(Kate Frese/SB Nation)
The Philadelphia Flyers needed to gear up for the regular season Thursday night and did so with style as they beat down the Boston Bruins 5-1.
By Dan Heaning, Sports Talk Philly staff writer
The Philadelphia Flyers came into their seventh preseason game looking to get into regular season mode. The Orange and Black seemed more than ready as they handed the Boston Bruins a 5-1 beat down.
Nearly everything went right for the Flyers in this contest. The first line of Claude Giroux, Sean Couturier and Jake Voracek looked great as they combined for six points and had a hand in four of the Flyers five goals.
The second power play unit got things started as great puck movement from the point to Nolan Patrick allowed Couturier to swiftly find Travis Konecny in front of the net and beat Boston goaltender Tuukka Rask with a tap-in to put the Flyers up 1-0.
As the opening frame was expiring, Voracek extended the lead to two after collecting a Radko Gudas rebound that squirted pass a Boston player in front of the net which gave Voracek an open shot from the circle.
In the second period, Voracek sent a great east-west pass in the Bruins zone to Brandon Manning and the Philadelphia defender lifted it over Rask's shoulder to put the Flyers up 3-0.
Voracek and Couturier each finished with a goal and an assist while Giroux collected two assists as it appears this top line may stick around for Opening Night.
Young players like Patrick and Sam Morin provided more evidence that they belong on the roster as well. Morin showed great puck control and hands as he deked multiple Bruins defenders to set up Wayne Simmonds with a beautiful pass to give Philadelphia a 4-0 lead.
Couturier continued to excel during the power play as Konecny returned the favor from the first goal giving the centerman an easy goal in front of Malcolm Subban early in the final frame.
Aside from his assist on the power play, Patrick was just a goal away from a Gordie Howe hat trick as he dropped the gloves in the second stanza with David Krejci. After his scrap, Patrick was met with a chorus of cheers and the Philadelphia faithful chanting his name.
The game could have swung in a different direction though as the first period had more scoring but nothing that was allowed on the scoreboard.
The Bruins thought they had two goals but the first was called back on a handpass as Brad Marchand received a pass up high from Patrice Bergeron. The Bruins star winger batted the chest-high puck to Anders Bjork, who deposited the puck past Alex Lyon. The goal was immediately waived off.
Simmonds thought he was going to open the scoring for the Flyers on the power play, but his tally was reversed as he tapped the puck above the crossbar.
The second took some more time to reverse. With 5:49 left in the first, Bruins defenseman Rob O'Gara sent a point snapshot on net which eeked by Lyon. However after Flyers head coach Dave Hakstol challenged the play for goaltender interference, it was determined that Jake DeBrusk prevented Lyon from making the stop.
Michal Neuvirth was set to start but due to illness served as the backup. Lyon made 31 saves in his last-minute, complete game starting effort. However, his two-period shutout attempt was ruined in the final frame when Krejci sent a snap shot over Lyon's shoulder early in the period.
The Flyers will conclude their preseason with a 5 p.m. affair with the New York Islanders on Sunday. The game will be televised on The Comcast Network and the NHL Network.
Box Score
| 1 | 2 | 3 | T | |
| Flyers | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 |
| Bruins | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Scoring Summary
1st Period
- PHI Travis Konecny (3, 13:12)
- PHI Jake Voracek (1, 19:49)
2nd Period
- PHI Brandon Manning (1, 4:51)
- PHI Wayne Simmonds (1, 8:46)
3rd Period
- BOS David Krejci (1, :48)
- PHI Sean Couturier (1, 4:06)
