No Travis Konecny, No Surprise From New York

The Flyers sorely missed Travis Konecny in a 2-1 loss Saturday afternoon to the Rangers at the Wells Fargo Center.

John Tortorella's club was commendably competitive against one of the top teams in the NHL. But without the leading scorer in all situations, the offense lacked finish.

Konecny was sidelined for the first time this season with an upper-body injury. He left Friday's practice feeling uneasy. More about his status here.

The Flyers (30-21-7) have fallen to 5-2-1 since the bye week and the All-Star break.

Tyson Foerster scored the team's only goal on Saturday. The Flyers played a power play with 4:03 minutes left in the game, but failed to convert the ball.

After the Flyers' goal was emptied, Sean Couturier nearly scored the equalizer in the final six seconds. His backhand shot from close range pulled Eisen into the goal.

The Flyers' lead over the Devils in the Metropolitan Division race was reduced to five points. New Jersey defeated the Canadiens 4-3 on Saturday afternoon. The Devils have played one game less than the Flyers and will travel to Philadelphia for one last head-to-head matchup in April.

New York, 14 points ahead of the Flyers, has won 10 in a row.

The Flyers are 0-2-0 in their regular season series against the Rangers (39-16-3). The clubs still have two matches left, both at Madison Square Garden.

With Konecny, this was a bespoke play for the Flyers. Without Konecny it was a big task.

“We played hard,” Tortorella said. “I know we played a good game.”

Since 2021-22, the Flyers have lost eight of their last nine meetings with New York (1-6-2) and were outscored 29-13.

Not surprisingly, blue Rangers jerseys were on display at the Wells Fargo Center on Saturday. Last season, New York fans flocked to Philadelphia for a game in March. Tortorella then said, “Blame it on us” that the organization needed to make home games a “heavy ticket” again.

The reported attendance on Saturday was 19,756.

Given the team's progress, did Tortorella sense that Flyers fans were back on board?

“I want to get us to the point – and we’re not there yet – where it’s difficult to come in and play,” the head coach said Friday after practice. “I think that’s one of the things we didn’t fully understand in our development this year, which is home ice. I think sometimes it’s harder to play on home ice than away.”

“But I want the building to be like that. I feel it, you can feel it in games. And the fans are a big part of it. I think we're on track to get there; We still have a long way to go.”

• The Flyers made a great push in the third period and only needed 2:36 minutes to decide the game.

Scott Laughton extended his point streak to six games (two goals, five assists) with a pass to Foerster.

But less than four minutes later the Rangers regained their lead. Matt Rempe received part of a Barclay Goodrow redirection for his first career NHL goal.

“The guys fought hard for each other,” Laughton said. “I take a lot of positive things from it.”

• Samuel Ersson made 22 saves on 24 shots.

The 24-year-old was screened by the 1.90 meter tall Rempe on New York's game winner.

The Flyers targeted Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin, who stopped 39 of 40 shots.

The 2021-22 Vezina Trophy winner heard his first name chanted after he made a clutch save on a shorthanded Travis Sanheim breakaway. The Flyers trailed 2-1 in the third period and threatened their dangerous penalty shootout.

“Igor played great for them and made a lot of great saves,” said Ersson. “It's a close game. As a goalkeeper you know it's going to come down to a goal, a jump here and there, so you get a little frustrated when you don't get that one extra thing.” [save].”

In the second period, when New York was on a four-minute power play because of a Garnet Hathaway high-stick penalty, Laughton nearly gave the Flyers a 1-0 lead when he hit the post.

On this power play, Ersson parried Alexis Lafreniere with an outstanding split save. But when the game went 4-on-4, Lafreniere beat Ersson with a shot from the circle.

• Nicolas Deslauriers and Rempe dropped the gloves in the great rookie's first change of game.

“I kind of saw him lurking during warmups and I'm a guy that doesn't often take no for an answer,” Deslauriers said. “I just politely walked up and said, 'Are we doing this?' That's how it is.”

Talk about a heavyweight fight. The fight was one that would make the Broad Street Bullies smile.

“He’s a really important guy for us,” Tortorella said of Deslauriers. “It’s a good old-fashioned hockey fight.”

After the blows finally subsided, Deslauriers played to the crowd, who were already enthusiastic three minutes into the action.

“I told a few people afterward, 'That's the loudest thing I've ever heard,'” Deslauriers said. “Because you don’t hear much during the fights. But after that it was fun.”

Ersson enjoyed watching Deslauriers work.

“He’s an absolute beast, a warrior for us out there,” Ersson said. “I wouldn’t want to fight him. You could feel the atmosphere in the building and it just gives us so much energy as a team.”

• After missing the last four games with a right foot injury, Foerster returned to the lineup.

The rookie winger turned heads with his game-winning goal and four shots on goal.

Due to Konecny's absence, the Flyers had to play with 11 forwards and seven defensemen.

• The Flyers are back in action on Sunday when they visit the Penguins (3:30 p.m. ET/TNT).