The Flyers didn’t play the prettiest game Thursday night and they lost their captain after the first period.

But they more than hung in there and finished their chances to beat the Predators, 4-1, at Xfinity Mobile Arena.

Trevor Zegras continued his big start with the Flyers, putting up two goals and an assist. His second marker came on the power play and cushioned the Flyers’ lead to two in the third period.

The offseason trade addition has 12 points (four goals, eight assists) through 10 games.

“He’s playing with a ton of confidence right now,” Travis Sanheim said. “I think you can see that he has got his legs and his hands. He’s just playing a really solid game. I’m happy for him, he has been working hard and trying to play the right way. I was happy to see him get rewarded.”

Jamie Drysdale and Travis Konecny (empty-netter) provided the other goals for the Flyers (6-3-1), who have won three straight, matching their longest winning streak from last season. They won three in a row five times last season. They haven’t won four consecutive games since Feb. 6-12 of the 2023-24 season.

The Flyers found a way to win without Sean Couturier for two periods. He had to exit with an undisclosed injury.

Rick Tocchet’s club continued this impressive early-season run at home, improving to 6-1-0 at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Last season, it took the Flyers 13 home games to pick up their sixth win at home (6-6-1).

“I think we’re just excited to play in front of these fans,” Drysdale said. “They’re unbelievable, they give us a lot of energy. We’ve just got to build off that and we have been. It has been a fun stretch.”

The Flyers see the Predators (4-6-2) again in a week when they visit Bridgestone Arena.

The Flyers acquired Trevor Zegras from the Ducks in the offseason and so far, he’s feeling right at home as he leads the team in scoring.

• Dan Vladar has yet to give up more than two goals in a game through six starts.

“Not trying to get too high from it,” Vladar said. “Still keep working hard. It’s the NHL, 82 games, it’s a long year.”

The 28-year-old made 32 saves on 33 shots against Nashville.

“He was the difference-maker,” Tocchet said. “We were kind of asleep for a couple of periods. He was our smelling salt, waking us up a little bit. He was really good.

“I think a lot of guys had a little bit of resolve in the third knowing they were having a tough night and gave us what they had.”

Aleksei Kolosov backed up Vladar as Samuel Ersson was placed on injured reserve Thursday. More on Ersson’s status here.

Predators netminder Juuse Saros stopped 14 of the Flyers’ 17 shots.

• The Flyers have given up just 24 goals through 10 games (2.40 per game).

Last season, they had surrendered 40 through their first 10 games (4.00 per game). They were 3-6-1 overall.

Playing more of a possession game has helped and so has letting their goalies see the puck.

• Matvei Michkov delivered his first multi-point game of the season with two assists.

He really battled along the boards on Zegras’ game-opening goal in the second period.

“He plays with his head up,” Zegras said. “He knows where everybody is on the ice. It was a great play by him.”

Michkov then set up Drysdale’s 2-0 goal a little under three minutes later with a pass from behind the net.

“You see him behind the net, you never know what he’s going to do,” Drysdale said. … “He’s a playmaker, so he made a great play.”

Matvei Michkov had two assists and two shots on goal in Thursday’s win over the Predators. Hear from the young winger after the Flyers Postgame Live crew breaks down what made him so effective.

The 20-year-old winger came in with one goal and two assists through nine games.

“The good thing with these players that are elite at something — he has obviously got elite hands — he wants to keep working on it,” Tocchet said Wednesday after practice. “And I think that’s the key, just stay with it. He’s going to score. We’re not worried about it, he’s getting his chances and he’s playing better every game.”

• Emil Andrae drew into the lineup on the third defensive pair for Egor Zamula.

The 23-year-old joined Zamula and Adam Ginning in the competition to be the Flyers’ sixth defenseman.

“I’m not guaranteeing him every game, but he definitely has a shot,” Tocchet said Thursday morning about Andrae. “Can he be a regular? We’re looking for someone who can be a consistent regular. It’s a hard league, it’s hard to put [together] four or five really consistent games. In the meantime, I like the rotation.”

• The Flyers wrap up their five-game homestand with a back-to-back set this weekend as they face the Maple Leafs on Saturday (7 p.m. ET/NBCSP) and Flames on Sunday (7 p.m. ET/NBCSP+).