Flyers' Season Ends in OT Loss to Hurricanes in Game 4

A series that went by in a blur ended with a slow-motion moment. A puck off the glove of the Philadelphia Flyers' reliable netminder, their best player all season long, that landed behind him and trickled into the net.

Jackson Blake's second goal of the game was the difference and the final blow to the Flyers, as the Carolina Hurricanes finished off a four-game sweep in the second round to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals with a 3-2 overtime win on Saturday night at Xfinity Mobile Arena.

How It Happened

The Flyers opened the scoring at 7:50 of the first. Tyson Foerster got on the board for the first time in the playoffs, firing a wrist shot past Frederik Andersen to make it 1-0.

The Flyers had a chance to extend the lead with 40 seconds of 5-on-3 time, but were again unable to do anything with it. Carolina tied the game with 7:25 left in the period as Jackson Blake's turnaround shot from along the boards hit Jamie Drysdale and went in for his third goal of the playoffs.

Just 28 seconds later, Carolina appeared to take the lead as Mark Jankowski put home a rebound, but after review, it was determined there was goalie interference and the goal was disallowed.

The Hurricanes took the lead at 4:13 of the third. Off a rush, Taylor Hall maneuvered around Oliver Bonk and centered for Logan Stankoven, who had a step on Alex Bump and scored his seventh goal of the playoffs to make it 2-1 Carolina.

The Flyers answered right back less than two minutes later as Travis Konecny centered for Bump and he scored his second of the playoffs to make it a 2-2 game at 5:52.

Carolina took four of the six shots in overtime. At 5:31, Blake took a shot that hit the glove of Dan Vladar and went into the net to end the Flyers' season.

Box Score

1st Period

PHI Tyson Foerster (1) (Trevor Zegras, Porter Martone) 7:50

2nd Period

CAR Jackson Blake (3) (K'Andre Miller, Taylor Hall) 12:35

3rd Period

CAR Logan Stankoven (7) (Hall, Blake) 4:13
PHI Alex Bump (2) (Travis Konecny) 5:52

Overtime

CAR Blake (3) (Hall, Jaccob Slavin) 5:31

By the Numbers

Shots: Flyers: 17, Hurricanes: 40
Power Play: Flyers: 0-for-3, Hurricanes: 0-for-3
Faceoffs: Flyers: 48.6%, Hurricanes: 51.4%
Goalies: PHI Dan Vladar: 37 saves on 40 shots, CAR Frederik Andersen: 15 saves on 17 shots

Key Performers

⭐ Jackson Blake — Two goals in the game, including the series winner in overtime. Blake's line has been dominant all playoffs, and after Logan Stankoven and Taylor Hall each had their moments, Blake gets his defining moment of the series.

⭐⭐ Dan Vladar — If the Flyers were going to keep this series alive, it was going to be because Vladar stole them a game. He nearly did, stopping 37 shots in another close loss. Vladar emerged as a top goalie and kept that consistency going throughout the playoffs.

⭐⭐⭐ Logan Stankoven — Stankoven appeared to have the dagger until the Flyers were able to tie things up in the third again. But make no mistake, he's been Carolina's best player offensively so far and will continue to be a threat going forward.

The Takeaway

And with that, the 2025-26 season comes to an end. It's bittersweet, a disappointing end to an unexpected playoff appearance. The experience will be valuable. There will be more to dissect later in the coming days, but take nothing away from the Flyers, who gave everyone 10 playoff games and held their own even in a four-game sweep that had two games decided in overtime. There were massive steps taken, and the Flyers have a lot to be proud of and a lot to build on going forward.

Kevin Durso is Flyers insider for 97.3 ESPN. Follow him on social media @Kevin_Durso.