The short-handed Philadelphia Flyers skated into Denver for a matchup with the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday night, and played decently well, but nowhere near well enough to beat one of the best teams in the league.
Missing Travis Konecny, Oskar Lindblom, and Philippe Myers, Philly loaded up its top line, combining Claude Giroux, Sean Couturier, and Jake Voracek to match against the league’s third leading scorer, Nathan MacKinnon.
G, Jake, and Couts controlled play in their time against Colorado’s 24-year-old superstar, but weren’t able to produce a goal until the final five minutes of regulation, trailing 3-0 at the time.
The injuries to both the NHL lineup and the Lehigh Valley Phantoms created a tough situation for the Flyers, especially out in Denver’s altitude, but given Carter Hart’s performance, especially in the first 40 minutes, this was a winnable game against a very good team also missing one of its best players in defenseman Cale Makar.
For a thorough analysis of the late-night action, listen to the postgame show.
