The Philadelphia Flyers will try to respond from an embarrassing game that resulted in their coach being suspended.
Not only were the Flyers dismantled 7-0 by the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday, coach John Tortorella was ejected from the game. The NHL suspended Tortorella for two games and fined him $50,000.
Tortorella will not be behind the bench when the Flyers host the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday.
Tortorella was given a bench minor for being on the ice and a game misconduct at 10:49 of the first period after vehemently arguing a penalty. He refused to leave the bench in a timely manner. Associate coach Brad Shaw replaced him for the remainder of the game.
“It’s an emotional game at times, and we all get elevated blood pressure. It’s just part of the game,” Shaw said. “That’s not why the game didn’t turn out our way.”
Garnet Hathaway had a game-high eight hits, the only real positive aspect from that game for the Flyers.
Goaltender Samuel Ersson gave up four goals on 15 shots and backup Felix Sandstrom didn’t fare much better.
“I thought they won some battles,” Hathaway said of the Lightning. “The power-play net front is one we win a lot and that’s two in the back of the net. We’re clawing back early on. It was 4-0 in the first 10 minutes, it’s tough … but I thought we stuck together. We’ve got to put it behind us.”
The Flyers only had five defensemen available because Egor Zamula was a late scratch with an illness. Zamula’s status is unclear for the game against the Sharks.
The Sharks had lost nine in a row before defeating the Ottawa Senators 2-1 on Saturday.
Thomas Bordeleau scored both goals on the power play and he has three goals in the last two games.
It’s been a fast rise for Bordeleau, who was only called up from the American Hockey League on Wednesday. Before that call-up, he had last played in the league on Oct. 26.
Mikael Granlund recorded two assists and goaltender Magnus Chrona made 31 saves for his first career victory.
Chrona’s stellar play gave the Sharks their first win since Feb. 15.
“Just joy, something I dreamt of my entire life,” Chrona said of getting his first win. “… I think the guys played great in front of me.”
Despite the maddening season filled with injuries and losses, the Sharks must move forward to the very end.
“It’s a 20-game season,” Quinn said. “It’s been a tough go here the last 48 hours. But there should be relief, too, that there’s clarity and there’s certainty of who’s here and you know what you have to do. Careers are on the line. People watch and people evaluate, you can’t unsee what you see. You don’t get a redo, so you better come out ready to play.”
When the teams met on Nov. 7 in California, Anthony Duclair and William Eklund scored to help the Sharks take a 2-1 victory. Duclair since has been traded to Tampa Bay, but Eklund has 10 goals and 20 assists in his first full NHL season.
–Field Level Media
