Photo Credit: Rob Windfelder
The Flyers played a pretty tight game last night against the Vegas Golden Knights. Although the final score was 5-3 they were only down by a goal when they pulled Felix Sandstrom for the extra attacker. All in all it was a pretty even match. Both teams were really patient with the puck all night. The Flyers were cautious with their possessions, sometimes a little too cautious. There was strong puck support and decent coverage for the better part of the game. There were a couple break downs that left Sandstrom out to dry but as Coach likes to say, the effort was there.
“They just don’t finish”
It’s a totally unfair advantage to sit upstairs where you can see exactly where everyone is and where all the open lanes are. It is quite a different situation to be on the ice moving the puck with NHL caliber players coming at you and giving you no time to ponder your next move. It ain’t chess it’s professional ice hockey and decisions are made instantaneously. They have to be. That being said the Flyers seemed to be going for that one extra pass over and over again all night. They kept running out of space or time or both without someone getting a shot off.
They spent time nibbling around the edges passing the puck around the perimeters with the fans yelling “shoot” but that’s not what I’m referring to. More specifically it was them successfully carrying into the zone. Having two guys in the slot with the puck and going for that one extra pass instead of one of them taking a shot on net. At the post game press conference Head Coach John Tortorella kept harkening back to the fact that “they just don’t finish”.
Perhaps it is a confidence thing where they think they need to have the absolutely perfect play to sneak one in? Goal scoring has been an issue for sure. Sometimes you just gotta throw it at the net. Other teams do it to them all the time. Another area where they need to keep pushing until the job is done is when it comes to getting the puck out of their own zone.
Owen Tippett
Owen Tippett makes things happen out there on the ice. He doesn’t wait for things to happen he creates his chances, sometimes out of thin air. He’s fast, creative, and hard working. And to complete the package he has a great shot. It is apparent how impressed Tortorella is with his play especially as of late. He came to Philly as part of the Giroux deal and he has been a great surprise.
Tortorella is honest about the lack of penalty killers on the team right now. This is an area where they really miss Travis Konecny. When him and Scott Laughton are on the penalty kill together they are aggressive and they generate a lot of offense even while shorthanded. It’s been referred to as the Power Kill and it has been successful for them this season. Without TK on the PK it’s just not the same. So the Flyers have got to be more careful about taking penalties. Last night there was one for too many men, another for closing a hand on the puck. Avoidable stuff that put them in shorthanded situations that Vegas took advantage of. The Knights scored two power play goals in this game.
Wow
Lastly, Nick Seeler scored a highlight reel goal in the third period that dropped the jaw of everyone in the barn. It was an unassisted thing of beauty. Someone began to ask Tortorella about it at the presser and he didn’t even let them get the question out. “That was a hell of a goal and it couldn’t have happened to a better guy”. Seeler was surrounded by Knights he dangled around two of them and popped an old fashioned bottle knocker high glove side. If you didn’t see it look it up. …I bet you watch it more than once.
