{{pageModel.leagueAbbr}} {{pageModel.subtitle}} | Las Vegas Review-Journal
National Hockey League
Philadelphia 4, Minnesota 3
When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, January 7, 2016
Where: Xcel Energy Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota
Referees: Dave Jackson, Wes McCauley
Linesmen: Brian Murphy, Jonny Murray
Attendance: 19125

SAINT PAUL, Minn. -- For a team struggling to put pucks in the net the way the Philadelphia Flyers have this season, secondary scoring is critical, especially on a night when its top three scorers are shut out. Such was the case on Thursday night at the Minnesota Wild held the line of All-Star Claude Giroux, Wayne Simmonds and Jakub Voracek to just a pair of assists.

But the Flyers got what they needed as defenseman Michael Del Zotto scored his second goal of the game at the 4:23 mark of overtime to lift the Flyers to a 4-3 win over the Wild at Xcel Energy Center. Giroux and Voracek's assists just happened to come on the game winner.

"I was fortunate enough to play with Jakey (Voracek) and G (Giroux) out there," Del Zotto said. "I just tried to get them the puck and get open. They did a good job of finding me and we were fortunate to get the win."

Philadelphia's second line of Brayden Schenn centering left winger Michael Raffl and right winger Sean Couturier picked up where it left off on Tuesday against Montreal. After combining for five points against the Canadiens, the trio collected another four points led by a pair of Schenn assists.

"I enjoy playing with both guys," Schenn said. "They're both simple, easy to play with. ... All three of us are just feeding off one another right now."

Third line center Ryan White added a goal of his own to the mix. Philadelphia goaltender Steve Mason made 31 saves in the win while Minnesota All-Star goaltender Devan Dubnyk stopped 32 Flyers shots.

"I thought in overtime, our best player was our goaltender," Flyers coach Dave Hakstol said. "We probably got two or three good saves and then went down to the other end and made a play. That's the excitement of the 3-on-3."

Minnesota left winger Zach Parise scored his team-leading 15th goal of the season, and fourth in two games, lifting the Wild to a 3-3 tie at 13:36 of the third period to send the game to overtime. Defenseman Marco Scandella and Jason Zucker also scored for the Wild.

Parise, who played under Hakstol from 2002-04 when the Flyers coach was an assistant at the University of North Dakota, wasn't satisfied with the lone point.

"We didn't play that great the first half of the game," Parise said. "I thought we had a really good third and gave ourselves a chance to get the second one."

The Flyers led 3-2 after two periods on goals by Del Zotto and White 52 seconds apart midway through the second period to break open a tie game.

With the game knotted at 1-1 approaching the halfway point, Del Zotto picked up the puck in his own end and rushed through the neutral zone unscathed before initiating a give-and-go with Schenn as he crossed the Minnesota blue line. With Wild defenseman Matt Dumba draped over him near the top of the crease, Del Zotto redirected Schenn's return pass behind Dubnyk at 9:02.

Less than a minute later, Dubnyk poke-checked Flyers right winger Chris VandeVelde's attempt, but it went right to an uncovered White, who flipped the puck up and over the prone Minnesota goaltender from the left circle for a two-goal Flyers lead.

Minnesota coach Mike Yeo immediately called his time out to settle his team and it paid off a few minutes later on left winger Jason Zucker's unassisted goal.

A backchecking Zucker picked off Giroux's pass in the Minnesota zone and the speedy forward was off to the races. Zucker faked a forehand shot before slipping a backhander through Mason's legs with 4:02 to go in the second to make it 3-2.

The Flyers got on the board first at the 7:49 mark on Couturier's eighth goal of the season and second in as many games.

Raffl chased down the puck in the Minnesota zone, eluded Dumba's check as he swung behind the net before feeding Couturier below the hash marks.

The Flyers controlled much of the opening period from that point on but not without the Wild drawing even on Scandella's fifth of the year. Minnesota right winger Nino Niederreiter's pass found a wide open Scandella at the left point and his heavy shot through a screen beat Mason at 14:41 to make it 1-1.

"We had a good start," Yeo said. "You could see that we sagged back a little bit after that. When you're playing a stretch like this, we have to make some better decisions. We made things harder on ourselves."

Philadelphia defenseman Shayne Gostisbehre left the game in the second period due to a lower body injury. Hakstol did not have any further information after the game

NOTES: The Flyers debut of C Jordan Weal was put on hold until at least Saturday when Philadelphia hosts the New York Islanders. Weal was acquired Wednesday, along with a 2016 3rd-round pick, from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for C Vincent Lecavalier and D Luke Schenn. ... Wild C Ryan Carter returned to the lineup after missing one game due to a hand injury while D Nate Prosser's injured hand prohibited him from playing a second straight game. ... Minnesota D Tyson Strachan played his first home game as a member of the Wild in Prosser's place. .... Philadelphia D Brandon Manning was a healthy scratch as was Minnesota RW Justin Fontaine. ... Flyers coach Dave Hakstol captained the Minnesota Moose when the former IHL team skated at the St. Paul Civic Center, located where Xcel Energy Center now sits. In 112 games with the Moose from 1994-96, Hakstol registered five goals and 16 assists.
Top Game Performances
 
Philadelphia   Minnesota
Michael Del Zotto 2 Points Zach Parise 1
Michael Del Zotto 2 Goals Zach Parise 1
Brayden Schenn 2 Assists Nino Niederreiter 1
N/A Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Steve Mason .912 Save Percentage Devan Dubnyk .889
Steve Mason 31 Saves Devan Dubnyk 32
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Philadelphia 36 4 0-2 1-1 4 31
Minnesota 34 3 0-1 2-2 6 29
Upcoming Games
  • Minnesota will play their next game on the road against Dallas. The Wild have a W/L % of .545 after a win and .500 after a loss.
  • Philadelphia will play their next game at home against NY Islanders. The Flyers have a W/L % of .438 after a win and .435 after a loss.