National Hockey League
Detroit 3, Philadelphia 2
When: 7:00 PM ET, Tuesday, November 8, 2016
Where: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Referees: Kendrick Nicholson, Tim Peel
Linesmen: Brian Mach, Matt MacPherson
Attendance: 19598

PHILADELPHIA -- With two dazzlings dashes down the ice, left winger Andreas Athanasiou showed the Detroit Red Wings how to do two things they haven't done in a while.

Athanasiou scored the game-tying in the third period by splitting a pair of Flyers defenders with a burst of speed and netted the only goal of the shootout to propel the Red Wings to a 3-2 win, their first victory in six games and their first regular-season win in Philadelphia since Jan. 25, 1997, when he was 2 years old.

"Great goal by Double A," Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill said of Athanasiou's game-tying goal, when he split Flyers defensemen Radko Gudas and Brandon Manning. "I thought he was engaged all night. He was winning puck battles all night and he can break a game open out of nothing. As soon as he gets a step on a guy you know he's walking in."

Flyers coach Dave Haksol, who saw his team slip to 6-6-2, also credited Athanasiou.

"I'm going to give that young man credit," Hakstol said. "The pace and speed he attacks with is hard to handle. I don't think we were at our best at any point tonight."

It was the second time in one week the Flyers and Red Wings needed extra time to decide the outcome.

Jimmy Howard stopped 26 shots, including three in the shootout, to earn the win for the Red Wings (7-6-1). Steve Mason made 35 saves, including two in the shootout in the loss for the Flyers.

Both goalies traded saves in the shootout before Athanasiou won it on the sixth attempt on a backhander.

"I always go back to my forehand on Mason so I thought I'd change it up this time with a shot fake and bring it back to my backhand," said Athanasiou, who has four goals. "Lucky enough, he bit on my fake and I got it upstairs on him."

Left winger Tomas Tatar also scored for the Red Wings in regulation as Detroit twice rallied from one-goal deficits, ending what was one of the more dubious 12-game road losing streaks in Red Wings history.

"Is been a long time coming," Red Wings right wing Gustav Nyquist said. "(Twenty years) is a long time. It's nice to finally do it."

Centers Claude Giroux and Sean Couturier scored for the Flyers in regulation and right winger Jake Voracek picked up two assists, his 300th and 301st of his NHL career.

Mason, who was making his first start in five games, fell to 2-4-2, but said he hopes to be back in goal on Friday night in Toronto.

"I hope so," Mason said. "That's up to (Hakstol) to decide but I want to be the guy here night in and night out. But you have to play well and build off of things."

The Flyers grabbed a 2-1 lead with 6:51 gone in the third period on Couturier's fourth goal of the season but just as they had earlier in the game, the Red Wings quickly answered.

Anthanasiou tied the score at 2-2 only 4:20 later.

The Flyers had a chance to take the lead with about five minutes to play in regulation, but Howard stopped a one-timer by center Pierre-Edouard Bellemare to keep the score tied.

The Flyers opened the scoring for only the fifth time in 14 games when Giroux drilled a pass from right winger Jake Voracek past Howard 6:28 into the game. The goal was Giroux's fifth of the season and third on the power play.

Philadelphia's lead lasted less than three minutes. The Red Wings tied it at the 8:42 mark when Henrik Zetterberg stole the puck from Flyers defenseman Brandon Manning and fed Tatar at the side of the net for Tatar's second goal of the season.

Aside from some key saves and a one-sided fight, the second period was uneventful. Mason kept the score tied with excellent saves on right winger Dylan Larkin and Athanasiou, while Howard and the Red Wings breathed a sigh of relief when Flyers rookie Travis Konecny missed a wide open net late in the period. Konecny, who had goals in each of his last two games, reacted by holding his stick over his head, threatening to crack it over his helmet.

The second period also featured a one-punch fight between Flyers right winger Wayne Simmonds and Red Wings defenseman Jonathan Ericsson. Simmonds knocked Ericsson down with a hard overhand left to the ear, but Ericsson returned without incident and finished the game.

NOTES: With LW Thomas Vanek on long-term injury reserve with a hip injury and the Red Wings hurting for goals, rookie Tyler Bertuzzi, the nephew of former Red Wing Todd Bertuzzi, made his NHL debut and played on a top line with C Frans Nielsen and RW Dylan Larkin. ... The Flyers also shook up their top line, promoting LW Matt Read to a top unit with C Claude Giroux and RW Jake Voracek. ... Red Wings G Jimmy Howard is one shutout away from tying Mike Richter for 10th all-time among American-born goalies. Richter had 192 shutouts. ... The Flyers entered the game leading the NHL in shots (431) and missed shots (195). ... The Flyers return to action Friday night in Toronto, then return home for games against the Wild, Senators, Jets and Lightning. ... The Red Wings return to Detroit to face the Canucks on Thursday, then head to Montreal to face the Canadiens.
Top Game Performances
 
Detroit   Philadelphia
Andreas Athanasiou 1 Points Jakub Voracek 2
Andreas Athanasiou 1 Goals Sean Couturier 1
Danny DeKeyser 1 Assists Jakub Voracek 2
N/A Power Play Goals Claude Giroux 1
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Jimmy Howard .920 Save Percentage Steve Mason .943
Jimmy Howard 23 Saves Steve Mason 33
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Detroit 35 3 0-3 1-2 9 24
Philadelphia 25 2 1-2 3-3 11 34
Upcoming Games
  • Philadelphia will play their next game on the road against Toronto. The Flyers have a W/L % of .333 after a win and .500 after a loss.
  • Detroit will play their next game at home against Vancouver. The Red Wings have a W/L % of .714 after a win and .286 after a loss.