after 12 years, you just don’t know if you’re going to ever have the opportunity to go.”
It was a huge game against a team above them in the standings, but also on the outside of the Stanley Cup Playoff picture. The win moved the Flyers within seven points of the Metropolitan Division’s third spot, currently held by the New York Islanders, and the Boston Bruins, who are sitting in eighth in the Eastern Conference.
The Orange and Black had more energy, held off a surge by the Capitals in the third, and were able to snag the all-important two points.
Here are three things to know from the win that saw the Flyers score four goals for just the second time since beating the Anaheim Ducks on Jan. 6.
Matvei Michkov played almost 16 minutes
Hitting the ice just minutes after general manager Danny Brière spoke about the latest Michkov-Rick Tocchet discourse, the Russian winger played 15 minutes, 54 seconds across 21 shifts. It was the highest total since he played a little over 16 minutes against the New York Islanders on Jan. 26 and his 12th-most minutes this season.
Michkov averaged 45-second shifts after he averaged 34 on Saturday against the Los Angeles Kings, when he played a controversial 10:21. Was it a point of focus to have him take longer shifts?
“Yeah, a little bit,” coach Rick Tocchet said. “We talked yesterday, too, a little bit about if you feel like staying, get out there. Obviously, if you’re winded, get off. But, I thought he was moving.”
Michkov played well at times. He set up Bobby Brink for a chance late in the third and was a key contributor to Owen Tippett’s goal that opened the scoring just under six minutes into the game, marking the 19th time in 55 games that the Flyers scored first — and their 11th win.
On the goal, Trevor Zegras gained the zone and dished to Michkov, who carried the puck around the net. He took it around and up the right boards before threading the needle through two Capitals to Travis Sanheim at the left point. The defenseman then threaded the needle himself to Tippett in the right circle before the forward went across the crease and scored on the backhand.
“We knew we would have a little bit of room coming out of the corners there,” Tippett said. “I think that was a great pass to find Sanny, and Sanny made a great play to kind of calm it down and pass it right back to me.”
In hindsight — and after taking a deep breath from a busy night — Dan Vladař should have gotten one of the three stars of the game from this reporter.
The Czech goalie stopped 26 of 28 shots to win his 17th game of the season. He raised his save percentage to .904 and dropped his goal-against average to the 10th-best in the NHL (2.49) among goalies who have played at least 20 games.
Flyers goalie Dan Vladar (left) helped lift Owen Tippett and the Flyers to a much-needed win.
He allowed two goals — one a short-handed goal by Aliaksei Protas and the other a rebound goal by Anthony Beauvillier, who was left all alone in front. But while the team was facing some adversity, Vladař was pumping them up, too.
“He’s a leader,” said Tocchet, adding that while Vladař doesn’t wear a letter — goalies aren’t allowed — for him, he has one.
“I forget when he came by our bench [but] he said, ‘Guys, why are you guys holding your head down? Let’s go here.’ And I love that. It’s good to hear that. He’s our goalie, and [has] a lot of character. He’s been like that all year.”
Vladař was solid in net. In the first period, he made a save with 15:53 left, sliding across to rob Dylan Strome on a power play. Later in the frame, while shorthanded, he stopped Strome again as the puck popped up and he swiped it away with some help from his defenseman, Travis Sanheim, who swiped it further away — but he won’t be doing that in a few days.
“We play him in Game 1, too. I won’t be helping him out like I did,” he joked, noting that Sanheim’s Canada squad will be taking on Vladař and the Czechs on Feb. 12 (10:40 a.m.)
In the third period, he stopped Brandon Duhaime’s shot after Rasmus Ristolainen couldn’t get the puck out, and with six attackers on for the Capitals, off a faceoff deep in the Flyers’ end, Vladař stopped an Alex Ovechkin slapshot. It was one of nine low-danger shots he faced; however, according to Natural Stat Trick, he did see seven high-danger shots.
“That’s one thing that you cannot really control as a goalie,” he said about facing high-danger shots. “You’re there to stop the puck, no matter where the shots are coming from. Mentality is still the same for me, trying to keep as many as I can out of the net. And then having the confidence in the group that I think that we can be scoring two or three every single night.”
Jamie Drysdale (9) has helped power-play goals become a recent and much sought-after habit for the Flyers.
A power-play goal!
Jamie Drysdale has been on and off the power play all season, but lately he’s been getting power-play time. On Tuesday, he finally got on the board.
Zegras got the puck in the corner and threw a reverse hit into Martin Fehérváry to create time and space for himself. He skated up, utilized that time and space to find Drysdale as he slid into the spot atop the circles and fired off the one-timer that popped off the top of the pad of goalie Clay Stevenson and in.
The goal is Drysdale’s fourth of the season and first on the man advantage, giving him five power-play points.
“I think I had my chances, to be honest with you, I just couldn’t put the puck in the net,” Drysdale said. “Guys did a great job of finding me and finding holes, and it was nice to see one go in.”
Philly went 1-for-3 and has now scored on the man advantage for three straight games (3-for-8).
“Well, I like the shot by Jamie. That’s what we need is that … three feet [off the ground shot],” Tocchet said, using his hands to show the amount. “It’s that hard [shot] so we can get a tip on it. I think sometimes our shots are a little high, blocker side, and we talked about, before the power play, what we wanted, and we executed.
“I thought Trevor did a really nice job, like he was excellent. He went low. He body positioned the guy, the guy goes down, he doesn’t do that, maybe they get the puck out. So Trevor did a nice job to set that play up, and then obviously, Jamie, that’s the shots we need.”
Although coach Rick Tocchet had confirmed the goalie would start against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday (7:30 p.m., TNT, truTV, HBO Max) ahead of the Flyers’ optional morning skate, Vladař was officially activated from injured reserve on Wednesday afternoon.
“Obviously, he’s been very consistent for us and a really competitive guy, and he adds a lot to our locker,” Tocchet said. “He’s a guy that, for a goalie, likes to be involved with the players with instructions, even just being positive with the guys. So he’s going to add a lot to our room, especially on the ice and off the ice.”
Vladař was injured in the first period of the Flyers’ loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Jan. 14 and missed the next six games with the lower-body ailment. He has been consistent this season, posting a 16-7-4 record with a 2.46 goals-against average and .905 save percentage in 28 games.
Wednesday will mark Vladař’s 29th start, matching his career high set last season with the Calgary Flames.
The Flyers went 2-3-1 in his absence, with Sam Ersson going 2-2-1 with a 3.61 goals-against average and .872 save percentage. During the three-game road trip out west, Ersson was 2-0-1 with a 2.97 GAA and .897 save percentage against three of the NHL’s top teams.
The team played poorly in front of him on Monday in a 4-0 loss to the New York Islanders, but when Ersson plays consistently, he seems to get in a groove. Has there been a conversation among the coaching staff about getting Ersson more starts?
“Yeah, I think it depends on the schedule,” Tocchet said. “Obviously, you’re playing four in six, he’s going to get his time.
“But also Vladdy, there’s been times when he’s been on a roll. Your No. 1 goalie, you’ve got to get him out there. Obviously, you’ve got to have your backup in there, too. So it’s a schedule thing.”
Barkey finding his way
Seventeen games into his NHL career, Denver Barkey is feeling more and more comfortable as his first pro season moves on. There have been some ups and downs, like his two games against the Tampa Bay Lightning that led to being a healthy scratch against the Sabres.
But when his game is on, the 20-year-old has shown an elite hockey IQ. Barkey reads plays well, covers and supports his teammates, and can also create offense with his work ethic and vision. Despite playing last season in juniors — before his 26 games with Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League and now the NHL — his hockey IQ has seamlessly transitioned to a level that has more speed and quickness to it.
Flyers rookie Denver Barkey hasn’t looked out of place since being called up to the NHL on Dec. 19.
It is something he has carried and built on since his days growing up in Newmarket, Ontario.
“I think you’re born with some of it, to an extent,” he said of his hockey IQ. “But I think just my love for the game, my passion for the game, over the years.
“When I was young, before I could remember, my dad would tell me how much I loved begging to go out to skate, or trying to stay up late to watch hockey games. I think I’ve always been really interested and just love the game, and I’ve always wanted to get better.”
He also feels his hockey IQ has helped him some of the challenges and criticisms he’s faced along the way.
“But I think just being a smaller guy my whole life has always forced me in different ways,” the 5-foot-10 Barkey said. “When I went to junior, and now here, there’s bigger, stronger, faster, better players, so finding other ways to try to outsmart them and still be effective, given me being a smaller player. So I think being smaller throughout the years has helped me just make plays and take the game to a high level.”
In 17 games, Barkey has two goals and eight points. Two of his assists came in his NHL debut against the New York Rangers on Dec. 20, and another two came in the game against the Pittsburgh Penguins right after he was scratched.
“I think he’s a guy that [if] you tell him something, he grasps it on the next shift. He takes the information very well,” said Tocchet. “You can tell that he was in a great program with London [of the Ontario Hockey League] and Dale Hunter. … Those guys, they send a lot of NHL-ready players, and he’s one of those kids who has taken that information there and come to the NHL and is starting to knock some doors down.”
Breakaways
With Vladař activated, Aleksei Kolosov has been returned to Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League. … Defenseman Noah Juulsen will enter the lineup. The expectation is Emil Andrae, who was on the ice for the optional skate, will sit. … Forwards Garnet Hathaway and Nic Deslauriers are also expected to be healthy scratches.
LAS VEGAS ― The Flyers’ chips are down right now, but do they have a wild card up their sleeve?
Bobby Brink is hopeful to return Monday night when the Flyers take on the Vegas Golden Knights (8 p.m., NBCSP+). The Flyers activated Brink from injured reserve about an hour before puck drop.
“Bobby’s got a good shot to get in,” Flyers coach Rick Tocchet said during his pregame availability. “He had a good day today, so [it] looks like he’s going to go in for us.”
The forward missed the entire six-game losing streak due to an upper-body injury suffered in the Flyers’ last win, a 5-2 victory against the Anaheim Ducks on Jan. 6. In the first period of the game, Brink was blindsided by Jansen Harkins and did not return.
While Brink did not travel on the Flyers’ last road trip to Buffalo and Pittsburgh, he did practice on Sunday at T-Mobile Arena. At practice, he was back on a line with Matvei Michkov and Noah Cates.
“Having Bobby back, he’s a pretty smart kid,” Tocchet said. “He’s a quick kid. He adds more speed through the lineup for a forward position, which is good. [It] helps us there. I think he’s anxious, excited to play. It’s been a while.”
In a corresponding move, Dan Vladař was placed on injured reserve. There was no update on the goalie, who was injured in the Flyers’ loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday. The move is retroactive to Jan. 14, so he is eligible to be activated seven days after that date.
On a positive note, Vladař did make the trip to Nevada after Tocchet said that if he wasn’t going to play at all on the three-game road trip, then he wouldn’t travel.
“At this point, I’d say day to day,” Tocchet said Saturday regarding the goaltender’s status. “It depends [on] how he feels after therapy. So it’s like, one of those things every 24 hours … you get better or not? What percentage? So it’s hard to really pinpoint things exactly.”
The coach said that the game against the Colorado Avalanche on Friday (9 p.m., NBCSP) was a possibility. The Flyers also play the Utah Mammoth on Wednesday (9 p.m., NBCSP).
“He was on the ice today,” said Tocchet, updating his status on Monday. “He had a good day. So that’s good, that’s a good [one] for us. So, we’ll see the next couple of days how it reacts. But seemed like he had a good day today.”
Flyers goaltender Dan Vladar was moved to injured reserve. He is eligible to be activated beginning on Wednesday.
The reinsertion of Brink should help boost the forward lines — after all, the losing streak started when he got hurt. Brink works well with Cates, and the duo has a natural, connected chemistry on the ice.
It should help a Flyers team that, as defenseman Travis Sanheim said, needs to get back to fundamentals. It is something Cates and Brink have showcased since last season. And coupled with Michkov, the line has brought offense. According to Natural Stat Trick, across the nine games the two Minnesotans played with the Russian winger, beginning Dec. 16 in Montreal, the Flyers scored five goals and allowed one with a 64.63% expected goal share.
Brink has 11 goals and 20 points in 41 games this season. The 24-year-old is one goal away from tying his career high set last season in 79 games and is shooting a career-best 15.5%.
“He’s definitely a guy that you can count on,” Tocchet said. “He’s a consistent player for us. You lose guys like that, and then your depth gets challenged. But that’s where guys have that opportunity to shine. … But having Bobby back, he does settle things down for us.”
Breakaways
Rodrigo Ābols has been replaced on Latvia’s Olympic roster. The Flyers forward was one of the first players named to the squad, but he suffered a lower-body injury on Saturday against the New York Rangers. He was placed on injured reserve on Sunday. No timeline was provided for his potential return. … Sam Ersson (6-8-4, .855 save percentage) will get the start against the Golden Knights, while Lane Pederson, who was called up Sunday, is in Vegas and is “a possibility” to play, Tocchet said.
And while it was raining and sleeting outside the KeyBank Center in Western New York for most of the game, it was stormy inside for the Flyers, too.
Handed a 5-2 loss by the Buffalo Sabres, extending their losing streak to a season-high four games, the Flyers also lost two key players in the process — although Jamie Drysdale returned after missing three games with an upper-body injury.
Rasmus Ristolainen didn’t even make it onto the ice for warmups. The defenseman was a full participant and was on the point for one of the power-play units during morning skate, but did not dress for the game. He is listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
Goalie Dan Vladař got the start but did not return after the first period with an undisclosed injury. According to the Flyers, he will be re-evaluated after the game. Coach Rick Tocchet did not have an update when he spoke postgame.
On the first Sabres goal in the first period, during a power play, it appeared that Vladař moved awkwardly when he wasn’t sure where a missed shot by Josh Doan went. He was slow to get up and was able to reset, but Rasmus Dahlin beat him from the point with Jason Zucker setting a screen.
It was just the second shot of the game for the Sabres. Buffalo then scored on its fourth shot. Mattias Samuelsson, the son of former Flyers defenseman Kjell Samuelsson, made it 2-0 with a sweeping snap shot from the inside of the right circle. The goal came after Travis Konecny and Trevor Zegras had a two-on-one but lost the puck in the neutral zone to Doan.
“I think right from the start, I think we maybe respected them a bit too much,” forward Owen Tippett said. “Few of those guys, you kind of have to play hard and take their time and space away. I think some penalties crept in that might have ended up hurting us, too. But, yeah, at the end of the day, I think we just need to be ready to play right from the start.”
Vladař allowed two goals on five shots. Sam Ersson entered at the start of the second period and allowed two goals on six shots in the middle frame.
Buffalo’s Jack Quinn made it 3-0 when he was left alone in front as the Flyers’ defense collapsed. Ryan McLeod got the puck behind the net and fed the open Quinn for a quick shot past Ersson.
Flyers goaltender Samuel Ersson replaced Dan Vladar in the second period and allowed two goals.
The Sabres’ power play, which entered the game ranked 22nd in the NHL and had one goal in the last 21 opportunities dating back to Dec. 21, got its second on the man advantage off the stick of Dahlin, too.
Dahlin got the puck above the circles, walked down, and sent a wrister past Ersson with Zucker atop the crease again. The Flyers’ penalty kill fell into the box setup, which allowed Dahlin the time and space to skate down the middle to make it 4-1.
“Yeah, just really disappointed, like, I’m pretty disappointed,” said Tocchet. “I’m a PK guy, and the reads that we gave them weren’t good. They’re just unacceptable for me, so we’re going to have to tidy that up.”
The penalty kill went 4-for-6. The Flyers’ power play had chances, too, but only capitalized on one of five opportunities.
Philly got an early power play when Sabres goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen wrapped his arms around Christian Dvorak as he tried to corral the puck and do a wraparound. But the Flyers’ power play is struggling, and entered the night 31st in the NHL (15.3%).
On the first power play, they did have two shot attempts, with Zegras’ shot forcing Luokkonen to stop it. A positive was that it looked better than Monday against the Tampa Bay Lightning when it went 0-for-2 with two shot attempts, zero shots on goal, and an icing.
After going 0-for-3, the power play finally cashed in with Zegras scoring — albeit off his skate in the third period. With the Sabres focusing on the other side of the ice, the forward crashed the net with Konecny’s pass going off his skate and past Luukkonen.
The goal, to make it 4-2, was Zegras’ 18th of the year and seventh on the power play. Konecny now has 39 points in 44 games.
In the second period, Tippett got the Flyers on the board to make it 3-1 with a pull-and-shoot.
The forward started the play when he deflected a pass by Dahlin near his own blue line that was intended for Tage Thompson diagonally at the Flyers’ blue line. The puck bounced to Noah Cates, who sent it up to Tippett, and he used Samuelsson as a screen.
Flyers right wing Owen Tippett scored his 15th goal of the season against the Sabres on Wednesday night.
The goal is Tippett’s sixth in the past 12 games. Postgame, he gave Nikita Grebenkin — who was on his line for the first time this season — credit for driving through the defense and creating a bit of a distraction on his goal.
“I think if you have that guy going to the net, it kind of switches things up,” Tippett said. “At that point, you just want to try and create as much as you can and try and impact the game and crawl back. So, yeah, obviously, whenever I have a chance, I’m going to try and shoot. But that one worked out being a good opportunity.”
It’s hard to gauge when things went off the rails, as the Flyers put up shots quickly. And things would have probably gone differently if Luukkonen hadn’t committed highway robbery on Grebenkin 6 minutes, 5 seconds into the game.
Tippett drew the attention of the Sabres’ goalie and sent a backhand pass over to a wide-open Grebenkin at the right post. A left-handed shot, Grebenkin attempted a shot off the pass, but Luukkonen flashed the leather and stole a sure goal.
The Flyers had a six-on-four power play chance with 2:15 left in the game with Ersson pulled, but were unable to score. McLeod added a short-handed empty-net goal.
“I don’t know,” Zegras said when asked what went wrong. “I just think maybe we’ve got to get like, our spark, our mojo back a little bit. We just got to, I guess, reboot our brains a little bit, and know that it’s a hard league, and that you’re going to go through these tough stretches, and that’s part of it.
“And we’re a pretty young team, and I know we have played well up to this point, but we haven’t really accomplished a whole lot. Got to keep the foot on the pedal and just keep going.”
The Flyers had 22 shots on goal and allowed 14. … Noah Juulsen had a shot go off the post with 9:58 left in the third period. … Forward Denver Barkey was a healthy scratch for the first time in his NHL career.
Up next
The Flyers get right back to it on Thursday in Pittsburgh, facing the Penguins (7 p.m., ESPN), who have lost three straight.
After being one of the NHL’s best teams following a loss — 9-1-2 after losing in regulation and 13-2-5 following any loss — the Flyers have now lost two straight in regulation for the second time this season. The last time that happened was in November.
Following Saturday’s 7-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, they were handed a 5-1 defeat by the same squad, both at the Xfinity Mobile Arena.
The Flyers have now lost three straight, including the 2-1 overtime loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday. It also matches the longest losing streak of the season, set in mid-December.
Once again, the Lightning took an early 1-0 lead. This time, it was Pontus Holmberg beating Dan Vladař on a bouncing puck. The Flyers stepped up in the neutral zone, something they struggled with on Saturday, but Tampa Bay regained control, and once they got the puck in the Flyers’ end, they pinned them deep.
Eventually, the Lightning’s Zemgus Girgensons got the puck in the right circle and put it toward the front of the net with Holmberg and Travis Sanheim battling. The puck bounced around, and after Holmberg’s shot was initially blocked by Sanheim, his second attempt beat Vladař.
Just 33 seconds into the second period, Jake Guentzel made it 2-0 Tampa Bay with his 20th of the season. Off the opening faceoff, the Lightning dumped the puck in, and the Flyers seemed to be OK as they worked it around the boards.
Flyers goaltender Dan Vladar (right) and Cam York sit on the ice after Tampa Bay Lightning center Brayden Point (center) scored a second period power play goal on Monday. Point was injured hurt on the play.
But Trevor Zegras was double-teamed by Anthony Cirelli and Guentzel and lost the puck. Guentzel, who is playing for USA Hockey at the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics, got the puck above the left circle and fired it past a screened Vladař.
The Lightning took a 3-0 lead on a power-play goal by Brayden Point in front. On the play, Point got his own rebound but was injured in the process as his right leg seemed to get twisted with Cam York. Named to Canada’s Olympic team, Point dropped his gloves immediately and grabbed his right knee before being helped off the ice.
Before the goal, Darren Raddysh’s stick seemed to hook Sean Couturier up high in the Lightning’s zone and could have been called.
The Flyers had some chances early on, notably Owen Tippett driving down the left boards, past Maxwell Crozier, and setting up Couturier for a shot that rang off the pipe when they were trailing 1-0. Rodrigo Ābols was also robbed when it was 2-0, when a point shot by Emil Andrae went off the end boards to him in front, and he had two good whacks at the puck.
Down 3-0, the Flyers started to turn it up and got on the board during four-on-four action.
After Vladař made a save on Raddysh off his mask, Christian Dvorak got the puck and headed up ice on a two-on-one with Nick Seeler. Dvorak kept the puck and sent a snapshot past goalie Jonas Johansson. It was Dvorak’s 10th of the year and extended his point streak to four games (one goal, three assists).
Philly had chances to cut further into the lead, especially with a delayed penalty called on Lightning defenseman Erik Černák. The Flyers had a six-on-five and had five shot attempts, including shots by Carl Grundström, who missed practice on Sunday due to illness, and Rasmus Ristolainen.
But the power play struggled and went 0-for-2 with two shot attempts, zero shots on goal, and an icing call.
Tampa Bay added another goal with 31 seconds left in the middle frame on a goal by Brandon Hagel, and Nikita Kucherov had an empty-net goal in the third period.
Breakaways
Forward Travis Konecny returned after missing Saturday’s game with an upper-body injury and after leaving Sunday’s practice with a lower-body injury. He had five shot attempts, including a chance in the second period down the left side, across 14 minutes, 21 seconds of ice time. The alternate captain also had 14 penalty minutes, with a 10-minute misconduct for abuse of an official. … Nikita Grebenkin and Ābols also dropped the gloves. … The Flyers allowed two power-play goals in four opportunities for Tampa Bay. … Point left the game with a lower-body injury. … Vladař allowed four goals on 25 shots.
Up next
The Flyers hit the road for two games in two nights, playing the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday (7:30 p.m., TNT, truTV, HBO Max) and the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday (7 p.m., ESPN).
You can’t turn around these days in Philly without someone telling you this is going to be a big year for the city, including me. You get it, things are happening, people are coming, but I bet you mostly just want to know how you can either join in on the parties or figure out how much they’re going to annoy you.
I usually try to temper my expectations — one, because I’ve learned a few things in 18 years here and two, because I like to be pleasantly surprised. But I’ve recently found myself imagining what the big moments will be like: the NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament in March; the PGA Championship in May; the FIFA World Cup and MLB-All Star games this summer; and the yearlong celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Antoine Watts, back left, and Michael Clement, front center, participate in the Red, White, and Blue To-Do Pomp & Parade at Independence Hall in 2024.
I have big hopes and some worries for Philadelphia, just like I do for everything I love.
And while the stuff above is a lot, it’s not everything going on here this year, not even close. So if you’re seeking alternatives to the big to-dos, looking to keep your calendar full all year long, or just hoping to run into Mark Ruffalo, here are 14 more Philly happenings to look forward to this year.
(Dates are subject to change. Check related websites for updates.)
Jan. 30: Philly is Unrivaled
The first big event features incredible athletes you won’t see in any of the major sporting events I mentioned above: women.
Unrivaled, a three-on-three format women’s basketball league, is holding a doubleheader at Xfinity Mobile Arena to kick off its first tour later this month.
Rose BC guard Chelsea Gray (12) drives past Lunar Owls wing Rebecca Allen (9) in their Unrivaled 3-on-3 basketball game Jan. 5 in Medley, Fla.
The games will undoubtedly hype up fans for when Philly gets its own WNBA expansion team in 2030 and prove to any doubters that Philly is a women’s sports town (we even have a shirt that says it).
The Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics in northern Italy will feature a host of local athletes and at least one famous Philly podcaster. Watching it also doesn’t require you to leave your house, so win-win.
Four Philadelphia Flyers will be playing Olympic hockey: Travis Sanheim for Canada, Rasmus Ristolainen for Finland, Dan Vladar will represent Czechia, and Rodrigo Abols will take the ice for Latvia.
People take photos in front of the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics and Paralympics rings, in Cortina D’Ampezzo, Italy.
Other local athletes will undoubtedly qualify, but I don’t have a full list yet so don’t email me asking why I didn’t mention your cousin-in-law on the U.S. Curling Team.
Kylie Kelce will also serve as a digital content creator for NBCUniversal’s Creator Collective and she’ll have on-the-ground access to the games to produce social media content.
Go Birds. Go Team U.S.A.
Feb. 14: ‘Universal Theme Parks: The Exhibition’
How much fun can learning about theme parks be without the roller coaster rides, immersive lands, or concession stands? Philly will find out next month when the Franklin Institute premieres: “Universal Theme Parks: The Exhibition.”
An artists’ conceptual rendering of the Franklin Institute’s “Universal Theme Parks: The Exhibition,” which is slated to open Feb. 14.
The new exhibit spans eight galleries and tracks the history and world-building of Universal’s theme parks. It was created by the team at the Franklin, who hope it will introduce young visitors to science and tech careers in the theme park industry.
I’m hoping there’s a section about whatever alien incantation protects the E.T. Adventure ride, which opened in 1990 and is the last remaining original ride at Universal Studios Florida. The high-tech stuff is awesome, but there’s nothing that beats the nostalgia of that flying bicycle ride and the flashlight-fingered alien.
March 14: Ministry of Awe opens
The more I hear about the Ministry of Awe the less I understand it, and the more intrigued I become.
The permanent, six-story immersive art experience helmed by Philly muralist Meg Saligman inside of Manufacturers National Bank in Old City “transforms an abandoned 19th-century bank into a fantastical, seemingly impossible institution that trades in the many enigmatic facets of humanity,” according to its website.
Guests will be encouraged to question what they value and to wander the multimedia art space, which will lean into a banking theme and includes a room for counterfeiting. Actors will be on hand to enliven their experiences.
Muralist Meg Saligman inside of the still-under-construction Ministry of Awe in November. Opening date is March 14.
“There’s a teller that smells you. You will walk through and be delighted and surprised along the way,” Saligman told The Inquirer.
The Ministry of Awe says we all already have accounts open there and one thing is for certain, my interest rate is sky-high.
April 14 — May 31: ‘1776 The Musical’
There are not many musicals set in Philadelphia and the one thing you can say about 1776 is that it’s one of them.
The production about the events that led to the signing of the Declaration of Independence never became a juggernaut like Hamilton and didn’t produce any smash songs. But after rewatching the film version last Independence Day, I can safely say it’s still a pretty good musical. Especially if you hate John Adams, or love watching people hate on him.
While it would have been epic if this production could have been staged at Independence Hall this year, seeing it at the Walnut Street Theatre — the country’s oldest theater, which opened just 32 years after 1776 — is a close second.
April 16: Cruise ships begin sailing out of Philly
For the first time in nearly two decades, cruise ships will return to the region this spring, offering locals a chance to seas the day with an aquatic trip abroad.
Construction of the Port of Philadelphia (PhilaPort) Cruise Terminal began last month in Tinicum Township, Delaware County, at a site adjacent to the Philadelphia International Airport that was formerly known as the Hog Island Dock Terminal Facility.
(How’s that for a local word salad — a Philly port in Delco at a dock named after the place that may have inspired the word hoagie.)
A conceptual rendering of the future PhilaPort Cruise Terminal, a 16-acre site adjacent to Philadelphia International Airport.
Norwegian Cruise Lines has exclusive rights to sail out of the PhilaPort Cruise Terminal through March 2033. According to its website, the first voyage will be a seven-day round-trip to Bermuda.
Fear not the Bermuda Triangle, my fair Philadelphians, for we’ve weathered far stranger things here following Super Bowl wins, and on an average Tuesday.
April 18: Monster Jam at the Linc
If you think the Birds are beasts on their home turf, buckle up, because 12,000-pound trucks are coming to Lincoln Financial Field this spring as part of Monster Jam’s Stadium Championship Series.
Foam teeth line the front of the Megalodon monster truck at Monster Jam at Lincoln Financial Field in 2023.
When I hear Monster Jam my first thought is “It’s probably boysenberry,” or “I wonder if it’s as fun as a mash?” but if you have little ones who love things that go vroom — or you do — this auto be wheelie good time.
May: The Greyhound station reopens
Slated to come back from the dead this spring like it was Kenny or Jon Snow will be Philly’s intercity bus terminal, formerly known as the Greyhound station.
The Philadelphia Parking Authority will operate the terminal on behalf of the city, which has gone more than two years without a facility since Greyhound left the terminal at 10th and Filbert Streets in 2023 after 35 years.
Corner of the former Greyhound station at North 10th and Filbert Streets in 2018.
In the aftermath, buses used public street curbs to pick up travelers, who were forced to wait outdoors in the elements and had very little access to basic amenities, like bathrooms. The whole situation was bus-ted and I’ll be glad to see it fixed.
June 12: ‘Disclosure Day’ premieres
Filmed in parts of South Jersey last year and featuring Philly’s own Colman Domingo, Disclosure Day is an alien thriller from director Steven Spielberg that I can’t wait to get my tentacles on.
I love good sci-fi and this one has a screenplay by David Koepp, who also wrote the screenplay for Jurassic Park, one of my favorite movies of all time. The trailer for Disclosure Day is intriguing, unsettling, and reveals little about the plot, but I already find the movie authentic: If aliens were to land anywhere, South Jersey seems like a fitting place.
At the end of the trailer, a nun says “Why would He make a vast universe yet save it only for us?” which hearkens to a famous Carl Sagan quote:“The universe is a pretty big place. If it’s just us, seems like an awful waste of space.”
Aug. 30: Philadelphia Cycling Classic returns
If there’s one thing Philadelphians love doing, it’s partying while watching other people exercise and this year they’ll get to do it again at the Manayunk Wall when the Philadelphia Cycling Classic returns after a 10-year hiatus.
Held for 30 years before it was canceled in 2016 due to lack of sponsorship, the race follows a 14.4-mile course from Center City to Manayunk, where cyclists must climb the “Manayunk Wall,” a stretch of Levering Street with a 17% gradient.
Women cyclists pedal up Levering Street, aka the “Manayunk Wall,” during the Liberty Classic TD Bank International Championship race in 2011. The race is returning this year as the Philadelphia International Cycling Classic.
Back in the day, people partied like it was Two Street on New Year’s along the route in Manayunk, particularly at the Wall. As bikers cycled through the course, spectators cycled through kegs and cowbells, with some folks on Levering Street charging admission to their house parties and others hanging beer banner ads on their porches for a fee.
Also slated in 2026, but dates remain unknown:
A conceptual rendering of FloatLab, set to be installed at Bartram’s Garden on the Schuylkill in 2026.
Opening of Mural Arts’ FloatLab: Located in the Schuylkill at Bartram’s Garden, FloatLab is a 75-foot installation and environmental center that will be “a convergence of art, architecture, and nature,” according to its creator, J. Meejin Yoon. The sloped, ADA-compliant circular platform, which allows visitors to look eye-level at the river while standing in it, will serve as both an educational and artistic space.
Gimme my Philly money: To mark the nation’s 250th, the U.S. Mint is releasing quarters with Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell on them this year and I’m going to need some of those for my piggy bank. Just to be clear, this does not change the fact that I’m still salty at the Mint for stopping penny production. What will people put in their loafers? How will Penny from Pee-Wee’s Playhouse see? It’s just cents-less.
This new design for the quarter commemorates the U.S. Constitution and depicts Independence Hall in Philadelphia, where the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution were signed. The other side of this quarter has a depiction of President James Madison.
Rumored in 2026, but in no way confirmed:
From left: Thuso Mbedu (Aleah Clinton), Fabien Frankel (Anthony Grasso), Alison Oliver (Lizzie Stover), and Mark Ruffalo (Tom Brandis) in “Task.”
Task season 2: The Delco-set HBO thriller starring Mark Ruffalo was renewed for a second season and I’m hoping they start filming around Philly’s weirdest suburb this year (though creator Brad Ingelsby may have to write the script first). While it’s unclear if Ruffalo will reprise his role as FBI agent Tom Brandis, one of my resolutions this year is to frequent more local hoagie shops in the hopes of running into him, but also because I love hoagies.
Stranger Things spinoff?: Philly was named-dropped in the finale of the beloved sci-fi show, which got fans hypothesizing that the home of one of the greatest urban legends of all time — the Philadelphia Experiment — might be the setting for one of the confirmed spinoffs. Or it could just be subliminal advertising for Netflix House Philadelphia (which is actually in King of Prussia). An Instagram post from the show and Netflix on Wednesday only fueled rumors, with its caption: “meet me in philly.”
Dan Vladař remembers watching the highlights of the Czech Republic’s only Olympic gold medal in men’s ice hockey. It was how he fell in love with the sport.
Growing up in Prague, the goalie was less than a year old when Dominik Hašek and former Flyers like Jaromír Jágr and the late Roman Čechmánek helped their country win at the 1998 Nagano Olympics.
Now the 28-year-old Flyers goalie will get a chance to follow in their footsteps. On Tuesday, Vladař was named to the Czechia, formerly known as the Czech Republic, team for the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics.
“I wouldn’t say it was a goal, but it was maybe in the back of my head somewhere,” he said Monday before the announcement. “Obviously, especially coming here as a new guy, I didn’t really have time to think about it that way.
“I was just trying to establish myself on this team and get to know everybody and focus on myself and the team here.”
Vladař joked that if his phone didn’t ring, he’d go somewhere warm during the two-week NHL break. But how could Czechia leave him off the roster after the season he is having?
Through 24 games, Vladař is 15-6-3 with a 2.39 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage. His 24 starts are five off his career high, set last season when he backed up Dustin Wolf in Calgary. And his 15 wins are already his all-time best.
“I feel great. Still hungry, as everybody else is in this locker room,” he said about his season with the Flyers. “So, obviously, I’m glad for the opportunity and trying to take advantage of it every day. Body feels great. Head feels really good, too. So everything’s good.”
Flyers goaltender Dan Vladař is tied for eighth in the NHL with a .910 save percentage.
Everything is better than good. Vladař has looked sensational in net with his tracking and ability to read plays. He will put up a bad game here or there, but they have been few and far between as the Flyers have lost only once in regulation following a loss.
He’s also been one of the NHL’s top goalies.
Vladař’s save percentage ranks him tied for eighth in the league among goalies with 20 appearances, and his GAA is the fifth best. He could challenge to be Czechia’s starting goalie, too, as his numbers are better than those of Karel Vejmelka (.896, 2.70), who plays for Utah, and projected starter Lukáš Dostál (.887, 3.18), who might be in the opposite crease when the Flyers host the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday (7 p.m., NBCSP).
“I think he worked on his game this summer because he went with a skating coach, and I think he wanted to work on some stuff like the next play, the rebound,” coach Rick Tocchet said before the season resumed after the holiday break. “And I noticed him this year, he’s in position for the second rebound. … I think Vladdy’s worked on that, and I think he’s really done a great job when it comes to that second save, being in position and not being out of position.”
Vladař joins Rasmus Ristolainen (Finland), Travis Sanheim (Canada), and Rodrigo Ābols, who was one of Latvia’s original six players named. Tocchet will be an assistant on Jon Cooper’s staff for Canada.
The netminder last played for Czechia at the 2025 IIHF men’s World Championship, posting a 3-0-0 record in four games with a 1.09 goals-against average and a .951 save percentage; Vladař relieved Vejmelka in the Czechs’ quarterfinal loss to Sweden.
It was the first time he suited up for his country since 2017 at the World Juniors. In 2014, he was the backup to Vítek Vaněček as the Czechs lost to the United States in the gold-medal game at World Juniors. That same year, he started the gold-medal game against Canada at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament, giving up four goals, with one scored by his current teammate Travis Konecny.
Czechia is expected to compete for a medal in Milan, and boasts NHL stars like David Pastrňák (Boston Bruins), Martin Nečas (Colorado Avalanche), and Tomáš Hertl (Vegas Golden Knights). Former Flyers Radko Gudas (Anaheim Ducks) and Lukáš Sedlák (HC Dynamo Pardubice) will also suit up for the Czechs. The tournament begins on Feb. 11 and will run through the gold-medal game on Feb. 22.
Breakaway
After clearing waivers on Tuesday, Egor Zamula agreed to a one-year contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets through the end of the season. The former Flyers defenseman, who was traded to Pittsburgh last week but refused to report to its American Hockey League affiliate, was placed on waivers Monday by the Penguins for the purpose of contract termination. Puckpedia lists the deal at $1 million. Zamula, 25, will reunite with former teammate and fellow Russian Ivan Provorov with the Blue Jackets. Ivan Fedotov is also in the Columbus organization but is currently in the AHL with Cleveland.
RALEIGH, N.C. — On Sunday night, the Flyers dropped their third straight game, and their third straight after regulation, with a 3-2 shootout loss to the Carolina Hurricanes.
Yes, it’s a losing streak, but the Flyers were facing the Eastern Conference’s best for the second straight night. And while things started slowly for Philly, it was able to find its footing and snag a point.
Here are two players who played a big role.
The Flyers’ Trevor Zegras has a four-game points streak.
Storm front
The Flyers may have been playing the Hurricanes, but there’s a storm front coming from Trevor Zegras. Acquired in June, the 24-year-old from New York is on pace to smash his career highs.
Zegras is riding a four-game point streak (three goals, three assists) and has 13 goals and 32 points in 31 games. He has already tied his point total from last season in 57 games.
If he maintains this pace, he will score 34 goals and 85 points. His career highs are 23 goals and 65 points, set in the 2022-23 season.
Coach Rick Tocchet agreed that Zegras was one of the better players for the Flyers right from puck drop.
“He wants the puck. He wants to make plays,” Tocchet said. “That’s what we want from him; he’s been doing it all year. And then when he gets the puck, he’s making plays through the middle of the ice, which is nice.”
Trevor Zegras was very active around the Carolina Hurricanes’ net, and he finished with a goal and an assist.
Zegras tied Nick Seeler for the team lead on Sunday with seven shot attempts. Although three missed the net and two shots were blocked, two more were on goal, with one finding the back of the net.
That goal came in the last two minutes of the game to tie it up and force overtime. But it was one moment of many by Zegras that set the tone.
In the first period, with the Flyers trailing 1-0 and having just one shot on goal, and on their second straight power play, Emil Andrae was struggling with Seth Jarvis deep in the Flyers’ zone.
Zegras came over and followed one of the fundamentals when there is a man advantage: If you lose possession, you need two players on the puck. He threw a hit on Jarvis — just the 11th by the lithe forward this season — with Andrae squeezing him out on the other side, ending the Hurricanes forward’s possession.
It wasn’t the most altering moment of the game, but it seemed to say that it was time to end the Flyers’ poor play. And the Flyers did start to pick up the pace after that, powered by Zegras.
“I mean, it’s a team game,” he said when asked about carrying the load. “It’s a team effort, especially if you’re talking power play. I definitely just try to do what I can to be the best for my teammates. But I mean, those guys were making plays all night.”
According to Natural Stat Trick, Zegras had one rebound attempt and created another two, with one coming from Noah Cates atop the crease as the Flyers looked for the equalizer in the third period.
He also led the team with six scoring chances. None came during five-on-five play. Most came during six-on-five action — the Flyers scored both goals at this strength, one on a delayed penalty and the second with the goalie pulled.
After a slow start, the new power-play units started to gel with Zegras (4:47), Cates (4:22), Tippett (4:22), Drysdale (4:02), and Brink (3:55) getting the most time with the man advantage.
Originally, with Andrae on the power play alongside Zegras, Cates, Bobby Brink, and Owen Tippett, the Flyers had one missed shot and two more blocked. But Tocchet moved Andrae off the unit — and also off the second pairing.
“I thought Emil was struggling,” he said about Andrae being moved down to play with Noah Juulsen. “He’s been struggling the last couple of games; not struggling, but has been a little bit off. Just trying some different things.”
Zegras’ old power-play buddy with the Anaheim Ducks, Jamie Drysdale, was moved to the unit, and things started to pick up. This unit had eight chances, including three shots on goal.
“I think the power play was good tonight,” Zegras said. “I think we got some looks that we wanted to.
“We had the prescout on their penalty kill for the last couple days, so we kind of knew what to expect, and just finally broke through on the six-on-five, which was good.”
Flyers goaltender Dan Vladar made 30 saves against the Hurricanes on Sunday.
Here I am
In Star Wars: A New Hope, Darth Vader says, “I find your lack of faith disturbing.” He’s a lot nicer than the villain, but Dan Vladař could probably say the same to those who doubted his signing in July.
You cannot lay any blame at Vladař on the two goals he allowed to Carolina — one off a broken play and the other a deflection on a power play — but you can assuredly praise him for the 30 shots he bested.
“He’s a stud,” Drysdale said. “There really is no other way around it. Both of our goalies have been great this year and really, really give us a chance. So that also instills a lot of confidence in our group, for sure.”
The Carolina Hurricanes are known for shooting from everywhere, and they did that on Sunday.
In the first period, he faced 14 shots on goal, nine in the second, seven in the third, and a pair in overtime. He got a lot of work in the opening 5 minutes, 44 seconds, facing eight shots on goal compared to zero for the Flyers.
The Czech netminder, who should be getting a call soon to represent his country in the Olympics, was often spotted using his blocker. He stopped Jordan Martinook in the second period and then Carolina defenseman K’Andre Miller on a breakaway.
“He’s amazing,” Zegras said. “He saved my butt a couple of times. But, I mean, it’s every night, right? You guys [the media] see it. It’s big saves, timely saves, saves that he shouldn’t even be making.”
And while the official play-by-play says Jackson Blake missed the net, it was Vladař’s patience and movement that forced the son of former New York Islander forward Jason Blake wide.
“You look at their shots, their shots are from the corners and stuff like that, like they’re kind of cheap shots. So we’re not too worried about that,” said defenseman Cam York, who returned to the lineup after missing four games.
“I think we’re worried about trying to make sure those aren’t Grade A chances. And, you know, Vladdy, he’s so good that he’s going to make those saves.”
There’s something to be said for a team that stops the bleeding.
After losing two straight back in mid-November, the Flyers ended another losing streak at one game with a 4-1 win against the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday night. Since those consecutive losses to the Ottawa Senators and Edmonton Oilers, the Flyers have gone 8-4-0.
The Flyers came out like it was a feeding frenzy at Xfinity Mobile Arena, putting 11 shots on San Jose goalie Alex Nedeljkovic before the Sharks got their first one more than 11 minutes into the game. The only problem? Their first shot was also a goal.
San Jose broke out of its own end on a stretch pass by Dmitry Orlov to Macklin Celebrini at center ice. The No. 1 pick in 2024 sent a backhander into the Flyers’ end, and Will Smith, who was drafted three spots before Matvei Michkov in 2023, blew past the Flyers’ defense.
He tracked down the puck along the end boards, carried it around, and sent a cross-ice pass from the top of the left faceoff circle to defenseman John Klingberg. That pass pulled Flyers goalie Dan Vladař out of position, and the defenseman sent it to Collin Graf atop the crease for the goal.
It was the 19th time in 28 games the Flyers have trailed 1-0. But it was also the 11th time they’ve come back and won to lead the NHL. They also have a league-leading 12 comeback wins.
Flyers’ Matvei Michkov (right) shoots on goal against San Jose Sharks goalie Alex Nedeljkovic during the first period on Tuesday.
Christian Dvorak evened the score with 81 seconds left in the first period with a nifty backhand-forehand move around Nedeljkovic. Travis Konecny sent a backhand pass up in the air from the Flyers’ end.
The puck hit Trevor Zegras in the shoulder in the neutral zone, and Dvorak got behind Sharks defenseman Sam Dickinson to score his seventh goal of the season.
The secondary assist was the 500th point (205 goals, 295 assists) in 674 games for Konecny, who became the 17th player in Flyers history to hit the mark. He added his eighth goal of the season with an empty-netter late in the third period.
Then the fourth line finally got a goal. Skating against the team that traded him to the Flyers, Carl Grundstöm got some revenge in the second period.
Flyers defenseman Nick Seeler sent the puck on goal from the left point, and Grundstöm, in just his second game as a Flyer, deflected the puck as he trailed his stick behind him.
With 12 seconds left in the middle frame, Noah Cates added some insurance. Bobby Brink carried the puck down the right wing and sent it over to Cates at the top of the left circle for the catch-and-shoot goal. It gave him seven goals on the season.
Vladař didn’t face a ton of shots — he stopped 17 — but made the big saves when needed.
Not long after Dvorak tied things up, the Czech netminder stopped Smith on a breakaway. Then, up by a goal, he snared a wicked Celebrini wrist shot as he skated down during a Sharks power play. He stopped Ty Dellandrea all alone in front late in the second and robbed him again in the third period from point-blank range in front of the net.
Flyers coach Rick Tocchet watches his team on Tuesday night.
Breakaways
Sharks goalie Yaroslav Askarov was sick and did not suit up. Justin Kowalkoski, a 39-year-old emergency backup goalie for the Sharks, signed an amateur tryout agreement with the team. He participated in warmups and sat on the bench in case Nedeljkovic had to leave the game. Kowalkoski played college hockey for Colgate University and previously served as a backup in 2018-19 for the Detroit Red Wings. Daniel Spencer, who rotates with Kowalkoski as the EBUG, was in goal for the Sharks’ morning skate. … Defenseman Ty Murchison made his NHL debut and did not look out of place skating on the third pair with Noah Juulsen. He saw ample time on the penalty kill and played almost 15 minutes with family and friends in attendance. … Michkov, who turned 21 on Tuesday, missed the first few minutes of the second period. According to coach Rick Tocchet postgame, “he had to get some stuff taken care of.”
Up next
The Flyers host the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday (7 p.m., ESPN).
