NEWARK, N.J. – Wayne Simmonds and Nick Cousins scored 50 seconds apart in a four-goal third period and the Philadelphia Flyers got a big game from their special teams in posting a 6-3 victory over New Jersey on Tuesday, snapping the Devils' three-game winning streak.
Rookie defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere extended his point scoring streak to 13 games with a goal, Brayden Schenn had a goal and two assists and Claude Giroux added three assists as the Flyers won for the second time in seven games (2-3-2). Jakub Voracek and Ryan White also scored in the third period and Michal Neuvirth made 21 saves.
Tyler Kennedy, Jordin Tootoo and Kyle Palmieri scored for the Devils.
Special teams were the difference. The Flyers killed 6 of 7 power plays and converted on 2 of 4 extra-man chances.
Simmonds snapped a 2-all tie at 12:22 of the third period with a power-play goal. Schenn set it up with a cross-ice pass from the left circle that Simmonds redirected into an open net for his 21st goal.
Cousins got his second goal of the season on a scramble in front less than a minute later and Voracek beat Cory Schneider on a 2-on-1 break to push the lead to 5-2.
Palmieri got the Devils within two goals with his 21st of the season, but White scored into an empty net to close out the scoring.
The Devils tied the game 2-all midway through the third period, shortly after Neuvirth made four outstanding saves on New Jersey's seventh power play.
Rookie defenseman Seth Helgeson kept the puck in the zone and Tootoo beat Neuvirth with a shot from the top of the right circle.
Gostisehere's rookie point scoring streak is the longest by a defenseman and it is tied for fifth overall with Nathan MacKinnon of Colorado in 2014. The league record for a rookie at any position is 20 games by Paul Stastny of Colorado in 2007.
The Devils had come into the game with one of the NHL's hottest power plays. They were 12 for 28 over the past 10 games.
In Saturday's 2-1 win over Philadelphia, the Devils got both of their goals with the extra skater.
The Flyers were fortunate to leave the ice after the first period tied 1-all. They spent most of the period on the penalty kill as defenseman Radko Gudas picked up a match penalty for an elbow to the head of Bobby Farnham. They also took three other minors, including an interference call on Nick Schultz that resulted in Stephen Gionta leaving the game with what appeared to be a shoulder injury.
The Devils were only able to convert on one of the power plays and they lost an Adam Henrique goal when Lee Stempniak was called for incidental contact with Neuvirth in the crease.
Kennedy scored his first goal of the season with a little more than a minute left in the Gudas major. Neuvirth made a save on a point shot by John Moore, but the rebound went to Kennedy in the left circle for a shot into an open net.
Gostisbehere tied it with less than three minutes left in the period on a shot from the point. Claude Giroux won a faceoff after an icing and Schenn found the rookie defenseman for a shot on a screened Schneider.
NOTES: Flyers F Jordan Weal is going to be sidelined roughly three weeks with an upper body injury, Flyers general manager Ron Hextall said before the game. ... Two days after beating the Kings 1-0, the Devils' game-winning goal was credited to Joseph Blandisi. Defenseman David Schlemko originally got credit for it. ... Blandisi got an embellishment penalty on a play he was slashed by Flyers defenseman Andrew MacDonald and had to be helped off the ice.
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