The Flyers walked into their preseason finale with the puck, the space, and plenty of looks. The Capitals walked out with a 5-1 win anyway.
That’s the kind of night this turned into at the end of the exhibition slate: Philadelphia controlled long stretches, created a pile of chances, and still watched Washington pile up goals against Aleksei Kolosov. The game was tied after one period, then the second period turned into the difference. By the end, the regular season was suddenly right there.
Jamie Drysdale got Philadelphia on the board just 31 seconds into the second period, finishing off a setup from Travis Konecny and Tyson Foerster. But Washington answered fast and often. Andrew Cristall scored at 4:32, Maxim Schafer added another at 7:36, and Ethen Frank buried a power-play goal at 12:24 with assists from Louis Belpedio and Cristall.
There wasn’t much scoring beyond that, and there wasn’t much need for the Capitals to do more. The Flyers had the better of the play for large stretches, but Charlie Lindgren kept slamming the door. He stopped a mini-breakaway from Matvei Michkov and finished with 32 saves in the first two periods before giving way to former Flyer Cal Petersen.
For all the frustration in the final score, the Flyers’ power play did at least look more dangerous. Trevor Zegras, Matvei Michkov, and Drysdale all generated chances with the man advantage, and Philadelphia spent a massive chunk of the first period on the power play, including a double minor for high-sticking.
The puck movement and talent were there. The finish wasn’t.
The jersey-tuck business from the last game showed up again, too, with the Flyers tucked in during warmups after Trevor Zegras was penalized for tucking his jersey last game 😂 pic.twitter.com/JOxPTLj9nd
- Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) September 26, 2026
There were no equipment penalties in this one, and the referees handed Philadelphia 10 minutes of power-play time in the first period.
Drysdale’s goal was the night’s cleanest proof that his game may be turning a corner. He has been scoring more regularly, and Rick Tocchet assigned him a summer of shooting practice after the way he closed last season. This one came from the middle of the ice, and it was the only Flyers goal of the night.
David Jiricek, meanwhile, had a rougher time. Washington crowded his shooting lanes, and Philadelphia’s second-unit setup didn’t help much.
With the handedness of that group, Alex Bump is the main man feeding Jiricek for one-timers, and that’s not exactly playing to Bump’s strengths as a shooter. Jiricek also dealt with turnovers, got beaten to the back post on a goal against, and had a few bad puck hops go against him.
He has the sixth defenseman spot to start the season, but this wasn’t his cleanest audition.
Michkov, though, finished the preseason on a strong note even without a point. He looks quicker, and that extra burst gave him more room in the offensive zone.
He flashed it on a mini-breakaway, tried a wraparound, and even drew a late Michigan attempt that got the crowd buzzing. The early signs are encouraging, and he looks poised for a big bounce-back year.
By the time Petersen was in net for the third period, the Capitals had tightened things up and the Flyers found fewer clean looks. The pace dropped, the broadcast drifted into Phillies playoff-clinching scenarios, and the game slid toward the finish with the regular season waiting just ahead.
Let’s just get to Wednesday night.
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The most immediate development is in net, where Dan Vladar and Joseph Woll are slated to form the opening-night tandem. That pairing gives Philadelphia a clear answer at the position for now, while the rest of the roster suggests the team is already leaning on some new pieces as it heads into the season. [Read more 🡒]