TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Owen Tippett scored the tying goal in the closing minutes of regulation, then got the clinching shootout goal as the Philadelphia Flyers beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 on Thursday night.
Travis Konecny also scored in the tiebreaker for the Flyers. Ivan Fedotov stopped 20 shots through overtime, and then denied Gage Gonclaves and Victor Hedman in the shootout to get his first NHL win.
The win was just the fifth in 14 games for the Flyers, who began the night tied with Nashville for the fewest points in the league.
Nikita Kucherov scored his 11th goal of the season for the Lightning, who have lost four in a row. Andrei Vasilevskiy finished with 30 saves, falling short of becoming the 40th goaltender in NHL history to reach 300 career wins.
Vasilevskiy appeared on the verge of reaching the milestone when Tippett scored from the left circle with 4:16 remaining in regulation.
Flyers: Rookie Matvei Michkov was a healthy scratch after playing in the team's first 13 games. Coach John Tortorella called the move “just part of the process” in the 19-year-old's development. Michkov is second on the Flyers with 10 points (four goals, six assists) but only has one assist in his last five games.
Lightning: Back home after losing three of four games on a tough road trip, Vasilevskiy was outstanding before the Flyers finally broke through.
The Flyers were rewarded for being persistent. Tippett's third-period goal came on a shot from the left circle that seemed to catch Vasilevskiy by surprise.
The Flyers, who've struggled to score, outshot the Lightning 31-24.
Flyers visit Florida on Saturday, and Lightning host Winnipeg next Thursday.
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