OTTAWA (Interstat) — Carter Yakemchuk broke a tie on a power play with 6:59 left and the Ottawa Senators held on to beat the winless Philadelphia Flyers 2-1 on Thursday at Canadian Tire Centre. Linus Ullmark made 28 saves for Ottawa, which improved to 3-1-0. Philadelphia fell to 0-5-0. Attendance was 17,501. Nick Cousins opened the scoring for Ottawa midway through the first period. Matvei Michkov tied it on a power play at 7:46 of the second. Yakemchuk’s goal was assisted by Claude Giroux and Shane Pinto.

The Senators started with early pressure. Shane Pinto won the opening faceoff against Christian Dvorak. Travis Sanheim hit Jordan Spence four seconds into the game. Pinto hit Cam York at 33 seconds, and Dylan Cozens hit Cam York at 55 seconds. Cozens had a backhand saved by Joseph Woll at 10:04 of the first. Ten seconds later, Cousins scored a tip-in at 10:14, with Tyler Kleven and Warren Foegele getting assists. The goal came after sustained Ottawa possession and a series of hits that set the tone. Philadelphia answered with penalty trouble. Matvei Michkov was called for tripping against Cousins at 10:19. Travis Sanheim went off for holding against Tim Stutzle at 12:29. Simon Benoit received a cross-checking penalty against Ridly Greig at 14:40. Ottawa also had a roughing penalty on Dylan Cozens against Jamie Drysdale at 5:00, and Sanheim took a tripping penalty against Claude Giroux at 8:10. Ottawa generated shots from Stephen Halliday, Shane Pinto, Carter Yakemchuk, Fabian Zetterlund and Thomas Chabot. Ullmark stopped Sean Couturier, Nick Seeler, Trevor Zegras and Owen Tippett in the first. Ottawa led 1-0 after one period.

The Flyers pushed back in the second. Tyler Kleven was penalized for hooking against Tyson Foerster at 14:04. Philadelphia won the ensuing faceoff with Michkov against Giroux. Zegras put a wrist shot on Ullmark that was saved, but the Flyers kept possession. Michkov then scored on a backhand at 7:46 of the second, with assists from Zegras and Travis Konecny. The goal tied the game and quieted the home crowd. Philadelphia continued to press. Foerster hit the left post. Owen Tippett had a wrap-around saved and then another wrist shot stopped by Ullmark. Sean Couturier won several faceoffs and recorded four shots on goal in the game. Jamie Drysdale had a slap shot saved, and Couturier put multiple wrist shots on net late in the period. Ottawa’s best chances in the second came from Warren Foegele, whose wrist shot was saved by Woll, and Tyler Kleven, whose wrist shot went wide left. Fabian Zetterlund delivered two hits, and Jordan Spence blocked shots. The period ended with the teams tied 1-1.

Ottawa regained control in the third. The Senators killed off a high-sticking penalty to Drake Batherson at 18:17 and a delaying-game penalty to Jordan Spence at 21:50 after he put the puck over the glass. Philadelphia’s Michael Bunting was called for hooking against Thomas Chabot at 33:09, giving Ottawa a power play. Shortly before that, Ridly Greig hit the crossbar with a wrist shot. On the man advantage, Yakemchuk took a slap shot from the point and scored with 6:59 left. Giroux and Pinto assisted. The goal was Yakemchuk’s first of the season and gave Ottawa a 2-1 lead. Philadelphia pulled Woll for an extra attacker late, but Ullmark and the Senators held firm. Ullmark finished with 28 saves on 29 shots. Woll made several stops for Philadelphia, including saves on Ottawa’s best chances in the first and second periods. Ottawa blocked shots from Michkov, Couturier and Konecny in the final minutes. The Senators also received a late takeaway from Michael Amadio and a blocked shot from Shane Pinto.

Cousins finished with one goal, two shots on goal and one hit. Yakemchuk had one goal and two shots. Pinto had one assist, two shots and one hit. Michkov scored one goal on one shot and served two penalty minutes. Couturier recorded four shots. Foegele had one assist, one shot and one hit. Kleven had one assist, two penalty minutes and two hits. Zegras had one assist, three shots and one hit. Halliday had one shot and one hit. Ullmark was the top star for Ottawa after stopping 28 of 29 shots. The Senators improved to 3-1-0, while the Flyers remained winless at 0-5-0. Philadelphia has lost to Tampa Bay, Carolina, New Jersey and Pittsburgh earlier this season. Ottawa had beaten Toronto and Boston before a loss at Detroit. The Senators will host Nashville in their next game. The Flyers will visit Boston in their next game.

Ottawa’s victory came after a tight checking game that featured nine minor penalties, five against Philadelphia and four against Ottawa. Ottawa’s penalty kill allowed one power-play goal. Ottawa’s power play scored the winner. The Senators also got strong faceoff work from Pinto, who won multiple draws. Ottawa’s defense blocked shots and Ullmark was steady. The Flyers had chances but could not solve Ullmark after Michkov’s goal. Philadelphia’s record dropped to 0-5-0, while Ottawa moved to 3-1-0. The game was played at Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, Ontario. Ullmark, listed at 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, was the difference in the final period. Cousins, at 5-foot-11 and 186 pounds, gave Ottawa an early lift. Yakemchuk, listed at 6-foot-3 and 202 pounds, delivered the decisive shot. Pinto, at 6-foot-3 and 204 pounds, helped set it up. Michkov, at 5-foot-10 and 172 pounds, was Philadelphia’s most dangerous forward. Couturier, at 6-foot-4 and 210 pounds, led the Flyers with four shots. Foegele, at 6-foot-2 and 204 pounds, picked up an assist. Kleven, at 6-foot-5 and 221 pounds, added an assist and two hits. Zegras, at 6-foot-0 and 185 pounds, had an assist and three shots. Halliday, at 6-foot-4 and 212 pounds, recorded a shot and a hit.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Ottawa 3, Philadelphia 2. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Ottawa with a 60.1 percent probability to win. Ottawa had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -1.5. The total score of 3 went over the over/under line of 5.5.