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Last season, the goaltending was the clear-cut weakness for the Philadelphia Flyers. It was arguably the worst unit in the NHL and single-handedly lost them games. This season, it’s a strength for the rebuilding team.
“They looked big in the net,” head coach Rick Tocchet noted on Tuesday after the Flyers’ 5-2 win over the Florida Panthers. Dan Vladar stood out in the game with 24 saves on 26 shots, and the offseason addition has arguably been the team’s best player through three games. He was the star of the home opener, and the team presented him with the Bernie Parant goalie mask because of it (which will be awarded to the player of the game but fittingly, went to a goaltender).
The defense, meanwhile, is the new — well, not so new, but currently the biggest — weak link for the Flyers. It struggled in each of the three games and nearly cost them the win against the Panthers. It’s a unit the Flyers must fix if they look to make progress in their rebuild, and the first month of the season is an ideal time to work on the technical stuff.
Why The Flyers Defense Has Struggled
The Flyers have two goaltenders who play big and can make the initial saves. With that in mind, the Flyers are building the defense around them to make sure they see and stop the initial shots. It’s why the shot totals, which are high through three games, aren’t indicative of the poor play since it’s by design.
The second-chance shots and the rebounds are. The Sam Bennett goal in the latest game was a testament to the Flyers’ inability to control the puck deep in their zone and eliminate the second or third chances. This is a defense that must clean up those pucks after the initial shot to help out their goaltenders.
It’s also the quality of the shot that hurts the Flyers. They’ve allowed a few in the slot or near the net, which can’t be pinned on Vladar or Samuel Ersson. “The ones are right in the slot to not give them those chances, so try to keep them on the outside as much as possible,” Adam Ginning noted after practice. The combination creates a tough balance for the defense but one they can work on, especially as they add players back to the lineup.
The Moving Parts Have Led to Growing Pains
The reality is the Flyers don’t have a lot of their key contributors in the lineup. Cam York, Rasmus Ristolainen, and top prospect Oliver Bonk have battled injuries. It’s resulted in Emil Andrea getting the call-up from the American Hockey League (AHL) to a limited role, while Adam Ginning has become a regular whom Tocchet has to lean on.
“He’s been in the right spots,” Tocchet noted about the 25-year-old Ginning, who noted after practice the importance of positioning to improve the unit. “If you’re out of position, it’s hard to get back,” Ginning added after practice. He’s stepped up in the increased role and been a pleasant surprise, “We need him, we’re thin back there,” Tocchet added.
The bigger picture issue is that the Flyers are rebuilding and eventually want to see the young defensemen take on significant roles. Andrea didn’t have that role in the recent game but eventually he will, along with Bonk, when he’s healthy. It will lead to issues with positioning and allow opponents to take advantage. The position takes time to learn at the NHL level, and the young skaters don’t have that time under their belts, at least not yet.
How The Flyers Defense Will Improve
This is the time of the season to work out the issues, and the Flyers have the homestand and extra practice time to do so. Tocchet wants the defense to be great in an ideal world. Yet, he has the long game in mind, not just for this season but in general with the team rebuilding.
The first few weeks are about the details and working on positioning. By the end of the season, the defensemen will understand his system and the goaltenders and be a better group because of it.
There is still the possibility that the Flyers look for someone to round out the unit. They need a depth skater who can play the dirty areas but doesn’t come with a pricetag either (a waiver claim would have been the way to go). Ironically, Louie Belpedio is the type of defenseman they can use but he’s playing for the Hershey Bears these days, and the Flyers need a better version of him (it’s why they let him leave in the offseason).
The Flyers have the players to fix the defense. The reality is that they are injured. Cam York’s return is a bright spot for that reason, as he’s practicing with the team in a contact jersey (presumably, to play in Thursday’s game).
Other Flyers Practice Notes
It’s commonplace for the head coach to be one of the first skaters out on the ice for practice. What isn’t is Nikita Grebenkin, who was working one-on-one with Tocchet before everyone joined. It wasn’t just beforehand, either, as Tocchet worked closely with Grenkin throughout practice with drills to work on quick scoring chances and situations in the offensive zone.
Tocchet is high on the Russian prospect who is slowly becoming a regular in the forward unit. “Grebenkin, he’s the one guy who should be out there, you guys should be asking about him,” he barked to the media, who were understandably asking a lot about another young Russian forward.
Speaking of which, the Flyers fans have picked up on Matvei Michkov’s struggles and his inability to find ice time under Tocchet. The head coach tried his best to fan the flames, noting the progress he’s made in recent games. “I thought he was moving his feet,” he stated following practice, something the Flyers will try to have Michkov work a lot in leading up to Thursday night’s game, adding, “We just gotta stack some days together,” with a few practice days between games.
The big thing Tocchet kept pointing to was the situations and how the games have developed. The Flyers aren’t going to ask Michkov to kill penalties despite the team’s willingness to take them. Likewise, Tocchet is trying to keep the lines balanced, at least for the time being, stating, “We’re a balanced type of team, we’re not a one-line team,” after practice.
It’s hard to figure out who is who during practice when the jersey numbers aren’t available (and the eyesight of yours truly isn’t good enough to see the numbers on the helmets). One player who stood out was Trevor Zegras, and it wasn’t just because of the long hair (although that helped). He skates with that extra burst and has a little extra in his game that the Flyers were hoping he’d provide when they got him. He showed it in practice but more importantly, showed it in the latest game, with the assist to Sean Couturier on the game-winning goal.
It’s been fun watching Buium put up 5 points already.
He’s the new version of passing up Cale Makar, it seems.
Meh the flyers have lots of bums so no hand wringing please.