Shame on Flyers’ Alain Vigneault For Calling For Something He Already Had/Has At His Disposal.

With the latest decision from the Flyers’ head coach Alain Vigneault (AV) to make the team’s 24-year-old, 6’5 defensemen Philippe Myers a healthy scratch on the basis that he has not been playing physically, most fans would say “IT’S ABOUT TIME!!” I am I right?  

But my question is: Why is this the first time we are hearing about a move like this (regarding lack of physicality) from AV? We all know that Vigneault has proven in the past that if he thinks a player is under performing, he will move them down in the lineup and/or take them out of it completely (i.e., James van Riemsdyk, Jakub Voracek, and Shayne Gostisbehere last season).  Nevertheless, Myers is not the only one right now not playing physically! You could start with his defensive partner Travis Sanheim, who is 6’3 and never finishes a check either. Both would rather try and lazily poke check the opposition as they fly by them continuing on in their pursuit to the net instead of standing them up at the blue line by hurling them into the boards, essentially knocking them off the puck. The Flyers’ star acquisition from last season Kevin Hayes (who is 6’5) has been effective in putting the puck in the net lately but would make that list of players on the roster that are gifted physically but do not choose to put their massive frame to good use. In the offensive zone Hayes could choose to lay a decisive, bone-rattling hit on the other team’s defense while he’s on the fore check to regain control of the puck but instead he tends to try and pull up alongside and just stand next to the player trying to fish the puck out of the boards.  

There are plenty more examples of other players on the Flyers’ roster right now that I could share with similar traits (and I’m sure you could point out more as well) who would make this list, but you get the point. As many of you may know already if you read my articles on a regular basis, I’ve been preaching the need for some added grit and physicality for some time. The Broad Street Bullies have definitely been evicted from South Philadelphia! No one currently on the Flyers’ roster will even stand up and protect their players when the opposing team lays a dirty hit that could have resulted in an injury to one their teammates. The team as a whole has become timid. The latest examples of this are Scott Laughton getting dumped by some MMA move in the face off dot a couple of games ago, and Washington’s Garnet Hathaway’s downright disgusting play on Sean Couturier where he dropped elbows onto his head and continued to punch Sean while he was down on the ice. To which no Flyer did a thing about either incident.      

Who is to blame for this? Not the Flyers’ general manager in my mind! Yes, he could have made some better additions on the blue line this off season, but as far as physicality the players have been there, Vigneault has just shown an unwillingness to utilize them! 

You had the addition of Chris Stewart who was brought in by Chuck because of the way he played for him in Minnesota. Chris was a great leader and mentor in the locker room who was loved by all whom resided within. He played with plenty of grit and toughness; laying big hits in games and stood up for his teammates 5 times in just the 16 games that Vigneault allowed him to suit up for with the Flyers. During that short stint he took on bouts with some of the leagues most feared sparring partners: Nicolas Deslauriers from the Ducks, Ross Johnston from the Islanders, and Jamie Oleksiak of the Stars, for example. 

Next, there was Nate Thompson who was brought in by Fletcher at the trade deadline last season to add some grit to the bottom six. He looked unwilling to fight at times last season, when before in his career this was never the case. Could this because he was told not to?  

You can’t forget the 6’6 Sam Morin who has been in the team’s system for quite some time (and now that he’s finally healthy) who could bring some much-needed physicality to the lineup. Morin, who has been playing well for the teams’ American Hockey League affiliate- the Lehigh Valley Phantoms- this season at his natural position of defense. Has been under-utilized this season by the Flyers’ Vigneault: Playing in just 4 games this season at WING when injuries or sickness struck the Flyers locker room. He, too, could most certainly demonstrate to the rest of the Flyers what it looks like to finish a check and defend one another but finds himself still in the minors. 

But one of the most recent physical players that Chuck brought in last season that Alain had at his disposal but failed to ever utilize is Kurtis Gabriel! Before being brought to Philly, Kurtis had the NHL pedigree already- playing for Fletcher previously for the Wild and then in New Jersey for the Devils before Chuck was able to swipe him off the free agent list last season when he signed Kurtis to a contract of just $700,000. Gabriel is yet another amazing teammate who any coach would love to have within their locker room, who is also a leader off the ice as well being an advocate for the LGBTQ community, supporting mental health awareness and one who has been known to stand up against racial injustice. All of these are qualities that won him the IOA American Specialty AHL Man of the Year Award last season while he was a member of the Phantoms (an award he had won once before as well). On the ice though, this advocate (who stands at 6’4 and 201-pounds) is not so nice: he tends to bring the pain physically by way of delivering mind-numbing, memory-erasing checks whenever possible and- not to mention- when he sees the need to drop the gloves to protect a teammate. 

Since being overlooked by the Flyers’ bench boss last season, Kurtis has since decided to take his talents to San Jose this year signing an identical $700,000 one-year deal that he had last season with the Flyers. For the Sharks he has made an immediate impact- averaging close to 4 or 5 checks every night while also managing to relieve the Sharks’ star forward Evander Kane of all of his previous Friday Night Fight duties; taking on any and all contenders that come his way so that Kane can just focus on putting the puck in the back of the net. 

If you view his past fight reel you can see the difference in Kurtis Gabriel’s game when he was docile with the Flyers where he looked almost handcuffed and unwilling to fight in a preseason game against the Islanders last year where heavyweight Ross Johnston wanted to drop the gloves with him, but Gabriel wanted to no part of it. The announcer can be heard saying “he’s a tough customer who has a lot of fighting experience but looks like he wants absolutely no part of Ross Johnston right now.” 

The reserved Dr. Jekyll:

Then look at the completely different monster that he has been with San Jose this year and was with Minnesota and New Jersey before. An almost Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde transformation if you will. Could there be some truth to the speculation that Vigneault doesn’t want or see much need for the physical side of the game? Would his calling for it now then make him a bit of a hypocrite? 

The ruffian Mr. Hyde:

So, with his time with the Flyers’ organization now a thing of the past, Kurtis Gabriel looks to have become the latest ex-Flyer to move on to green pastures after being under-utilized during his time in Philadelphia. But again, I don’t think the fault should land on the general manager here: Fletcher did have the pieces in place to mimic the success of what Tampa Bay did when they added physical players Patrick Maroon, Barclay Goodrow and Zach Bogosian to their already offensively-gifted team. Ultimately, Vigneault chose not to use them which resulted in the Flyers being bounced out of the playoffs by the extremely physical New York Islanders last season. 

Now, the Flyers’ management and Vigneault can all sit here and over analyze the “what if” situations of the past and/or the root of the current Flyers’ struggles, but they should swallow their pride and realize their mistakes and get back to the foundations of what this game was built on and enforce the thing that separates this game from most of the other major sports, the one element that truly used to get every fan on their feet and cheering in the Wells Fargo Center (but what the Flyers are currently lacking): PHYSICALITY!!!  If you look at the last few Stanley Cup winners before the Lightning (who followed their predecessors’ formula), they played with it as well. The St. Louis Blues had players on their roster like Patrick Maroon, Jordan Nolan, and Colton Parayko to name a few when they won. The Washington Capitals the year before them had Tom Wilson, Brooks Orpik, and Matt Niskanen as well. All of whom played/still play that physical/gritty style of game and would stand up for their teammates when they needed them to during that grueling run for Lord Stanley’s Cup: a trait that no regular member of the Flyers roster has had since the departure of the then aging Wayne Simmonds. The Flyers must get back to what made them feared around the league not so many years ago. They lack that player like Kurtis Gabriel whose play may not show on the score board but is inspiring to his team nonetheless. A player like that can motivate others team wide by just his play alone. The Flyers need a player who can do that and who plays with the heart and the ferocity that the Flyers once did in the 90’s and the early 2000’s when they were last at their best: That trend should also begin with the coach trying to instill this quality into all his players by making sure they complete each and every checking opportunity and never take a shift off. In order to do this, Vigneault should first call out his captain and assistant captains to make sure they then will lead by example while out on the ice- holding these players accountable above all others, making sure to get the maximum effort out of them by forcing them to play the game the right way. These veterans are the most influential to the younger players on the roster and, if you can get them going, the others would then follow suit.  It is imperative that they do this soon because, if they don’t, the Flyers will continue in their downward spiral and find themselves settling for mediocrity and thus be out of the playoffs.