Late goal halts slide, tops Rangers
PHILADELPHIA » Sam Morin was slammed against the boards, suffocated by a mob of his Flyers teammates that smacked his helmet in celebration and wouldn’t let him wiggle free.
Morin’s first NHL goal, yes. A game-winner for a team in desperate need of a win, yes.
The triumph meant so much more for Morin — and his teammates. Morin had persevered through two separate ACL tears, hours of rehab, a futile position switch in attempt to revive his career, and just a handful of NHL games for this highlight.
“It’s the best moment of my life,” the 25-year-old Morin said.
Morin scored his first NHL goal with 4:27 left in the game to give the Flyers a 2-1 win over the New York Rangers on Saturday.
“It’s been a hard couple of years for me,” Morin said.
Nolan Patrick also scored for the Flyers, who badly needed to win a close one against the Rangers. The Rangers had combined to beat the Flyers 17-3 in their past two meetings.
The Flyers moved into fifth place ahead of the Rangers in the East Division at 16-13-4 — the top four teams make the playoffs — with 23 games left in a shortened season. They snapped a four-game losing streak.
Morin, the 11th overall pick in the 2013 draft, had never scored a point in 14 career NHL games. The Flyers moved Morin from defense to winger and back to defense again over an injury-plagued career.
“I was a bit lost up there,” Morin said of the position change. “I think anyone could tell. I tried my best.”
Morin earned a reputation in the locker room and on the ice as one of the most upbeat Flyers, Coach Alain Vigneault described him as a “good, big, young Frenchman” who stayed ready when his number was called. The Flyers celebrated as if they had won Game 7 of a playoff series when Morin scored perhaps the goal of the season.
“I think that’s why everybody is so happy. When you work so hard, and guys can see it, and you bring his energy every day, no matter if he is in the lineup or not in the lineup, it’s something special and it just rubs off on the guys and we’re so happy for him,” forward Travis Konecny said.
New York beat the Flyers 9-0 last week and again 8-3 on Thursday, scoring 15 straight goals over the two games.
Mika Zibanejad turned New York’s last two wins against the Flyers into laughers and it was almost comical when he scored again with 9:06 left in the first.