Flyers 4, Canadiens 2
PHILADELPHIA -- Right winger Wayne Simmonds scored a pair of goals and the Philadelphia Flyers got back to their winning ways on home ice with a 4-2 victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday at Wells Fargo Center.
Simmonds netted his second goal with 8:04 remaining in regulation to break a 2-2 tie and help the Flyers (22-18-8) snap a three-game home losing skid in their first tilt out of the All-Star break. Philadelphia is 10-1-1 when Simmonds scores.
With a defenseman on his back, right winger Jakub Voracek shielded the puck behind the net and found Simmonds for the game-winner. Left winger Matt Read iced the game with an empty-net goal.
Philadelphia survived a five-minute power play after Simmonds' goal. Defenseman Radko Gudas was handed a game misconduct for clipping left winger Lucas Lessio, who after the hit needed help off the ice.
After stumbling into the break, the Canadiens (24-23-4) opened the second half with another loss. Montreal has not won consecutive games since Nov. 25-27 and is 5-19-1 since Dec. 3.
Flyers goaltender Steve Mason (11-12-6) made 30 saves while Canadiens goaltender Mike Condon (13-14-4) stopped 32 shots in his first career game against Philadelphia.
The Flyers were awarded two power plays in the first period and cashed in on both to jump out to a 2-0 lead.
Right winger Jakub Voracek and center Brayden Schenn went tic-tac-toe in feeding Simmonds at the net to open the game's scoring 6:11 into play.
Voracek then facilitated Philadelphia's second man advantage, this time with an entry pass to Schenn, who angled the puck in between a defenseman and Condon 15:26 to pad the Flyers' advantage.
The Canadiens gave the Flyers a taste of their own medicine, taking advantage of their first power play to chop into the deficit with less than two minutes to go in the first period. Center Alex Galchenyuk's shot from the circle misfired but clanged off the back boards and right to defenseman Andrei Markov on the opposite side of the net, where he put it home for this third goal of the season.
Montreal quickly knotted the score 2:30 into the second period when defenseman Jeff Petry's shot redirected past Mason after it deflected off Gudas' back for the game's first even-strength goal.
The Flyers came hard in the second period and saw a number of good looks, including two power plays while outshooting the Canadiens 17-7, but Condon held them scoreless.
NOTES: Flyers backup G Michal Neuvirth will miss 7-10 days with a lower-body injury, the team announced before the game. Neuvirth last played Jan. 27 and is 11-6-2 with a 2.14 goals-against average and .933 save percentage. To fill his roster spot, the Flyers recalled G Anthony Stolarz from their AHL affiliate in Lehigh Valley. ... Canadiens D Tom Gilbert appeared in his first game since Dec. 22 after missing 14 contests with a lower-body injury. Gilbert entered with one assist in 36 games this season. ... Flyers C Sean Couturier returned to the lineup after missing the final three games before the All-Star break with a lower-body injury. Philadelphia is 2-6-1 in games Couturier has missed this season. ... LW Lucas Lessio, traded to Montreal on Dec. 15 and called up from the AHL on Jan. 31, made his Canadiens debut, playing on the team's fourth line. ... Flyers C R.J. Umberger, who has not scored in his last 50 games dating to last season, was a healthy scratch.