The Philadelphia Flyers secured a 4-3 shootout victory over the New Jersey Devils in their final preseason game on Saturday at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Trevor Zegras scored the deciding goal in the shootout, with Travis Konecny also converting.
The Devils opened the scoring late in the first period when Kevin Rooney redirected an Ethan Edwards shot, assisted by Austin Strand. The Flyers responded before intermission as Travis Sanheim finished a setup from Jett Luchanko, with Nikita Grebenkin assisting.
Early in the second period, New Jersey regained the lead with a power play goal from Lenni Hameenaho, set up by Shane Lachance and Calen Addison. The Flyers answered on their own power play when Matvei Michkov retrieved a rebound and found Konecny for a goal at 7:47.
In the third period, Paul Cotter put New Jersey ahead 3-2 after Arseny Gritsyuk’s effort behind the net. With just over two minutes left, Philadelphia called timeout and used an extra attacker; Konecny scored his second of the game to tie it at 18:07, assisted by Jamie Drysdale and Sanheim.
Overtime saw New Jersey gain a man advantage following a tripping penalty to Drysdale, but neither team scored. The game proceeded to a shootout where Zegras and Konecny secured the win for Philadelphia.
Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet rotated all four forward lines and three defensive pairs throughout regulation, giving every player significant ice time in this preseason finale. Goaltender Dan Vladar started for Philadelphia and made key saves early, including stopping a shorthanded 2-on-1 opportunity for New Jersey.
Philadelphia outshot New Jersey 37-25 during the game. On special teams, the Flyers went 1-for-3 on power plays and killed one of two penalties faced. The second power play unit was particularly effective, contributing to one of the team’s goals.
Both teams had opportunities during a brief stretch of four-on-four play late in the second period but were unable to score. The Flyers’ adaptation to Tocchet’s box plus one defensive system was evident as they worked effectively out of their zone at even strength.
Konecny led all scorers with two goals in regulation while new addition Vladar completed his first preseason campaign with Philadelphia.
