Latest / Hattrick's Unofficial Flyers Podcast / Episode 22: FLYERS WIN GAME ONE | Apr 19, 2026
Transcript
- Rick Mullen: Hey Flyers fans, welcome to Hatrix Unofficial Flyers podcast. We are gonna talk today about the Philadelphia Flyers playoff game, game one versus the Pittsburgh Penguins. Boo. I was pumped for this game. It's been such a long time. The Flyers haven't been in the playoffs for a while. for a long time. remember being young and being pumped up and like looking forward to this game all week and you know, making this playoff this year, I felt I didn't realize how badly I missed it. I've been looking forward to this game for days. These days drug by until this game came on last night. You know, our family made the best of it. We put a TV outside. We hung some orange lights. We had some good food. We had a fire pit going. It was it was a great time. really nice to be back in the playoffs and be looking forward to where it's a game and watching that game I say was so much fun. It was just so much fun. you don't know what you're getting. Fires haven't been there forever. We got a team of rookies. ⁓ There are the Boo. They're a team full of seasoned vets. ⁓ some most like or three of them, four of them going to the hall of fame. You didn't know what was going to happen ⁓ and what we hope was going to happen. You know, did the Flyers win? I mean, the Flyers pull off game one win in Pittsburgh against the Penguins. Boo. And they and they get a win. Game one. What a game. You know, let's talk about it. Flyers win three to two. Let's go over some stats. So. Philadelphia Flyers had 20 shots to the Pittsburgh Penguins, 17, 17. Pittsburgh Penguins were limited to 17 shots last night. That just goes and shows how dominant Tokets defensive system is and how bought in this player, these players on the flyers are to this system. They played a really, really good game last night defensively and it showed in that not only the stats, but on the ice, it was frustrating the Penguins. They couldn't do what they normally do. And it was great to see. because I know normally we're sitting there watching the penguins get shot after shot after shot after shot. And if our goalie saves it, you're still on the edge of your seat biting your fingernails thinking, man, it's just a matter of time before these pucks go in. But it wasn't like that last night. Maybe little spurts here and there, but it wasn't like that. The flyers really, I think, did really well, really well. And these kids showed up big. if they were nervous, they might have felt it maybe in the beginning of the game. But as that game went by, they didn't look at, they really didn't. They, they, did everything they could. They took care of business. They played hard. They fought through checks. They fought in corners. They threw a couple bodies here and there. ⁓ And, they, the game turned much better than ⁓ expected. The Flyers win three to two. I thought they were going to drop the first game in Pittsburgh for these kids to get used to. ⁓ how intense the series would be, but they didn't. They won. I called the Flyers in five last episode. I'm still sticking with that. Flyers in five. So hopefully we get this out of our way, this first game, and we even play better and these kids play better. Let's go to hits. So Flyers had 40 hits, the Pittsburgh's 41. And this surprised me. This really did. This 41 hits that the Penguins threw. Surprised me, you know, I knew they threw some hits, you know, you seen them out there throwing a couple hits but Almost this whole entire game. It looked like the Flyers were dominating in hits. There were big hits across the board by Garnet Hathaway Sean Keturion, we're gonna talk about him in a little bit ⁓ Tip it you saw everybody on the flyers really thrown sealer throwing some hits rat rest Risto throwing some hits, I was really surprised I thought the Flyers out hit the Penguins by a lot I can't believe at the end of that game. It's 41 hits to Pittsburgh and 40 for the Flyers So just goes to show not all hits look like hits Penalty minutes Pittsburgh Penguins have 10 to Phillies 8 and The Penguins sure as heck tried to make the Flyers have more So we'll talk about that in a minute too on the face off that the Penguins dominated They had a 59.2 % on the faceoff dot to the flyers 40.8%. So definitely some work to do there. We've got to win a few more of these faceoff, especially in their zones. ⁓ You could tell like we needed a win on a faceoff and we couldn't get it. So that hurts a little bit at times, especially on power plays. When you're in their end, you need to win it and create some pressure on the net. starting this game, know, puck drops, game starts. And I got to tell you, Sean Couturier is he took this game and said, you know what? I am leading this team out here on this ice and I am going to set the tone for how this game's going to go. And Sean Couturier was incredible. He went out there and he was laying people out, laying them out. I'm telling you, I haven't seen Sean Couturier play this good in forever. basically say, guys, we got this. And he went out there and he was laying people out. He was throwing not just checks, but he was throwing hard, hard checks. Almost every check he threw, he knocked the guy down, ⁓ knocked him down. He was laying people out and you could tell he got under all the Penguins players, you know, through that game. you start seeing Crosby lose his mind. Like he's pissed off. He's cross checking Katori in the back. He doesn't even have a puck. He's just sitting there waiting, looking up the ice and Sydney Crybaby is standing behind him, cross checking him over and over and over again. know, Coots bid a little bit. He took a little dive real quick. So he absolutely embellished, but you know, no call came down. But... It worked, know, Katori a hitting like that definitely worked. I hope the God that Katori can do, ⁓ three, more games, whatever it takes to win this series, playing that exact same way and not wear himself out or get hurt. So I'm not going to would ⁓ I'm I'm praying he can continue to play that strong every series here. ⁓ The what a dirty bunch of players. ⁓ I watched them years ago when they were at their prime and I used to scream at my TV because they were such cry babies. They would take dives and embellishments and they would punch people or hook them or stab them with a stick and then pretend that they didn't do anything. And the flyers would always get a penalty on it. They never got called. The penguins never got called. And a little bit of that stuff surfaced last night. You you got Malkin like starting crap and you know, he gets cross-checked a little bit in response. I it was at Seeler, believe. Cross-checked some a little bit in response and Malkin grabs his arm and he goes down and he's like, you know, bending over like he's in terrible pain and there was no call. Thank God the refs didn't, you know, bite into that one. And when he was done faking it, he like looked up and looked around the ice to see if any of the refs were looking at him. Then he got off the ice and went to the bench. I mean, they're just dirty, dirty people, man. Then they're going into corners and here's the new one. Hopefully the NHL starts getting this right. ⁓ who was it? Crosby, Crosby. Crosby goes in the corner with Jamie Drysdale ⁓ and goes and pushes Jamie Drysdale's head down ⁓ and ripping his helmet off, throws it to the ice. There's zero call, zero call by the refs, none. Nothing was called. I'm screaming at the TV because I know like Drysdale is going to get a penalty because instead of picking up, you're not allowed to play without a helmet. You have to go right to the bench and replace your helmet. But instead of doing that, Drysdale keeps playing and he's looking at the refs with his hands up in the air like call something here. And the refs didn't do it. And Jamie refused to go to the bench. So he kept playing. And I think Bush was on TV saying, ⁓ he's got to go to the bench. He's got to go to the bench. He's going to get a penalty. And then the refs blow the whistle. And, the three of them get together and they start talking and they come back and, thank God they gave Jamie Drysdale two for playing without his helmet. And they do give Crosby two for ripping the helmet off, which in days past they might not have. They would let Crosby get away with it. So it was nice to see him hold him accountable. But later on in that game, I think it was Manta. Manta did the same thing. He ripped somebody's helmet off and they try to get away with it a second time, but they called a penalty that time just on Manta. So I'm pretty sure it was Manta. But they're dirty. Any edge they can get, they're trying to get. And it said, play straight up, throw big hits, skate hard. If you win, you win. If you lose, you lose. No, they can't go down that way. Crosby got a penalty late in the game, which was good. That was the one we were just talking about. And there was like what, two minutes left in the game and he was in the box at the end of the game. So he wasn't on the ice to try to help the Penguins tie this up. So ⁓ it was nice that they him accountable. But you can see the Penguins were very upset. They started losing their mind. They were getting frustrated. I don't think they can handle the fact that a bunch of kids went in there and whooped them last night. And it was really cool to see, really cool to see. So let's go over to scoring. We went through that first period. We had no goals. Nothing was there. It was a good, tight game. You know, I think every, every team got some chances and it was tight. So going in at the end of the first, I was like, okay, this is good. We're not down. We're not up. So that's not great, but we're not down either. It's It's a tie still, and that got maybe some of the jitters out of the kids legs. We get into the second period. we play almost half ⁓ at 919 mark. ⁓ Jamie he scores one from ⁓ Trevor Zegress and Denver Barkey. ⁓ Went down to the side. There was a little screen in front ⁓ and, Drysdale throws it through at the net and goes right through the five hole and ⁓ beat Skinner ⁓ and the place, You could hear the Flyers fans that were there erupted. It was really nice. Flyers erupt. That was Jamie Drysdale first NHL playoff goal. ⁓ And believe in his first NHL ⁓ playoff game. Really cool for him. He was pumped. So we go a little bit deeper into the second period. We're at the 1551 mark. ⁓ And course, Sevangie Malkin, ⁓ one the most hated players by the Flyers fans. He comes down the side, he throws a shot on that and it goes ice saw right side wide and beats beats a Vlidar. And that was assisted by what Tommy Novak and Ricard Rashid, Rackle Raquel. So now we're tied 1-1 and the end of the second and still tie game. We're not down. This is a good thing. You know, these kids are hanging and we get into the third period halfway through the third at the 10. minute mark. Travis Sennheim gets a pass out to the front from Risto and he makes this little move. He goes around the four checking player ⁓ and he splits two two ⁓ forwards at the and he goes right down the slot. Lo and behold, I think the Tang comes out, but the Tang won't go down and try to block his shot. He kind of turns his body. He hopes he doesn't get hit. ⁓ And Travis Sandheim cuts a little bit to the left, open that goalie up on the one side, throws it to the backside of the net and he scores. And, he goes crazy. Fires are up two to one, 10 minutes left in this game. Then ⁓ 17-23 of the third period. It was kind of a harmless play, a really harmless play. You have Pooner-Martone get to pass from Travis Konekne and Risto. ⁓ and he's going down the right side and the defenseman's matching them like stride for stride. know, Porter wanted to go around him and go towards the net, but he couldn't beat them. The defenseman was just mirroring them. So he goes and he slams on the brakes and he kind of turns or turns right towards the boards. He does a little circle and that's normal. You see like, you know, guys turn right there and throw the puck across the ice or back pass to the blue line. But instead he turns again and he goes right at the net and as soon as he turns, He's got defense right on him in front of him and he rips this wrist shot and I'm talking a absolute missile. He rips this wrist shot. I don't even think his stick's done unbending yet and it's already in the back of the net over Skinner's glove hand. And Skinner's like on the ice, the puck's in the net. I mean, the puck's already by him in the net and he puts his hand up like this and you know, it was already in. Like Skinner didn't see it. It was such a bullet and it had eyes that he hit that top shelf. What a goal. mean, what a goal. know, the stat here for him, it's his NHL debut, 19 year old, which he have 11, 12 games under his belt right now. He comes in his very first NHL playoff game, his debut, and he scores. interesting stat. he's the only teenager in this century. With a game winning goal in his first NHL playoff debut. It's it. Porter Martone. This kid is just setting records and he is only getting started. He's only had 12 games. I think it's what it is. 12 games under his belt. He is going to be such a stud for the Flyers. I can't wait for this kid just to get one off season under his belt. Get a little stronger. Learn how to skate a little better. And he is going to dominate. He's going to dominate for the Flyers. Really is. ⁓ So we go up, Fires go up. It's three to one now. ⁓ there's like three minutes left in the game, less than three minutes left in the game. ⁓ And course, ⁓ Flyers going to make this interesting. ⁓ So forget what player did it, but the Penguins are down on our end. They pull their goalie. They take a little shot from the point which York decides to try to glove down. It hits him in the glove. I think it was like a triple deflection. It hits him in the glove. think it hits one skate, hits the other skate, and then rolls over to Brian Rust, who's in the slot, and Rust blows one past Vildar. And he makes the game 3-2 at the 18.59 mark. So there's a minute and one second left in the third period, the game. Crosby's in the box, believe, at this time, which is great. you're looking at this again thinking, ⁓ my God, this is gonna happen to us, because this always happens to us. The Flyers are gonna end up giving up this goal in the last minute. They're gonna tie, and we're gonna look back at this game thinking, man, we should have won that game, and we're gonna probably lose it in overtime, and that is not what happens. But it came close, it came close. So some of that percentage for that, that face off dots that hurts us, you know, where they're in our end, the penguins are in our end again. They are moving the puck around. Somebody got jumbled up in front. Mr. Player and Manfe with like three seconds left in the game skates from the boards. He's undefended. He comes right off the boards across the slide. right in front of Lidaar throws a backhand, I believe into Lidaar's five hole and somehow Lidaar gets those legs closed. He blocks that thing and deflects the puck into the corner at the three second mark and the Flyers win the game. that we win the game three to two Flyers. Could have went the other way. Definitely could have, but. All in all, the Flyers played really, really good hockey. really did. The kids looked good. Barky played well. Mishkov, I think, didn't play much. He wasn't out there much that I could remember seeing. So if he was out there, he didn't get ⁓ much playing time probably. he did make a mistake on that. I think that first goal that they gave up, he lost the puck at the blue line on a power play. ⁓ He had some problems last night. The other kids looked good. They definitely looked good. The Flyers had like three or four breakaways that game too. know, they had some opportunities. Chunkatourie did, I Tippett did. ⁓ They had some opportunities and they hit some posts. They shot wide and Skinner made a couple of good saves. you know, if they could just maybe picked off one or two of those goals, the Flyers win five to two maybe, right? So they had their chances. They had their chances. They hung with the big boys. They outshot the big boys and they did really well. So great, great game. Really good to see Tocket system. know, Tocket went in there and he stuck to a game plan and this team bought into it. And you know, it infuriated this plan and infuriated Crosby and infuriated Malkin. It's just going to be a lot harder of a series than I think that they both felt that this was going to be. And it was really good to see the Flyers actually hang with the Penguins. not just beat them because they were out. and got lucky with goals. know, did. Penguins did not outplay the Flyers. I think the Flyers outplayed them for the majority of the game. They had a lot of two on ones. They had a lot of breakaways. They just couldn't score. You know, the worst bits and pieces of this game where the Penguins actually, outplayed us, in the second. Definitely there were times and at the end of the game when they were up a player, they definitely outplayed us. But only for little pieces of the game. think the overall game, the full 60 minutes, I think the Flyers went at the Penguins a lot harder than the Penguins went at the Flyers and they just couldn't score. So great win, three to two Flyers, game one's down. Right now I'm happy with that. We got a win in Pittsburgh. Again, I thought they were gonna split the series up there. I thought they were gonna lose the first one, win the second one. So I'll take this first one. That's fantastic. Let's hope they can win again on Monday night and come home with a two to nothing lead. But this is a game that the Flyers set the tone and it was led by Sean Koutouriel. You kudos to Sean Koutouriel. He went out there. He's the Flyers captain. And he said, guys, get on my back. This is how we're playing this game. And he went out there and he was playing hard. He was banging in corners. He was for checking. He was hitting everything that moved. He back checked and buried it was a China car or something like that. I forget how you say his name. He buried him like send him sound a few feet and it was such a such a good good good appearance by showing Keturri and this is what we need from him every game. He did have a opportunity to score a goal to he went across the crease. He deep down Skinner. He went real far wide and threw a bat cam but you he missed but it was there the opportunity was there so. Fantastic game by a lot of the flyers, a lot of the flyers. There's a couple that need to step up for the next one, you know, and contribute. Mavie Mishkov needs to be seen a little bit more. TK needs to be seen a little more. Everyone else looked pretty darn good. So I'm excited to get the game too on Monday. I like the system so far that Taukit's got. Like I said, he had a game plan. He told his team this is what we're doing. The team bought into it. And they played hard and stuck to their game plan and they came out of Pittsburgh with the win tonight. So we will do another episode after Monday night's game. Please like, follow, subscribe. We're on YouTube, Spotify and Apple. We have a Facebook account. Find us, likes and subscribe, please. Any questions, concerns, topics that you want to talk about? We have a mailbag. It's hatrixpodcast99 at gmail.com. Looking forward to hear from you guys and go Flyers.