Flyers 1-5 Capitals: Washington's Kids Crash Philadelphia's Dress Rehearsal
The Capitals iced a lineup of prospects and AHL regulars in their preseason finale — and beat what looked like the Flyers' opening-night team by four goals.
Preseason scorelines rarely mean much, but Saturday's finale at least meant something unusual: Washington dressed a roster made up almost entirely of recent draft picks, prospects and AHL regulars, while Philadelphia iced what could be its opening-night lineup — and the kids won 5-1, according to RMNB.
How it unfolded
Philadelphia actually struck first and controlled play early. Jamie Drysdale scored 31 seconds into the second period, assisted by Travis Konecny and Tyson Foerster, and the Flyers finished with a 37-24 edge in shots on goal, per Broad Street Hockey. Then the game turned. Washington answered with five unanswered goals — Andrew Cristall, Maxim Schafer, Ethen Frank on the power play, Theodor Niederbach and 2025 first-round pick Lynden Lakovic — with three of them coming in a roughly eight-minute stretch of the second period that decided the night.
The difference was in the crease
Charlie Lindgren stopped 32 of 33 shots across two periods for Washington before Cal Petersen closed out a clean third. At the other end, Aleksei Kolosov was beaten five times behind Philadelphia's veteran group, including a couple of short-side goals that Broad Street Hockey flagged as the kind a starter cannot give up.
What it means
For Washington, the night was a showcase of organizational depth. Cristall finished with a goal and an assist, Lakovic added a goal on four shots, and young defensemen Cam Allen and Ryan Chesley each logged over 21 minutes. Head coach Spencer Carbery called it a preseason game he would "remember for the rest of my life," per RMNB.
For Philadelphia, the underlying play was fine — the Flyers dominated possession and the shot count — but the result sharpens the one question that matters before opening night: whether Kolosov can be trusted with a share of the crease. The skaters look ready. The goaltending picture is less settled.