Trevor Zegras had two goals and an assist in regulation, then got the only score in the shootout to give the Philadelphia Flyers a 6-5 win against the St. Louis Blues on Friday night.
Christian Dvorak also had two goals and an assist, and Owen Tippett had a goal and three assists for the Flyers. Samuel Ersson finished with 12 saves as Philadelphia extended its point streak to 3-0-2 and improved to 6-2-2 in its last 10 games.
Robert Thomas, Jimmy Snuggerud and Jordan Kyrou each had a goal and an assist, and Justin Faulk and Jimmy Holloway also scored for the Blues, who have a four-game point streak (2-0-2). Cam Fowler had two assists and Jordan Binnington stopped 25 shots.
After Thomas failed to score on the Blues’ first attempt ofhe tiebreaker, Zegras scored on the Flyers’ first try. Ersson then denied attempts by Snuggerud and Holloway to preserve the win.
The Flyers outshot the Blues 5-1 in the scoreless overtime.
Holloway put the Blues ahead 4-3 — their third lead of the night — 40 seconds into the third period with a shot from the left circle. It gave him a goal in three straight games.
Thomas’ one-timer from between the circles gave St. Louis its second two-goal lead of the night at 4:56.
Dvorak again pulled the Flyers back within one from between the circles at 7:53, and Tippett tied it 5-5 from the high slot with 9:31 remaining.
Faulk’s one-timer off a feed from Fowler went over Ersson’s blocker to push the Blues’ lead to 3-1 at 6:54 of the second.
Dvorak knocked in a loose puck from the right side of the goal 23 seconds later to pull the Flyers back within one.
Zegras got his second of the night with 1:36 remaining in the middle period to tie it 3-3.
Kyrou got the Blues on the scoreboard 1:19 into the game, taking the puck from Zegras on the right side near the red line and skating in and beating Ersson from the right circle.
Zegras tied it at 8:18 of the first, scoring from the inside edge of the right circle on a rush.
Snuggerud put the Blues ahead 2-1 at 9:42 as he got a pass from Thomas in the slot and fired it past Ersson.
The milestones just keep rolling for Detroit Red Wings forward Patrick Kane, a first-ballot future Hall of Fame player who is also widely regarded as the best United States-born forward in NHL history.
With an assist during Thursday evening’s 6-3 victory over the Anaheim Ducks, Kane became just the 31st player in NHL history to reach 1,350 career points, and is now immediately in the rear view mirror on the records of Guy Lafleur and Brendan Shanahan on the NHL’s all-time points list.
“I didn’t know if 1,350 was a milestone or a number, or why it was being put up there,” Kane said with a smile.
Oh, and it won’t be long before Kane notches his 500th career goal, as he’s currently at 494 tallies and counting.
During Thursday’s game, Kane’s latest accomplishment was displayed on the scoreboard to roaring cheers from the sold-out crowd. However, Kane admitted after Friday’s practice that he wasn’t initially sure why he was being shown.
“I didn’t know if 1,350 was a milestone or a number, or why it was being put up there,” Kane said with a smile.
Throughout NHL history, several high-profile Hall of Fame players have hailed from the United States, and Kane is at the top of the list among active players who fit that description.
As a native of Buffalo, Kane grew up watching players like Pat Lafontaine skate for the Sabres while also admiring the likes of Mike Modano and Chris Chelios.
“I like (Pat) Lafontaine, Modano, Chris Chelios, a huge fan of him on and off the ice, just a complete warrior,” Kane said. “I didn’t like him so much when we were going against him and he was cross-checking me in the back, but he’s become a great friend and he’s probably the guy who’s the best American player of all time, and I definitely look up to those guys. “
Becoming one of the greatest U.S.-born NHL players wasn’t something that Kane initially thought of when he first started becoming active in hockey, but it’s not something he takes for granted.
“I was just a young kid from Buffalo who tried to play hockey and enjoy it, and maybe try and get a college scholarship,” he said. “As time goes on, you get opportunities and take advantage of playing in different situations, stepping into good opportunities, you get chances to do some pretty special things. I’m pretty fortunate with that.”