Philadelphia Flyers @ Columbus Blue Jackets: 2023-24 Season Opener Game Recap!

There's a buzz in the air, one of a new beginning and a full 82-game NHL Regular Season looming. Players injured last season have returned. Our first-round draft pick from this year didn't just see his first NHL action tonight and celebrated his 19th birthday with a point. With all of that good said, there's plenty to recap; it's a mixed bag, so let's get into it. 

Period 1 would see a few goals. First, the Flyers would strike as the Blue Jackets attempted to swap players. They'd pop the puck in on Elvis; that was all she wrote. The goal would come from Joel Farabee and give his team a 1-0 lead at 3:33. The good news is, at 8:24, Jake Bean would be the first Blue Jacket to score a goal this 2023-24 NHL Season! This is where Adam Fantilli, the rookie birthday boy, would achieve his first NHL Point! He would have the primary assist on Bean's goal, and the secondary assist would go to Kirill Marchenko. Unfortunately, the Flyers would break the 1-1 tie at 12:45, thanks to Travis Konecny. So, they would take a one-goal, 2-1 lead into period 2. 

Period 2 would see little action by way of goals. However, newly appointed Associate Captain Erik Gudbranson would get into a scrum with a Flyer. The pair would both get 2-minute penalties. Then, one of the worst possible things would happen: an injury. Zach Werenski, who missed almost all last season due to a horrendous shoulder injury, would take a shot to his right knee. He didn't stop at the bench but instead limp down the tunnel to the locker room. Cringing panic sets in; we'll see what updates come from this. That said, he did not return tonight. 

Period 3 would be mostly back-and-forth until the bitter end when former Blue Jacket traded to Flyers Cam Atkinson would score on our empty net at 18:31. Then, a bright light: Patrik Laine would score his first goal of his 2023-24 NHL Season! It would come at 19:1 and give Kirill Marchenko a multipoint game. The Blue Jackets would pull goalie Elvis Merzlikins for the chance to tie it up, but this would backfire as the Flyers would score once more. Travis Konecny would score his second goal tonight at 19:59. This was the second empty net of the evening for the Flyers and would seal their win at 4-2. 

Elvis Merzlikins would gain the Second Star of tonight's game because he showed up for this team. He was solid. 

Those penalties hurt us, but none of the Flyer's goals came on a power play. Our guys had some great chances. They just didn't finish with a goal. There is room for improvement, but this team seems better than where we left. Now, we must simply grow and learn from this loss. 

Quad Contusion for Weerenski and Pascal Vincent is optimistic it won't be too bad. (5th Line lets out a heavy sigh with me!)

The biggest takeaway from tonight is that even with less than two minutes left, they continued drilling the puck like it was 0-0 in period 1. This is a good sign and can help this team find their first win this season. Their next chance will be Saturday at 7:00 p.m. when we will meet the New York Rangers at center ice for the first time this season. 

Go CBJ!