HIGHLIGHTS
- Tyson Foerster scored the lone shootout goal as the Flyers beat the Hurricanes 3-2 to clinch a playoff berth for the first time since 2020
- Matvei Michkov and Trevor Zegras scored in regulation to erase a 2-0 deficit before Dan Vladar shut the door in the shootout
- Watch the highlights and see the celebration below
The Philadelphia Flyers are back in the playoffs. For the first time since 2020, the orange and black are postseason bound after a 3-2 shootout win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Monday night at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
Tyson Foerster buried the only goal of the shootout in the fourth round. Dan Vladar then stopped Alexander Nikishin to seal it, threw his arms in the air and waited for the mob of teammates to swarm him at center ice.
The Flyers were down 2-0 before they even got going. Bradly Nadeau and the Hurricanes controlled the early action, but Philadelphia clawed back in the second period.
Denver Barkey sent a cross-ice pass to Matvei Michkov at the left circle. Michkov ripped it past Brandon Bussi for his 19th goal of the season to cut the lead to 2-1. Trevor Zegras tied it on the power play later in the period, and the building came alive.
Neither team could break through in the third or overtime, sending it to a shootout.
Check out the full game highlights below:
Foerster’s goal was a fitting cap to a comeback story within a comeback story. He had surgery on his right arm in December and wasn’t expected back until May. Instead, he returned on April 2 and delivered the biggest goal of the Flyers’ season 11 days later.
After Vladar’s final save, the entire team poured over the boards. Players mobbed each other near the crease while fans roared. The Flyers skated to center ice and raised their sticks to a packed crowd that hasn’t seen a home playoff series since 2018.
The Flyers posted a not-so-subtle hint on X before the final buzzer:
Philadelphia finishes with a 42-27-12 record and locked up third place in the Metropolitan Division. That sets up a first-round matchup with the Pittsburgh Penguins, a rivalry that needs no introduction.
Carolina rested several key players for this one, sitting Sebastian Aho, Andrei Svechnikov, Seth Jarvis, captain Jordan Staal, Jaccob Slavin and Shayne Gostisbehere. The Hurricanes had already clinched first in the Eastern Conference and were playing out the string.
The NHL also had its eye on the final stretch of the regular season:
The Stanley Cup Playoffs begin Saturday, April 18. The Flyers and Penguins haven’t met in the postseason since 2018. This one should be electric.
