Samuel Ersson Returns, Matvei Michkov Still Sits as Flyers Fall to Panthers in Shootout

Apparently there’s something about shootouts in Florida.

The Flyers lost to the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers tonight 4-3, but not before collecting another point. Despite the loss, there were a lot of positives to take away from this game, as well as the Florida series as a whole, where Philly walked away with three points.

The Flyers were the first on the board when Joel Farabee beat former Flyer Sergei Bobrovsky early in the first period. This would be the only goal scored by either team in the first period, with Samuel Ersson making his return to the team with a perfect 10 saves on 10 shots to start the game.

The second period would not be as kind for Ersson though, as the Panthers would only get seven shots off the whole period but still scored three goals. The second goal, scored by Dmitry Kulikov, was the subject of some controversy as the Flyers seemed to believe that the puck had hit the netting after bouncing off the skate of Philly defenseman Nick Seeler before Kulikov scored off the rebound. If this is true it should have resulted in a penalty for the Flyers, but the play would have been blown dead before the goal would have been scored. Nothing was called, however, so the goal stood.

Anthony Richard would also score for Philly in the middle of Florida’s second-period barrage for his first goal as a Flyer, leaving the score at 3-2 heading into the third.

the third period was virtually the same as the first, with the Flyers scoring once as the only point for the entire 20 minutes, leaving the score tied at 3-3 to end regulation.

For the second game in a row, the Flyers would go to overtime, and for the second game in a row, it would not be enough to determine a winner. Unlike the Lightning game though, this shootout would be a much more drawn-out affair.

10 total skaters would be required to determine a winner, with the Panthers’ Evan Rodrigues finally delivering the killing blow. Even with the loss, this was a hard-fought battle against a much more talented opponent and the Flyers’ effort is to be commended.

On a less positive note, Matvei Michkov was a healthy scratch for the second straight game of this Florida trip. One game isn’t much to worry about, and should honestly be expected of a rookie every now and again, regardless of how talented you are. However, two games in a row do raise a few eyebrows, especially in a game where you could strongly benefit from Michkov’s offensive contributions.

It is not surprising to see John Tortorella do something like this, after all this is the same man who was regularly scratching the team’s captain, Sean Couturier, at the end of last season. Even so, this is a much more delicate situation with Michkov, especially when you consider how he is interpreting the situation with the language barrier that exists for the Russian-speaking rookie. The last thing you would want is to upset the player who is poised to be the face of the Flyers’ future. If he doesn’t see any ice time for a third straight game, especially considering the opponent, it may be time to start worrying about this entire situation.

The Flyers will return home for a Monday night game against the San Jose Sharks at 7:00 pm EST. The game can be watched on NBC Sports Philadelphia.

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