Yakemchuk breaks third-period tie as Senators edge Flyers 2-1

A deadlock that lasted into the third

Ottawa opened the scoring at 10:14 of the first period when Nick Cousins redirected a tip-in past Joseph Woll, with Tyler Kleven and Warren Foegele drawing the assists. In a game where neither side found much separation on the scoreboard, that first goal immediately raised the price of every mistake that followed.

Philadelphia answered at 7:46 of the second. Matvei Michkov tied it 1-1 on a backhand finish set up by Trevor Zegras and Travis Konecny, and because the Flyers finished with one goal and one power-play goal, the equalizer stood as their conversion with the extra skater. It erased Ottawa’s early edge and reset the night around a single remaining opening.

That opening arrived at 13:01 of the third period. Yakemchuk stepped into a slap shot and restored Ottawa’s lead with Giroux and Pinto collecting the assists. The tie had held for more than a period, and once Yakemchuk broke it, the Senators were able to carry that lone-goal margin to the final horn.

Ullmark’s edge and Ottawa’s work in front of him

The Flyers finished with a 29-26 advantage in shots, but Ullmark turned that volume into only one goal against. His 28-save performance produced a .966 save percentage and ultimately became the difference in a game that never moved beyond a one-goal margin after Philadelphia’s equalizer.

Woll was strong at the other end as well, stopping 24 of 26 for a .923 save percentage. Ottawa did not flood the net with attempts, but it made two finishers stand up. In a game decided by one shot, that efficiency mattered as much as any stretch of territorial play the numbers cannot fully capture.

Ottawa also helped its goaltender by cutting down lanes. The Senators were credited with 18 blocked shots compared with Philadelphia’s 11, with Jordan Spence recording four and both Chabot and Kleven adding three. Ottawa added a small but useful faceoff edge at 52.8 per cent, while the hit count was nearly even at 23-22, another sign of how narrow the contest remained from start to finish.

Our take: the special teams count was even, but the details were not

Both clubs found one power-play goal, with Ottawa finishing 1-for-5 and Philadelphia 1-for-4. That made special teams a real part of the result without letting either side run away with the game. Even across nine total man-advantage opportunities, the scoreboard stayed compressed, which kept the outcome tied to execution in a handful of moments rather than to any sustained burst of offence.

For Philadelphia, there was enough shot production to stay in the game. Couturier and Owen Tippett each put four shots on goal, and the Flyers finished one shot short of 30 overall. The problem was that nine giveaways and a slight deficit at the faceoff dot left too little room for a second breakthrough once Ullmark settled in.

For Ottawa, the win came with its own warning signs. The Senators were charged with 14 giveaways and took four penalties, numbers that could easily have spoiled a strong night from Ullmark. What saved them was the combination of timely scoring from Cousins and Yakemchuk, heavier shot blocking from the defence, and just enough control in the small details to turn a 1-1 game into two points.

Scoring moments

1. 1st · 10:14

   Nick Cousins Goal (1) Tip-In, assists: Tyler Kleven (1), Warren Foegele (1)

2. 2nd · 7:46

   Matvei Michkov Goal (2) Backhand, assists: Trevor Zegras (2), Travis Konecny (3)

3. 3rd · 13:01

   Carter Yakemchuk Goal (1) Slap Shot, assists: Claude Giroux (3), Shane Pinto (3)