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Two months into the season, and the Philadelphia Flyers have exceeded expectations. A step forward was anticipated, yet at 14-8-3, they sit in a wild card position in the Eastern Conference, and for the most part have been a competitive team.
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Monday’s loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins was a reminder of their shortcomings and a possible moment for the shoe to drop. The Flyers lost Tyson Feorster in the game and won’t have their top goal scorer for most of the regular season. The loss was one thing but the big picture issues have been on full display, and they shot a Flyers team that isn’t built to make the playoffs.
Defensive Woes Continue to Cost The Flyers
The Flyers don’t allow a ton of goals, allowing only 2.88 goals per game. That said, the defensive unit is an issue and has been since the season began. Travis Sanheim and Cam York are the key players on the blue line but the rest of the unit has struggled, and the pieces aren’t fitting together.
It’s why the Flyers blew a 3-0 lead to the New York Islanders on Nov. 28, only to recover and win 4-3 in the shootout. It also explains why some teams, like the Penguins in the recent game, have run up the score on them. The rebounds and the second-chance looks in particular are costing the Flyers. Dan Vladar is a big goaltender who forces teams to score on second-chance looks, and the inability to shut those down is a testament to the poor play on defense.
The struggles defensively make the fans wonder if a move is coming. The Flyers need a shutdown option and want a two-way player. The question is how much general manager (GM) Daniel Briere is willing to spend to fix the defense (if Quinn Hughes or Rasmus Dahlin are on the table, he’ll presumably throw a lot of prospects on the table for either). Early in the season, it was all about waiting to see what the defense would look like when it is healthy. Rasmus Ristolainen hasn’t played yet but now the question is where they find that player to upgrade the defense.
Penalties Will As Well
The Flyers have one of the best penalty-killing groups in the NHL. It’s always a backhanded compliment to say that a team has a great penalty kill (it’s a subtle way of saying they take a lot of penalties), yet the Flyers have a lot of mistakes negated by strong shorthanded play.
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The penalties are still hurting the Flyers. They take a lot of them, and it’s keeping them at a disadvantage. The Flyers struggle to build momentum in games the way other great teams do. Instead, they often claw their way to wins or snatch victory in overtime.
There’s a lot of talk about Matvei Michkov’s ice time and how it’s taken a dip this season as he’s averaging two minutes less per game. Many point to this being a shortcoming of head coach Rick Tocchet, as he refuses to play the young star. The reality is that Tocchet can’t play him when the Flyers are taking penalties, just like many of the skilled forwards who don’t kill penalties. Penalties shorten the game, and for this team, they will come back to haunt them.
The Flyers Schedule Only Intensifies From Here
The Flyers have spent most of their season at home or in the Eastern time zone. They’ve taken advantage of the home games, winning eight and earning points in 10 of their 14 games in Philly. It’s why when this team heads on the road, there can be a harsh reality that they aren’t as good as their record shows.
The homestand began with the loss to the Penguins. It’s the start of a six-game homestand, which by the end of it will have the Flyers playing nearly double the home games (20) as road ones (11). It’s why now is the time to pile on the wins, and they aren’t so.
Where Would The Flyers Be Without Vladar?
The other factor in the Flyers’ start is their goaltending, specifically, the great play from Vladar. Without him, they aren’t a good team. Ironically, last season’s team was similar but had the worst goaltending in the league, and now with baseline play at the position, the floor is higher for this team. Vladar allows the Flyers to win low-scoring games where the offense doesn’t show up and often masks the defensive issues.
The Flyers are leaning on Vladar to carry them to the playoffs. It’s leading them into dangerous territory as well. This is a goaltender who has never started 30 or more goals in a season. The Flyers might ask him to play 50 games or more, and the workload can easily get to him. His recent play can be seen as a warning sign of that, as he’s allowed 15 goals in his last five starts.
a smart fan knows this isnt a very good team. Nor are they being run by a good coach. This team is so far away from legit contention where they have a 5 to 7-year run of being a top 8 team for the cup. Any hockey fan can see the holes all throughout the team and farm system.
cant wait until they get tyler myers from Vancouver to get over the hump. Add that sherwood dude now that the forest is out.