- On Friday evening, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms closed a quick sweep of their best-of-three playoff miniseries against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. On the heels of a convincing 5-2 road win in Game 1, the Phantoms seized a 3-2 clinching win in a much harder-fought contest at PPL Center. Defenseman Helge Grans’ backhanded shot while filling to the ice provided the series-winning goal with exactly two minutes remaining in regulation. Anthony Richard and Jacob Gaucher also tallied for Ian Laperriere’s squad, while Jett Luchanko notched a pair of assists. Parker Gahagan turned back 31 of 33 shots.
- The Phantoms’ opponent in the best-of-five Atlantic Division semifinal series will be determined by the outcome of Sunday afternoon’s game between the host Providence Bruins and the Springfield Thunderbirds. The miniseries series is tied at 1-1. If the P-Bruins prevail, the Phantoms (as the lowest remaining seed) will play the defending Calder Cup champion Hershey Bears in the best-of-five second round. If Springfield pulls out Game 3 in Providence, the Phantoms will play the Charlotte Checkers in Round 2. A mere two points (96 to 94) separated Hershey and Charlotte in the 72-game regular season. Both clubs won 44 games. It’s a different story than a year ago, when Todd Nelson’s Hershey club ran away with the AHL’s best record in the regular season and stormed their way through the playoffs to their second straight Calder Cup championship. That said, until some team actually defeats the Bears in a playoff series (whether it be the Phantoms, AHL regular season champion Laval, or any other club), Hershey remains the team to beat.
- Nelson’s success in coaching a powerful Hershey team could put him on the radar for NHL head coaching vacancies. However, it also depends on how long teams are willing to wait if the Bears were to have another deep run in the Calder Cup playoffs. Last year, the Bears wrapped up the Finals on June 24. While the Washington Capitals organization would not block Nelson from interviewing for an NHL spot after the Hershey playoff run is finished (whenever that may come), no organization would grant permission beforehand.
- Specific to the Flyers’ pending decision on whether to retain Brad Shaw as head coach while removing the interim tag or to appoint a new head coach and offering Shaw a return to an assistant/associate coach role, that remains yet to be determined. No outside interviews have been conducted so far by general manager Daniel Briere. President of Hockey Operations Keith Jones, assistant general manager Brent Flahr and others in the Hockey Ops’ scouting and player personnel staff are currently in Frisco, TX, for the Under-18 World Championship tournament.
- The Flyers currently hold 10 selections in the 2025 National Hockey League Entry Draft; the most of any organization in the NHL. This includes three picks in the first round. In addition to their own first-round pick (the default fourth-overall pick pending the outcome of the Draft Lottery), the Flyers own first-round picks acquired from the Colorado Avalanche and Edmonton Oilers.
- Picks number 17 to 24 in the 2025 first round will be determined by the outcomes of the two Conference quarterfinal series relative to the leaguewide final regular season standings. Best-case scenario for the Flyers:The Dallas Stars beat Colorado (currently tied 2-2 in the best of seven series) and the Los Angeles Kings top Edmonton (currently 2-1 in LA’s favor).
- On May 20, the Flyers Alumni will hold a special meet-and-greet event at the Great American Pub in Conshohocken, PA. Fans can meet some of their favorite Alumni players (final list is TBD), see the Labrador retriever puppy who will be training as a service dog for a local veteran or first responder in need, and sign up for the Walk/Run/Ride event (June 22, 2025) at the upcoming Flyers Alumni Charity Classic weekend. The meet-and-greet is also a symbolic Golden Anniversary celebration of the Flyers’ 1975 Stanley Cup championship (clinched on May 19, 1975) and victory parade.
- Coming off a 2024-25 regular season in which he led all NHL rookies in goals and was tied for the top overall points lead among rookie forwards, Matvei Michkov recently sat down for a Russian media interview about his first season in North America. Speaking candidly in a relaxed tone, Michkov provided insights on a wide array of topics.
At length, Michkov discussed his relationship with former Flyers head coach John Tortorella. They had a high degree of mutual respect, as well as periodic vehement disagreements. Tortorella, who considers conflict an indispensible tool in his coaching style, did not mind that at all. Nor did Michkov himself, in the big picture. The player feels that he gained more positives than negatives from their time together, and wishes they’d have at least been able complete a full season as coach and player.
Michkov also talked about his adaptation to life in the NHL, both on and off the ice. He discussed teammates such as Egor Zamula (a big help to him, as Zamula himself went through the process of adjusting to the culture, language and playing style adaptation) and Ivan Fedotov. Michkov’s mother and younger brother lived with him in South Jersey. His brother is going to school locally. His mom cooks for him in the house the player has rented for his family.
In terms of mastering English, Michkov said that he’s progressing rapidly in understanding the spoken language. Some days and situations are easier than others. He strives for continued improvement in expressing himself independently. He relies less and less on having Slava Kuznetov or Zamula (who let it be known very quickly that he doesn’t want to be a spokesman or professional interpreter) translate for him. He can usually understand what coaches or English-speaking teammates tell him. In the long term, Michkov wants to speak for himself in interviews conducted in English. This will depend on when he feels comfortable that he can express his thoughts clearly.
