The wonderful readers of the mine and the Flyers Nitty Gritty are usually expecting the “Takeaways from the game”, where I usually dissect certain things I notice as a former player, a person of the media, and a fan. Well not this time. I want to takeaway the horrendous effort from this team.
Carter Hart is a 22-year old goaltender in his 2nd year. Playing behind a less then average defense more games then some. I know there is a bright future for the kid, and Hart couldn’t be more happier to be is a part of this team. That being said, Flyers fans can’t sit here and continue to say “the defense is to blame”. The defense is to blame, yes, but Carter Hart is struggling. He is not playing up to his potential and it’s starting to get worse. Hart is allowing up to four to five goals per game recently. I hope he can find his groove and turn it around but it’s concerning.
The Defensemen on this team look like they have zero communication with each other, on and off the ice. Constant turnovers that are costing goals and even games. Losing a two-time Stanley cup winner Matt Niskanen was a huge loss. They didn’t fill the void, and it wasn’t going to be easy to fill regardless. However, they have to play smarter together collectively as a group. This group has been with each other long enough to be able to get it going. Where is the leadership? Who is even the leader back there? This is absolutely concerning.
These are some of the most concerning issues we are starting to really see game in and game out. I can only hope they find a way to gel and start playing better hockey, the time is now. It’s time to play Flyers hockey gosh darn it. See you on Saturday.
That’s my story and I’m sticking to it
