Missed it by that much: Flyers let Game 2 slip away in OT gut-punch

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Flyers did their absolute best to hide it, but that one stung, and stung hard. 

A 3-2 overtime loss to the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals that put them down 2-0 in the best-of-7 series was every bit of a disappointing outcome that you might imagine it was, and then some.

The Flyers did their best to hide their pain. They put on a brave face afterwards and talked positively. They've been counted out before. They've dealt with the doubting and the adversity and overcome it. They are headed home where one win gets them right back in the series. 

All of that is true, and yet, on the inside, there was a feeling of what could have been. 

That's because Game 2 was there for the taking. It was theirs. They found a way to get Carolina off their stingy, disciplined game. They scored two goals in 39 seconds in the first period - after not scoring in the first period at all in seven previous playoff games. 

They had seven power play chances, including one in overtime, and couldn't cash in on any of the last six. 

They had a breakaway in overtime by Travis Konecny, that didn't even result in a shot on goal. 

Travis Konecny had the game on his stick here. pic.twitter.com/1xRiIiCRMZ

— Flyers Nation (@FlyersNation) May 5, 2026

They had several other chances as well. Some of the were of the unfortunate variety - like Matvei Michkov having a glorious chance in overtime, only to have his shot partially blocked.

Others were stopped by a strong effort in goal by Carolina's Frederik Andersen. 

In overtime, they took it to the Hurricanes. They ramped it up to their best level maybe in any period of the postseason so far. They outshot the Hurricanes 15-8 in the extra frame. Considering they only had 19 shots for the entirety of Game 1, that should tell you that they figured out a way to dent the vaunted Hurricanes armor. 

And yet, with 1:09 to play in the first overtime, it was Carolina's Taylor Hall who scored a greasy goal from a scrum in front of Dan Vladar, who was stellar yet again, making 40 saves in the loss - who won the game for Carolina. 

As Tampa Bay coach John Cooper said after his Lightning were eliminated by the Montreal Canadiens in Game 7 of their quarterfinal series, a game in which the Lightning only yielded nine shots the entire game, despite losing, "Sometimes you win the game and not the score."

He's not wrong, and the Flyers had to feel that was the case on Monday and everyone, from the top down felt that way. 

I was the last media member to make it downstairs for the postgame availability because of a chronically slow elevator in the soon-to-be renovated Lenovo Arena. As I was hustling to catch up with the rest of the media, Comcast-Spectacor CEO and Chairman Dan Hilferty was walking past me in the other direction, headed out to the team bus.

He looked me in the eye. And a guy who always has a smile on his face and a handshake ready in public-facing moments, could only shake his head. "Tough one," he told me. And then, it looked as if he was going to say something else, but all he could do was repeat himself. "Tough one."

Coach Rick Tocchet disagreed with a reporter's question that insinuated that they had a great start but fell off their game before picking it back up in overtime. 

"It's not true, we played a good hockey game," he said, anguish on his face, knowing he it was there for them, but that they still came up short. "I disagree, we played a good hockey game. It was a good, well-fought [game] by both teams and I thought we played really well."

He's not wrong, but Carolina is just that good a team that they can be taken out of their game by a young, scrappy, determined Flyers bunch and still find a way to win. 

It's something the Flyers can aspire to match at some point. They are certainly not there yet, but they are trying to get there. They are resilient. And they still believe.

"I still think there's another level to our game that we can get to but it was a lot better tonight," Konencny said. "It should have gone our way tonight. ... We're going home to our fans now and we know what it's like there, so we're excited."

Maybe. But they would have been a lot more excited if the series was 1-1, and not down 2-0. 

Maybe they would have been a lot more excited if they found a way to get one more shot past Andersen before Hall's lunch pail tally. Maybe if the power play were even just a hair more efficient. 

Maybe.

"I just thought we had more energy," Tocchet said. "We believe that we can compete with this team. We have a sour taste after the game because I just didn't feel we had the energy after Game 1 but I thought we had better energy tonight."

And they were better than Game 1. Significantly so. And they did it without their best goal scorer in the regular season, as Owen Tippett missed a second straight game with an undisclosed injury. He might be back for Game 3 Thursday, but Noah Cates' status is now in question. He was seen being pushed on an equipment cart past reporters in a hallway while holding a walking boot in his hand. 

But these Flyers have faced adversity before. They want you to remember that on March 9 they only had a 3.8% chance to even make the playoffs, and now, two months later, they are in the second round. 

And while beating a team that is undefeated so far in the playoffs and had the best record in the Eastern Conference in the regular season four times in the next five games is a task that seems Herculean, the Flyers aren't willing to go quietly. 

"There is belief in the room," Tocchet said. "We've been dead before and we climbed out of the grave. We keep hearing that we're dead, but the guys won't give up. That's what I'm proud of."