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Another slow start, another loss for listless Flyers as they fall to rebuilding Rangers, 3-0

The loss assured that the Flyers will have a losing home record for just the second time in the last 24 seasons.

The Rangers celebrate after Ryan Strome got a goal past the Flyers' Carter Hart with 2.6 seconds to go in the first period on SUnday.
The Rangers celebrate after Ryan Strome got a goal past the Flyers' Carter Hart with 2.6 seconds to go in the first period on SUnday.Read moreELIZABETH ROBERTSON / Staff Photographer

For the first time this season, the Flyers played a meaningless game Sunday.

And it showed.

Less than 24 hours after they were eliminated from the playoff race, they looked disinterested, falling into a two-goal first-period hole en route to a 3-0 loss to the rebuilding New York Rangers at the boo-happy Wells Fargo Center.

“You have to show up and play a little harder than that,” center Scott Laughton said. "Not a whole lot of emotion in that game, but you still have to find a way to get one on them.”

“Today, I think we were missing a step,” said right winger Jake Voracek, whose team has lost seven of its last 10 games. “Plus, we didn’t execute. That’s why it was that ugly.”

The defeat assured that the Flyers will have a losing home record for just the second time in the last 24 seasons. They have 19 wins and 21 losses (19-17-4) at the Wells Fargo Center and have one home game remaining.

It marks just the sixth time in franchise history they will finish with a losing home record.

Rangers backup goalie Alexandar Georgiev, who took a 3.06 goals-against average into the game, made 29 saves and notched his second shutout in 41 career games. Georgiev’s best save was on James van Riemsdyk’s second-period breakaway.

The Bulgarian-born Georgiev, 23, was signed as an undrafted free agent in 2017.

“I think some of us, including myself, were sitting back a bit and kind of waiting for the play instead of making plays ourselves, and it cost us,” said defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere, who played a team-high 25 minutes and 36 seconds, and had three shots and four blocks.

Pavel Buchnevich scored his 20th goal of the season after gathering a rebound to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead with 3:35 left in the first. With 2.6 seconds to go in the stanza, Ryan Strome finished off a two-on-one down low to make it 2-0 with his 18th goal. Strome’s brother, Matthew, is a Flyers prospect who was promoted from the Ontario Hockey League to the AHL Phantoms on Sunday.

In a telling stat that explains why the Flyers will miss the playoffs for the fourth time in the last seven seasons, it was the 29th time in 79 games (36.7 percent) that they had fallen into a 2-0 deficit. They have won just four of the 29 games.

Defenseman Brady Skjei made it 3-0 with 12:21 left in the third period as his point shot deflected off two Flyers and past rookie goalie Carter Hart. Hart had 22 saves, including Brett Howden’s first-period breakaway.

“Being eliminated [stinks],” said Hart, whose team’s long-shot playoff chances ended with Saturday’s 5-2 loss in Carolina, “but at the same time we still have to play for pride and the logo on the front of our jersey. We need to finish strong so we can carry it into next season.”

With a win, the Flyers would have finished 4-0 against the Rangers and swept a season series against the Blueshirts for just the second time in franchise history. They won all seven games against New York in 1984-85.

The Rangers, who have the NHL’s youngest team (average age: 25.7), won their second straight game for the first time since they had three consecutive victories Jan. 15-19. They also ended the Flyers’ six-game winning streak against them over the last two seasons.

“We’re a frustrated team right now,” captain Claude Giroux said. “We’re our worst enemy.”

They end the season with games against Dallas, St. Louis, and Carolina, three teams that are much better than the Rangers.

“We’ve got to find a way to generate energy in the last three games,” said Scott Gordon, whose team is 25-19-4 since he was named the interim coach.

Sunday was the seventh time the Flyers were shut out this season and the first time since Jan. 7 by St. Louis.