Flyers Turn Sabres Mistakes Into Goals And Set The Tone Physically in 5-2 Win
Dec 3, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Buffalo Sabres goaltender Colten Ellis (92) reacts after allowing goal during the first period against the Philadelphia Flyers at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
Off the heels of one of the most hurtful losses so far this season, a 5-1 loss to the interstate rival Pittsburgh Penguins at home, the Flyers opened the doors and welcomed in the Buffalo Sabres to try and bounce back and prove that Monday was a bump in the road. Buffalo has been up and down all season, but fresh off a 5-1 thumping of the Winnipeg Jets, they had to feel a level of momentum coming into tonight’s game.
From the drop of the puck, the Sabres showed that they were ready to get off to the races. 4 minutes into the game, the Flyers were on the power play, which has been a strength of the Flyers this season, but in this case, they gave up a goal from them not clearing a puck and allowing Josh Doan to put the puck on the stick of Jason Zucker, who shot the puck past Samuel Ersson to score the opening goal.
The thing about the Flyers, though, is that they are such a tough, gritty team that they rarely let one goal early on scare them, and tonight was no exception. At the 8-minute mark, there was an offensive explosion where the Flyers scored 3 goals in a matter of 59 seconds. This is something that they have done a few times this season, but tonight it was the Flyers taking advantage of the Sabres making mistakes, particularly with turnovers in the Flyers’ zone.
Travis Konecny scored his 6th on the power play, 23 seconds later, on another power play, Trevor Zegras scored his 10th, and 21 seconds later, Bobby Brink scored his 7th. Because they were all on the same shift, they all got in on the assists of the other goals. Of course, Travis Sanheim, Matvei Michkov, and Nikita Grebenkin got in on the assists too, but they all played well, forced Buffalo into mistakes, and took advantage of every opportunity given.
Perhaps the prettiest goal of the night was scored by Owen Tippett, who took a beauty of a feed from Michkov and stuck with it to almost will the puck past Colten Ellis by tapping it out of the air for the 5th Flyers goal of the night
This made the game 5-2, which is ultimately where it ended, after a good coach’s challenge erased Zach Benson‘s first goal of the season, when he failed to enter the zone onside before the goal. A hard-fought win after a bad loss to the Penguins has to feel good for this Flyers team. They are 9-3-2 over their last 14 games, and this is Ersson’s first win in regulation this season.
We’re 26 games into the season, and if you had told me as last season was winding down that the Flyers would be 15-8-3, I would have taken it. Don’t get me wrong, I am very happy with how the Flyers have progressed this season. They are one of the best teams in the NHL at coming back from an early disadvantage. This is something that the Flyers have done quite a bit this season, which shows that they feel like they are never out of any game and believe in each other. With the age of the team, this is a very positive thing to see.
What is great to see is hearing what the national broadcast teams think of the Flyers, and they said it very well. This Flyers squad believes in each other, and they are never afraid to get physical. This was very obvious by the way that the team responded to an ugly and scary boarding play when Rasmus Dahlin pushed Zegras into the boards, and every player in an orange jersey swarmed Dahlin behind the net. Dahlin was assessed a 5-minute major and game misconduct, which cost the Sabres his services for the rest of the game.
There was also chippiness before the game, which spilled into the contest between Josh Dunne and Nicolas Deslauriers, but that was diffused quickly. Needless to say, any time Buffalo started to get physical, the Flyers answered.
The biggest difference is that the Flyers kept the self-inflicted wounds to a minimum, whereas Buffalo let the wheels come off in spurts, and the Flyers showed that you can’t give them chances.
What Daniel Briere and Rick Tocchet have built is a culture and a team that has gelled in a way that we haven’t seen in a very long time. Proof of this is that, according to both Tocchet and Zegras, after the game, Tyson Foerster was in the locker room high-fiving his teammates, 2 days after he suffered an upper body injury that will sideline him 2-3 months. He’s hurt, but in the locker room with the boys. You have to love the way these guys get after it for each other.
On a bit of a concerning note, defenseman Cam York was noticeably absent after the scrum, which resulted from the Dahlin hit on Zegras in the second period. He quietly left the ice and bench and did not return for the third period with an upper-body injury, according to Tocchet. The extent of the injury isn’t known yet, but this could be a big blow with the Flyers’ next opponent being the team that has, hands down, been the best team in the NHL this season, the Colorado Avalanche, who are 19-1-6.
There is some time, with that game on Sunday in South Philly. Let’s hope that York doesn’t miss an extended period of time because his zone play and space management are going to be critical against the Avalanche. They will be coming in on the heels of a back-to-back, which may level the playing surface a bit, but without York, that will tilt the ice back Colorado’s way. Losing two young players in back-to-back games is not sustainable for any team, especially for a Flyers team that needs everyone playing to be successful.
Steve Hamilton
Steve may have been born in California, but don’t let that fool you. After dating a local woman and clashing with her and her family over sports for decades, he has an affinity for Philly sports. Balancing love for Philly and Bay Area sports teams may seem impossible, we can all agree that the Cowboys are the true evil.
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