The Philadelphia Flyers had an opportunity to be on the wrong side of history when they came face to face with the winless San Jose Sharks, who had started their season 0-10-1. The Flyers had already lost to an 0-10-1 team back in 2017 to the Arizona Coyotes and if they were on the wrong end of San Jose, they would have been the first team in NHL history to accomplish that feat twice.
The Flyer-killer in Mackenzie Blackwood produced one of his better performances in the season as he stopped 38 shots and backstopped the Sharks to their first win of the season. The hockey world and the Flyers fan base had a fun time with the defeat, many claiming the Flyers surprising start to the season was a mere mirage. After a 3-1-0 start to the season, the Flyers had lost 7 of their previous 9 games – including the Sharks game – going 2-6-1.
Since that game, the Flyers have been nearly unstoppable, going 10-3-1, defeating teams like the Colorado Avalanche along the way, and claiming two winning streaks of 4+ games, looking for their second 5-game winning streak tonight against the Nashville Predators.
Their revenge tour started off with a bang after they defeated the Anaheim Ducks 6-3 on the road before taking down the Los Angeles Kings the very next day by a score of 4-2. They then took down the Carolina Hurricanes 3-1 to end the road trip before coming back home and defeating the defending Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights 4-3 in overtime.
The Ducks had defeated the Flyers handedly on home ice by a score of 7-4, the Hurricanes squeaked out a late victory in Philadelphia, the Kings shut the Flyers out – once again on home ice – and the Golden Knights tied the game in the third period before scoring the go-ahead goal with 30 seconds left on the clock in prior games.
The resiliency that the club showed was on full display, they looked thoroughly dominated for most of it, and at the time each team that they were facing off against were playing really good hockey. They defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets on the back-end of a back-to-back set before dropping 4 of their next 5.
The schedule makers did them no favours as they embarked on a 10-game stretch where they played the Metropolitan Division 9 times, including 8 straight. They beat Columbus, lost to the New York Islanders and New York Rangers, beat the Islanders, lost to the Hurricanes and the New Jersey Devils, before a home-and-home sweep of the Pittsburgh Penguins; going 4-3-1 in that stretch.
After taking down their cross-state rival, the Flyers then defeated the Arizona Coyotes who had just taken down the last 5 Stanley Cup champions in a row and the ever-dangerous Colorado Avalanche on the road with a strong third period.
In their last 14 games since their defeat to San Jose, the Flyers are 10-3-1, have outscored their opponents 45-32, have outshot their opponents 467 to 428, have 3 shorthanded goals, operate a 15.7% power play, and have killed off 91.67% of their penalties. They also own a 49.0% CF%, 50.4% FF%, are 48.2% on the draws, and have a PDO of 100.9.
Their penalty kill has been magnificent and outside a rough stretch of 7 games where they allowed 7 goals on 23 opportunities, the Flyers have been lights out when down a man. They have killed off 44 of their last 48 attempts – take the Ducks game out of that equation and it’s 40 of 42 in their last 13 – lead the league with 7 shorthanded tallies, and are more dangerous down a man than they are with the extra skater.
Their road splits have also been fantastic as they’ve allowed 3 goals or less in 11 straight contests, compiling a record of 8-3-0 and defeating the likes of Vegas, Los Angeles, Carolina, and Colorado.
While the scoring has dried up a little with just 45 across 14 games, it has still been a balanced attack leading the way. Sean Couturier, Travis Konecny, and Owen Tippett each have 11 points, Tyson Foerster and Travis Sanheim have totalled 9 points apiece, Cam York has 8, and Joel Farabee and Sean Walker have 7. Konecny and Tippett also lead the way with 7 goals apiece, Foerster has 5, and Couturier and Farabee each have 4.
Konecny is also at the top of the list with a +11 rating, Couturier and Nick Seeler follow suit with a +9, Walker is +7, Foerster is +6, and Louie Belpedio (in just 5 games) and Tippett are +4. Scott Laughton is at the bottom of the list with a -5.
Cam Atkinson has struggled after his hot start to the season with just 2 goals and 6 points with a minus-5 rating in his last 17 games but the rest of the team has picked up the slack as he looks to get back on track.
With the Flyers playing as well as they have, it’s no surprise to see Sanheim, Walker, and York at the top of the list for ATOI with Sanheim at 25:27, Walker at 22:00, and York right behind him at 21:44. Konecny and Couturier pace the forwards at 19:47 and 19:27 respectively, Foerster not too far behind at 18:01, and Seeler continuing his strong campaign at 19:08.
On the season the Flyers are 13-1-0 when scoring the first goal compared to the 17-11-4 mark they held last season and they’re 9-5-2 when outshooting their opponents compared to the 14-18-4 record they held last season. The only real big issue the Flyers have to tackle is when they allow the first goal their record is 2-9-2 this season and was 14-27-9 last year. In their defense they started the season 0-9-1 when allowing the first goal so they have picked up a few wins along the way.
For the last line of defense, Carter Hart is 5-3-1 in 9 games with a 2.34 GAA and a .923 SV% with Samuel Ersson going 4-0-0 with a 1.92 GAA, .932 SV%, and posting a shutout. Cal Petersen has one game mixed in there where he defeated his old team in Los Angeles with 35 saves on 37 shots. The Flyers have only allowed 2.29 goals per game during this lengthy stretch.
The Flyers have made hockey fun again, they have brought back a lost and disappointed fan base, and the best part is they’re nowhere near done improving. As we head into the Christmas break and New Year’s the Flyers have a jam packed schedule upcoming with 9 games in the final 19 days of the month – which includes a 6-day break in between the 22nd and 28th.
They finish off their road trip tonight against Nashville before returning home for games against Washington and Detroit this week. Then before the Christmas break they are on the road against the Devils on the 19th, back home to face the Predators on the 21st before going to Detroit the following day to finish off a back-to-back set. Coming out of the break they head out west and play Vancouver, Seattle, Calgary, and Edmonton on the 28th, 29th, 31st of December and the 2nd of January, respectively.
It’s an interesting mix of games as the Flyers see the Predators and Red Wings twice, face off in critical divisional games against the Capitals and Devils, and then head off for their dreaded Western Canadian (and now Seattle) road trip.
John Tortorella has instilled a confidence and swagger into a team that nobody believed in. I’m not sure how many pages, pundits, and everyone in between had them not only missing the post-season but finishing in the bottom-5, sometimes even the bottom-3. Some of that was ridiculous because on paper the Flyers were nowhere close to Chicago and San Jose, but to be 15-10-2 and 3rd in the Metropolitan Division in the second week of December has surprised us all.
2024 Stadium Series Trip
Flyers Nation and Philly Sports Trips have teamed up to bring you on an amazing bus trip to the 2024 NHL Stadium Series between the Flyers and Devils. Place an early deposit to reserve your spot at the ultimate tailgate experience at MetLife Stadium before the game. The package includes a game ticket, round-trip charter bus, an all-inclusive tailgate party with unlimited cold beverages, “Philly Style” catered food, live entertainment, and more.
