RALEIGH, N.C. – Against a team as quick as Carolina, it only takes a lapse or two to wind up on the short end of the score.
That pretty much summed up Game 1 of the Flyers-Hurricanes series on Saturday night.
Two of the three Carolina goals came off Flyer misplays and that was enough for a 3-0 win over Philadelphia at Lenovo Center.
Logan Stankoven scored twice for the winners and goaltender Frederik Andersen was hardly tested by the limited number of shots (19) the Flyers put on him.
Game 2 is scheduled for Monday, 7 p.m. at Lenovo Center.
The Flyers got off to a horrible start. Carolina had a 2-0 lead just 7:30 after the opening faceoff.
Flyers captain Sean Couturier said the Flyers knew what the speedy ‘Canes were going to do but just couldn’t do enough to stop them.
“We know the way they play,” Couturier said. “But I think they were just hungrier than us.”
Couturier looked like one of the few Flyers who came to play.
In fact, coach Rick Tocchet thought his best player was rookie Denver Barkey, which said something about a number of other players with much more experience.
“We didn’t win enough one-on-one battles,” Couturier said. “They won the 50-50 races. That’s what happens. Give them a lot of momentum and you’ve got to find a way to get it back.”
Tocchet was aware the Hurricanes would be coming with the pedal to the medal. His team just wasn’t quite ready for that all-out approach.
“I think early on, we talked about it but we just didn’t live it on the ice,” Tocchet said. “We weren’t quick enough for their speed. Our reaction was a little bit slow.
“It was a good baptism to how our players are going to have to play. Got to play with some quickness and reactionary time. That’s how you have to play against this team.”
Stankoven broke through at the 1:31 mark of the first period when he tipped Mike Reilly’s shot past goaltender Dan Vladar.
Then Jackson Blake made it 2-0 when he eluded defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen outside the red line, raced in and put a short through the Flyer goaltender.
Philadelphia could muster only one shot through the first 15 minutes and none of the total of four offered a real threat on Andersen.
A Noah Juulsen turnover led to Carolina’s third goal at 16:16 of the second. Juulsen attempted an ill-advised pass in the Flyer zone. That was blocked and Stankoven had no problem getting a point-blank shot past Vladar.
Travis Konecny said his team started to up its tempo in the second half of the game but by then it was almost too late.
“I thought we didn’t come out with our best game,” Konecny said. “We have plenty more (games), so just flush it, regroup and know what to expect now.”
The slow start created a big problem for the Flyers.
“It’s the first time, they come hard and you expect it,” Noah Cates said. “We settled in but you can’t have a lapse like that in a playoff game.”
Cates hopes the Flyers can respond with a better effort in Monday night’s Game 2.
“Kind of playing like the last half of the game (in Game 1),” Cates said. “Getting in on the forecheck, holding onto pucks a little bit better. They’ll come hard in Game 2. We’ll have to weather the storm a little bit quicker. Get to our game a little bit quicker.”
>Tippett out
Although Owen Tippett took part in the morning skate, he was a scratch for Game 1. No updates about his condition were provided, not even if the injury (or injuries) are upper- or lower-body in nature.
Tippett is listed as day-to-day and could be a possibility for Game 2.
>Zegras faceoff situation
Tocchet decided to move Trevor Zegras back to center earlier this season and one issue that has created involves faceoffs. To be blunt, he was terrible at the start. He’s improved but that situation still needs work.
“He really struggled, especially on power-play faceoffs for a while,” Tocchet said at the morning skate. “I honestly don’t know what his percentage is now (entering Game 1 vs. Carolina it was 21-29, 42 percent).
>York’s rare feat
When Flyers defenseman Cam York scored in sudden-death overtime the other night to eliminate Pittsburgh, he became just the third NHL backliner since stats began back in 1943-44 to achieve that feat.
The others: Vancouver’s Chris Tanov in 2020 and Pittsburgh’s Brooks Orpik in 2013.
York also became the ninth Flyer to score his first career playoff goal in the Penguin series.
The others: Trevor Zegras, Porter Martone, Cates, Denver Barkey, Alex Bump, Jamie Drysdale, Rasmus Ristolainen and Nick Seeler.
>Short shots
The remainder of the schedule for the series:
Game 3: Thursday, at Philadelphia, 8 p.m.
Game 4: Saturday, at Philadelphia, 6 p.m.
Game 5: Monday, May 11, at Carolina, TBD.
Game 6: Wednesday, May 13, at Philadelphia, TBD.
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