PHILADELPHIA, PA - NOVEMBER 29: Ivan Provorov #9 of the Philadelphia Flyers warms up prior to the game against the Detroit Red Wings at the Wells Fargo Center on November 29, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
Photo Credit: Getty Images
“Winning, winning” Flyers star defenceman in Ivan Provorov said earlier in the year. Provorov is only just 24-years-old, and it’s hard to believe that he may miss his second straight Olympics this time for to Covid-19.
“As you know, I have not had the opportunity to play in the previous games, and the upcoming ones may give such a chance. It would be a shame to miss two Olympics, but we must do the right thing.” – Ivan Provorov said about possibly missing his second straight Olympic games
Provorov continued, “So we hope to go there and wait for more information, which will be soon should appear. In this issue, you need to take into account many factors.“
The players knew something like this could happen, especially with the league shutting down from December 22-26, with games resuming on December 27 due to Covid affecting the entire league.
A work-horse in Provorov did talk about playing in his 400th game the other night, “I am proud to be able to go on the ice in every match and have the opportunity to help my team achieve victories. 400 matches in a row means a lot to me, and I do not plan to stop. I want to continue to work hard and closely monitor my condition to play as much as possible.”
He has played with mainly Justin Braun as his partner this season, due to the uncertainty with Ryan Ellis. Provorov actually has only accumulated his fourth most ice time in his career averaging 24:23 on the season thus far. At times it feels like he has been on the ice for forever, so this is sort of surprising. In addition, Provorov looks more confident under this new regime of Mike Yeo and his staff, as he has netted two goals and nine assists on the season. He’s making less turnovers, playing in position, while leading the charge up the ice offensively for the Flyers at times.
Whatever the case maybe, hopefully, Provorov continues to improve under Yeo, as his team needs it. The Flyers need Provorov to good from here on out, as the season appears to be hanging on by a limb.
