Hart’s gaffe something to learn from rather than worry about
PHILADELPHIA >> Carter Hart’s ugly misplay behind the Flyers net Saturday didn’t cost them a point in the standings, but it was a clear visual reminder that Hart is still on a large learning curve in the NHL.
The Flyers’ 21-year-old goaltender went behind the net to play the puck during a Flyers power play in the second period and just dropped it for defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere, rather than make sure it went safely to the Ghost for clearance out of a danger area.
Sure enough, Ottawa’s talented Anthony Duclair forechecked on the penalty kill and got there first, jumping on Hart’s gaffe and jamming it into the net for a goal at 13:18 of the second period.
That created a tie at that time, in a game in which the Flyers should have been up by at least a couple of goals. They’d had one disallowed earlier due to an offside review.
The Flyers did not score on the rest of that power play, the period ending in a tie. But goals by Ivan Provorov and Scott Laughton, which came all of 11 seconds after Duclair’s second goal of the game, allowed them and Hart to escape with a 4-3 victory.
And he wasn’t kicking himself afterward, either.
“Just miscommunication,” said Hart, who made 27 saves in gaining his 10th win of the season. “Probably should have just chipped it to (Gostisbehere) or passed it to Jake (Voracek). Just kind of a dumb play, but it happens.”
It was actually a little bit more of a lesson than a dumb play, but whatever works. Gostisbehere took care to not pin the blame on his young goalie.
“It was just a miscommunication with Hartsy,” Gostisbehere said. “We could have made a better play, both of us. I could have talked a little bit more. It’s a learning thing. I’m still happy we got the win.”
••• While the win was nice to get, the Flyers’ goalie boo-boo at his net, and more significantly their loose play defensively throughout the game, didn’t escape Alain Vigneault’s attention.
“Especially in front of our net,” the Flyers’ coach said. “We had talked to our group about this team, how one of their biggest tendencies is to look for those open spots and they’ve been good at it, and we didn’t do a good job. The third goal is a perfect example of that, we have three guys right in front of our net puck watching, Duclair comes in, puts it in. We’re going to need to be better than that, no doubt.”
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NOTES >> Ivan Provorov scored his seventh goal of the season, which matches his total from last season. As a rookie in 2017-18, he had 17 goals . ... In addition to the suspected concussion for Travis Konecny (see related story), the Flyers lost defenseman Phil Myers late in the game with what Vigneault termed, “back spasms.” ... Vigneault on the Mark Borowiecki hit that sent Konecny off to the trainers room: “Initially I thought it was high, but I haven’t the opportunity to look at a replay or anything.”