Photo Credit: Katelynn Reiss
The Flyers fell 4-2 in a hard fought loss to the Florida Panthers Saturday night, but that doesn’t discount the fact that they had a very promising opening homestand. A large portion of the early success has come from a new set of faces in the locker room. Specifically, the Flyers have gotten great production out of recently acquired forwards Cam Atkinson and Derick Brassard. To go along with their quality play, the young winger Joel Farabee has continued to show his superb talent early in the season. So far, he’s potted three goals in just four games, and Atkinson has four goals in four games on the same line. If that doesn’t feel like enough positivity, Carter Hart has even seemed like the Hart we saw in Everett. All of this leads me to ask one question… does something feel different here?
For the better part of the last decade, the Flyers have been spinning the tires of mediocrity year in and year out. Although it’s too early to totally put away those fears, it seems like this team has at least some moxie to them. So far, it seems like GM Chuck Fletcher’s approach of building from outside the organization has breathed some new life into what felt like a quickly souring core. Chuck’s moves of bringing in good locker room guys like Nate Thompson, Keith Yandle, and Ryan Ellis give the team a sense of identity again. No longer is the Flyers bottom-six corps full of undrafted freeagents or low tier prospects, the group now has some physicality to bring to the table. The aforementioned Thompson has shown that he is willing to throw around his weight to protect his teammates, a trait sorely missing from recent Flyers rosters. He’s accompanied by fellow big boy Zack MacEwen, who has also shown his ability to play physically. Lastly, the team has gotten a large boost in a category that is often very difficult to predict.
All young players develop differently, which is why it feels like there have been so many ups and downs in the past few Flyers seasons. Hart had a down year last year like many young players (especially goalies) often do. Growing pains are a very real thing in the sport of hockey, and it’s easy to lose patience with players. That’s why it’s incredible to see a consistent upward trajectory from Joel Farabee. Farabee led the team in scoring last year, and certainly seems as if he’s on pace to put up another stellar season this year. Not to mention, the Flyers are doing this without 2C Kevin Hayes and young, budding winger Wade Allison. Hopefully for all of our sake, this Flyers team might not be so frustrating this year.
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