Flyers Starter Jacket Recipient
No one. They’ve lost seven in a row. Fun doesn’t exist. No such thing as moral victories.
Eye Test
Joel Farabee, the only Flyer who had been producing with three goals in the previous three games, went to the locker room with an upper body injury ten minutes into the first. He did not return.
The Flyers look lost in all three zones. The waning confidence of the team offensively and defensively during this losing streak has been alarming. Even the body language of the coaching staff looks like their beloved pet recently passed away. Perennial optimist and American hero Jim Jackson even sounds depressed in the tone he is calling the games in.
The only thing that turns this season around is a firing or big trade.
Justin Braun got lit up from behind by Dryden Hunt. It was originally called a boarding major but was changed to charging major. It was without a doubt a penalty. Braun was cut and Rangers coach Gerard Gallant was unhappy with the call. The Rangers killed it off, but the Flyers looked semi alive.
Igor Shesterkin made some very nice saves. The Flyers’ subsequent power plays were positive but did not provide any goals. The Flyers played better from the major penalty on, but they cannot give a 3-0 head start to a very good team.
Things I Loved
James van Riemsdyk started off the game firing the puck. He is a player that needs to score to be effective. He doesn’t play the penalty kill and isn’t overly physical. If he is not scoring, he is an albatross to the Flyers’ cap woes.
The Flyers deflected some pucks towards the net. Good to see. A dirty but good goal from Morgan Frost was the result of one of them, as Frost and Cam Atkinson both went to the net and poked it past Shesterkin. The newly formed line of Claude Giroux, Atkinson, and Frost was a positive.
Sean Couturier had a strong 2nd half of the game. He had a bunch of scoring chances, and the puck would just not go in the net. Snake bitten is an understatement.
Things I Hated
Pairing Ivan Provorov with Nick Seeler is not ideal. Can we ask Matt Niskanen out of retirement to play every other game? Has anyone tried that?
The Flyers’ special teams are still putrid. Dryden Hunt, presumably of ketchup fame, walked Provorov like a domesticated dog for the Rangers’ 2nd goal. The Flyers were unable to stop a cross-ice pass from Artemi Panarin that preceded the goal.
This team still can’t complete a cross-ice pass on the power play.
The Flyers’ defensive structure of collapsing around their own net is also troublesome. By not pressuring the puck carrier, they are allowing the other team to dictate everything. It is understandable to collapse on the penalty kill or trying to protect a one goal lead at the end of the game, but it cannot be the default at even strength.
The Flyers did not react when the Rangers shot into the net after a whistle. The Flyers have gotten penalties in the past for that exact infraction. The Rangers’ third goal was the result of a terrible clear by Scott Laughton and Travis Konecny flying from the defensive zone prematurely.
Oskar Lindblom played under 8 minutes of ice time, which was the 2nd-least amount of time out of the forwards (excluding Farabee who got injured). He needs a full reset.
Random Thought(s)
I hope everyone had a happy and healthy Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is an underrated holiday, there is football on, it has a solid message of saying and giving thanks, and you do not have to go to church for it.
The Flyers “State of the Union” press conference yesterday was a joke. It was just more of same of the last 10 years of mediocrity. I truly believe that Ed Snider was the greatest owner in sports history and truly loved and cared for his team and franchise. The Flyers are rudderless without his vision.
On a more positive note, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia returns for its 15th season. It is one of the most quotable shows and they really go for it at all costs. This is on my Mount Rushmore of comedy shows.
