It’s rare for an NHL coach to enter the Lenovo Center to face the Carolina Hurricanes feeling confident about the game, but Philadelphia Flyers coach John Tortorella is known for being a distinct personality in the league.
He tends to be straightforward in his comments. Before Tuesday’s matchup against the Hurricanes—who had won six in a row—Tortorella spoke about the positive discussions and practices his team had undergone, stating that facing the Canes felt like “good timing.” Unfortunately for him, his instincts proved incorrect. Although the Flyers played well, the Hurricanes secured a 6-4 victory, thanks to Martin Necas, who scored the go-ahead goal with just 30.2 seconds left in regulation. Necas, who also provided an assist, extended his point streak to seven games by scoring during a scramble in front of the Flyers’ net. The Canes showed patience in the Flyers’ zone, with Jesperi Kotkaniemi taking a shot from the top of the slot, leading to the puck bouncing past two Flyers players right to Necas.
Seth Jarvis later secured an empty-net goal, marking Carolina’s (9-2-0) seventh consecutive win. “Oh, my God, I think I made about 50 cutbacks in just two or three shifts,” Necas remarked. “We had some solid zone time, and on the last play, I passed it too early and glanced at the Jumbotron, noticing there were only 34 seconds left. I thought, ‘Oh boy, we might have to go to overtime.’ I was exhausted, but thankfully it went in. Good teams find a way to win, and that’s what we did today.” For the Flyers, Travis Konecny recorded two goals and two assists, with his second goal tying the game at 4-4 with 10:43 left in the third period. Jack Roslovic scored just 29 seconds later, putting the Canes ahead 4-3 at 1:47 in the third.
Roslovic took advantage of an empty net after Sebastian Aho drove to the goal and quickly set him up for his seventh goal in 11 games. This came after the Flyers’ Morgan Frost barely managed to nudge the puck across the goal line into an open net, resulting in a slow-moving tie at 3-3. That night also featured Canes rookie Jackson Blake scoring his fourth goal of the season, while Eric Robinson and Jordan Martinook each found the net within 54 seconds during the second period, giving Carolina a 3-1 lead.
The game featured goalies Pyotr Kochetkov for the Hurricanes and Aleksei Kolosov for the Flyers. Kochetkov, making his fourth straight start, faced 16 shots—only six of which came in the final two periods—while Kolosov dealt with 34 shots in his third NHL appearance. “I don’t think we were at our best,” Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour commented. “That was probably the first game this season where I didn’t like our performance in the first period. It was clear we were a bit off. However, in the second and third periods, we didn’t give up many chances. It felt a little off, but a few players stepped up and pulled us into the fight… Marty Necas really took charge towards the end.
Sometimes, you have to win games like that.” Andrei Svechnikov and Jordan Staal both committed penalties in the first period, giving the Flyers a 5-on-3 power play, which they capitalized on when Konecny tapped in a rebound from rookie Matvei Michkov’s shot. After killing Staal’s penalty, the Canes scored from their fourth line, with Blake receiving a no-look pass from Jack Drury after defenseman Dmitry Orlov sent the puck to Drury. Blake’s goal marked his fourth of the season. “I spotted him out of the corner of my eye,” Drury noted. The Canes then scored twice within 54 seconds in the second period to take a 3-1 lead, with Robinson and Martinook finding the net. Robinson’s second goal of the season came on a rush from a precise pass by Necas. Martinook added his first of the season by fighting through defenseman Emil Andrae and backhanding the puck past Kolosov. Later in the second period, the Flyers’ Owen Tippett narrowed the score to 3-2 with a sharp shot from the left circle that beat Kochetkov. Tippett, who typically performs well against the Canes, netted his second goal of the season after keeping a clearing attempt from Jaccob Slavin in the zone and then receiving a pass from Konecny as he approached the net.
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