The Flyers lost in embarrassing fashion in New Jersey last week and got their chance to get revenge and right the ship tonight in a 6-1 win. Mackenzie Blackwood got pulled in his first ever regulation loss to Philadelphia. A hat-trick from Cam Atkinson, and points from the blueline came together for a much-needed blowout.

The Flyers’ starting lineup:

Flyers lines and pairings tonight/Same as past 2 games:

Laughton-Couturier-Konecny
Frost-Giroux-Atkinson
Willman-Hayes-JvR
Lindblom-Brown-MacEwen

Provorov-Braun
Sanheim-Ristolainen
Yandle-Connauton

Hart

— Jamey Baskow (@JameyBaskow) December 14, 2021

Philadelphia came out of the gate swinging and got the better of New Jersey. Travis Sanheim scored off a toe-drag and Atkinson cashed in on a picture-perfect play from Rasmus Ristolainen to gain a 2-0 lead in the first period.

BEAUTIFUL

2-0! #Flyers pic.twitter.com/oZsHGvnXsh

— TLY (@TheLibertyYell) December 15, 2021

Morgan Frost left the game and didn’t return after exiting midway through the first period due to COVID-19 protocols. Mike Yeo clarified this after the win.

Due to COVID-19 protocols, Morgan Frost was removed from the game, per Mike Yeo.

— Olivia Reiner (@ReinerOlivia) December 15, 2021

Justin Braun floated a shot from the point that got by Blackwood to make it 3-0 Philadelphia early in the second. As Jim Jackson said, “it wasn’t exactly a heater,” but we’ll take it.

New Jersey cut it to 3-1 and it was followed up with another goal from Atkinson. A short-handed laser on the rush to pad the lead and Atkinson wasn’t done yet. Two minutes later, he fed Oskar Lindblom for his second of the season, and in the blink of an eye, it was 5-1 Philly and out of reach for New Jersey.

Oskar Lindblom keeps the party going with his second goal of the season! pic.twitter.com/iWMldzRtnX

— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) December 15, 2021

Cam Atkinson finished the hat-trick in the third frame off a ridiculous pass from Claude Giroux.

CAM. ATKINSON. 🎩🎩🎩 pic.twitter.com/Ybri3t06f3

— TLY (@TheLibertyYell) December 15, 2021

The Flyers needed this kind of win, especially against the team that shut them out last week. Mike Yeo got the chance to implement his system for the first time in practice, and the difference was clear. Defense, forecheck, and possession driving were all improved, and the Flyers looked faster than I’ve seen all year.

Quick Hits

• four-point game from Cam Atkinson. He was on fire all night.
• Hopefully Morgan Frost is feeling well and returns as soon as possible.
• Ristolainen had an amazing game hitting everything that moved and feathered passes.’
• Carter Hart made some huge stops although he wasn’t tested too often. 26 of 27 and a .963%
• Sanheim got his first on that drag move we’ve seen him do all year. Glad he was able to cash that in finally.
• Oskar Lindblom is starting to look confident again.
• 3 straight wins with Montreal upcoming.
• 11-12-4.

Mandatory Credit: Philadelphia Flyers