Senators hold off Flyers
OTTAWA -- The Ottawa Senators survived a late-game scare to defeat the Philadelphia Flyers 5-4 on Thursday night at Canadian Tire Centre.
The Senators, who lead the league with three blown third-period leads, were in front 5-2 heading into the final five minutes.
Dion Phaneuf, Mark Borowiecki, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Mark Stone and Tom Pyatt scored for the Senators (5-1-4). Pageau added two assists.
Jakub Voracek, Travis Konecny, Ivan Provorov and Sean Couturier replied for the Flyers (5-5-0).
Craig Anderson made 36 saves in the Senators' net, while Michal Neuvirth stopped 23 shots for the Flyers.
The Senators led 3-0 after one period and 4-2 following 40 minutes.
Pyatt gave the Senators a bigger cushion with his second of the season at 10:33 of the third, beating Neuvirth with a shot off the far post on a two-on-one. However, Provorov kept the Flyers alive with a shot from the high slot at 15:18 for his second of the season, and Couturier created some late drama by deflecting a Shayne Gostisbehere point shot behind Anderson with 1:46 left.
The Senators opened the scoring on the power play at 1:31 of the first period, when Phaneuf's wrist shot from the point wound up behind Neuvirth. Earning their first NHL point on the goal were Chris DiDomenico, who won the faceoff, and Filip Chlapik, who put the puck back to Phaneuf. It was Phaneuf's third of the season.
Borowiecki scored his first at the 9:50 mark, taking a pass from Mike Hoffman that put him in prime scoring position. Instead of shooting, Borowiecki tries to pass across the crease to Pyatt, but it hit the stick of Flyers defenseman Tom Sanheim and went in the net.
Pageau rounded out first period scoring at the 13:28 mark, with the Senators short-handed, when he took a pass from Erik Karlsson and fired a shot over Neuvirth's glove from the top of the left-wing circle.
The Flyers outshot the Senators 14-12 in the opening 20 minutes but Anderson was outstanding, particularly stopping a shot by Couturier in the final minute that was headed for the open side.
The Flyers finally got on the board at 14:30 of the second when Voracek scored his first of the season. After fetching a wide shot behind the Senators' net, he threw the puck out front, where it hit Phaneuf and went in over Anderson.
Just 53 seconds later, Konecny scored his second on a breakaway, beating Anderson low to the stick side.
Stone pushed the Senators' lead back to two at the 17:37 mark of the second, taking a pass from Ryan Dzingel, then spinning around for a backhand that beat Neuvirth on the stick side. The goal was his sixth of the season.
NOTES: The Flyers scratched C Nolan Patrick and RW Dale Weise. ... Senators C Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored the 10th short-handed goal of his career. ... Ottawa scratched RW Jack Rodewald and C Kyle Turris (viral infection). ... Senators C Filip Chlapik made his NHL debut and picked up his first point just 91 seconds in. A second-round pick in 2015, he had three assists in seven games for the team's AHL affiliate in Belleville ... The Senators left immediately after the game to play the Devils in New Jersey on Friday. Senators G Mike Condon will get the start ... The Flyers take on the Maple Leafs in Toronto on Saturday.