Flyers fall apart in third period; lose 7-3 to Kings

In a game where the Philadelphia Flyers played to the Los Angeles Kings' level, they ultimately fell off the track in the third period, leading to a 7-3 loss. The Flyers now fall below hockey .500 at 14-15-4.

Kevin Fiala gave the Kings a 1-0 lead at the 10:53 mark of the first period as his backhander went into the wide-open net past Flyers goaltender Aleksei Kolosov. Phillip Danault set him up with a great pass that sent Fiala on the breakaway. Danault picked up the lonely assist.

The Flyers tied the game up at one at the 14:11 mark of the first period as Noah Cates deked out Kings goaltender Darcy Kuempher and put it in the empty net. Bobby Brink found him going in alone on net. Brink and Foerster collected assists.

Tanner Jeannot gave the Kings a 2-1 lead at the 1:31 mark of the second period. He found a loose puck sitting in front and put it through Kolosov's legs. Foegele and Spence tallied the assists.

The Kings would get the game's first powerplay as Tyson Foerster got called for high-sticking at the 9:16 mark of the second period. They didn't capitalize on the opportunity but got a few good shots on net.

Foerster tied the game up at two right after he left the penalty box at the 11:30 mark of the second period. Scott Laughton missed on his wraparound attempt but the puck deflected to Foerster's stick. He then put the puck past Kuempher's left skate. Laughton collected the lonely assist.

The Flyers got their first powerplay of the game at the 12:57 mark of the second period as Jeannot got called for tripping. They had a few good looks but didn't capitalize.

Foerster scored his second of the game to give the Flyers a 3-2 lead at the 15:04 mark of the second period. It was just after the powerplay had expired. Morgan Frost set him up with a beautiful pass from behind the net and Foerster put it past Kuempher's glove. Frost and Tippett were given assists.

Anze Kopitar tied the game up at three with just 43 seconds left in the second period (19:16). He crashed the front of the net and put the puck just across the goal line. Laferriere and Gavrikov tallied assists.

The Kings took a 4-3 lead at the 1:54 mark of the third period. Warren Foegele redirected Jordan Spence's shot from the blue line past Kolosov. Assists were given to Spence and Moverare.

Jacob Moverare gave the Flyers their second powerplay of the game at the 6:02 mark of the third period as he got called for tripping. The Flyers didn't record any shots on net and struggled getting set up in the zone.

Kopitar scored his second of the game at the 10:39 mark of the third period to give the Kings a 5-3 lead. Alex Turcotte set him up with a great pass from the side of the net and Kopitar put it past the blocker of Kolosov. Turcotte and Gavrikov got the assists.

Quinton Byfield scored an empty-netter at the 16:23 mark of the third period to give the Kings a 6-3 lead. Joel Farabee turned the puck over which sent Byfield loose on the breakaway. No assists were given.

Fiala added to the pain and scored an empty-netter of his own for his second goal of the game at the 17:34 mark of the third period. Alex Laferriere passed the puck backward to Fiala who then put the puck into a wide-open net. Kolosov was looking in the other direction. This gave the Kings a 7-3 lead. Laferriere and Clark tallied assists.

The Flyers went 0 for 2 on the power play and 1 for 1 on the penalty kill in the game.

Kolosov tried to keep the Flyers in the game but ultimately struggled. He saved 20 of 26 shots, giving him a .769 save percentage.

Goal Summary

1st Period:

Fiala (11) Assists: Danault (13)

Cates (4) Assists: Brink (10), Foerster (6)

2nd Period:

Jeannot (4) Assists: Foegele (8), Spence (7)

Foerster (7) Assists: Laughton (9)

Foerster (8) Assists: Frost (9), Tippett (8)

Kopitar (9) Assists: Laferriere (11), Gavrikov (12)

3rd Period:

Foegele (9) Assists: Spence (8), Moverare (1)

Kopitar (10) Assists: Turcotte (9), Gavrikov (13)

Byfield (5) (Empty Net) Assists: none

Fiala (12) Assists: Laferriere (12), Clarke (15)

Flyers Next Game

Flyers next game is Saturday, Dec. 21 in Philadelphia against the Columbus Blue Jackets.