Flyers-Isles, Round 2: Ivan Provorov Gets Incentive from Brawling Finish

Call Tuesday’s rematch Round 2 between the Philadelphia Flyers and visiting New York Islanders.

When the teams met Saturday at UBS Arena, there were several scrums at the end of the Isles’ 5-2 victory.

In the last three-plus minutes, Flyers tough guy Nick Deslauriers got into it with Scott Mayfield. Both players got roughing penalties and game misconducts.

Deslauriers then mixed it up with Alexander Romanov, and Tony DeAngelo fought the Islanders’ Oliver Wahlstrom.

A couple minutes later, the Flyers’ Rasmus Ristolainen and Matt Martin went after each other, and after the final buzzer, Zack MacEwen tangled with New York’s Simon Holmstrom.

“That’s part of hockey,” Flyers coach John Tortorella said of the late-game rough stuff. “We’re going to play our game. I think that has to be a part of our game. I didn’t think we were physical enough against the Islanders, quite honestly, and I think that needs to be a big part of our team. I think that’s what we’re trying to create here.”

Tortorella likes the scrums, the physicality.

“We get excited about it now because it just doesn’t happen in the game  anymore, where I think it should,” he said after practice Monday. “I think that should be part of us.”

The teams combined for 46 penalty minutes in the last 3:16 of action Saturday.

Extra motivation

Ivan Provorov, the Philadelphia Flyers’ No. 1 defenseman, said the brawling finish motivates him for the teams’ rematch Tuesday at the Wells Fargo Center.

He was asked if he was glad the Flyers get a quick chance to redeem themselves against New York.

“Yeah, in the sense that all the stuff happened at the end of the game, and it’s an easy game to get up for,” said Provorov, whose team will be trying to snap a 10-game losing streak.

With a little over three minutes left Saturday, Romanov checked Kevin Hayes. Deslauriers took exception to the hit and jumped Romanov. Ding, ding, ding. Round 1 was underway.

“I don’t know why guys don’t like clean hits now,” Romanov told New York Islanders Hockey Now, questioning why Deslauriers was upset. “Hockey has changed.  … It wasn’t even a big hit.That’s hilarious, you know.”

The Flyers controlled a majority of the first two periods and were in a 2-2 tie heading into the final 20 minutes.

“We just had five minutes of bad goals, or a disaster, or whatever you want to call it,” Provorov said. “It feels like it’s been happening often lately, where we play solid for 80 or 90 percent of the game, and then the other 10 or 20 percent end up costing us the whole game. We have to find a way to solve that.”