When the Philadelphia Flyers roared out to an early 3-0 lead at the PPL Center in Allentown on the backs of strong performances from their highest-profile prospects, it looked like the season was off to a perfect (unofficial) start.



It took two more periods of regulation, an overtime session and a shootout for patented Philly pessimism to set back in as a result of the exploits of the Orange & Black.



The Flyers blew leads of 3-0 and 4-2 on Wednesday night, as the New York Islanders’ prospects topped Philadelphia’s by a 5-4 score. The game, which serves as the logical conclusion to rookie camp, is a classic exhibition; the outcome doesn’t factor into preseason records. Instead, it’s a way for prospects to receive game action prior to the start of the full training camp, and to test out new concepts they’ve learned at camp in a competitive setting. The actual outcome of the game mattered little.



As a tune-up and a lead-in to...