The upcoming playoff series between the Philadelphia Flyers and the Pittsburgh Penguins might not be the most beautiful set of hockey games in the world. There will be moments of pure hockey skill on display and some high-pace play, but it could be an absolute collision between two forces and one side (the good guys) want to shut down offense as much as possible to grind out a win.
But, that doesn’t mean it won’t be an entertaining series.
We know that the NHL truly needs to have the Broad Street Bullies back at the peak of their powers and entertainment value. It’s almost necessary to have a team back again that is known to get under the skin of every single opponent they face and can control the game in other ways that scoring goals and keeping possession and all that nice and pretty stuff. And this Flyers team certainly has the personnel to do exactly that.
In this series, considering the opponent and the quiet “house money” feeling of this from both teams — since no one expected either team to truly be here and it’s not like they’re projected to be strong Stanley Cup contenders even after 82 games of winning more games than they lost — there might be plenty of extra cirricular activities in between the whistle.
So, who are the Flyers players that we know can annoy and piss off the Penguins the most?
Trevor Zegras
It’s so easy to imagine Trevor Zegras being able to wiggle his way under the skin of every single Penguins defenseman, as they’re trying to deal with keeping up with his high-end passing plays and then just being a little tiny worm in between the whistles. He won’t dominate anyone physically, or drop the gloves to beat anyone to a pulp, but Zegras absolutely will be like a little brother poking at his sibling and driving them crazy.
Maybe it will be after he scores a timely goal, or just weaves his way to standing right up on top of Stuart Skinner in his crease, forcing all the Penguins’ diminutive blueliners to say “hey, that’s not faaaaaair“. But we almost guarantee at least one moment where Zegras did something to pester the Penguins and they all get right up in his face and all he does is just stands his ground and smiles back.
Yeah, we know that Zegras already had a somewhat embarrassing moment of trying to intimidate or annoy Pittsburgh defenseman Connor Clifton earlier this season, as he did some head fakes while staring right into his eyes. But hopefully he has learned that he doesn’t need to try and be the tough guy, but just the annoying little weasel to make it even more effective.
Porter Martone
He’s new here, but Porter Martone can be a big factor in the Being Annoying category. He did it all during his career with the OHL’s Brampton Steelheads — getting right in the face of opponents and scruffing them up, maybe taking a penalty along the way, but still being the needed nuisance to get in their head. Martone even did it at Michigan State in massive games, getting physical along the boards or netfront and holding space for anyone that would even attempt to try and push him around.
That’s what the Flyers have kind of missed. Someone who can be annoying as all get out, but physically large enough to then pose an actual threat to any opponent who really wants to test him. We have seen rosters full of little tiny rats squeaking around opponents (and we love our rats) but not since last decade have we been able to be the bully.
It could take a couple games for Martone to understand the rhythm of the playoffs and whether or not he should try to push the envelope in the annoying factor. And, he is a 19-year-old that still holds a whole lot of respect for NHL veterans around him — so it might not be Sidney Crosby he tries to get into the face off, but the likes of Connor Dewar or Blake Lizotte? Martone might pick up a knife and fork and come up with a game plan to poke and prod and make those Penguins lose their minds.
It also helps that Martone is going to be on a line with someone who is guaranteed to try something in Game 1.
Travis Konecny
Ah, the cream of the crop. The Flyers player that views this practice as an artform — something necessary to bring to the table as he does almost every single night. Travis Konecny is going to feast on the brains of everyone wearing black and gold.
It’s something we can all see, because we’ve seen it happen so many times before; Konecny puts himself at the center of some scrum because he poked at a goalie’s pad a little too long to try and get the greasiest goal in NHL history, or made a little borderline play with a little elbow in the gut of Anthony Mantha, or something.
We don’t even need to go too deep in this little write-up because we know, if anyone on this team, it’s going to be Konecny putting himself in the middle of all of this.
Lots of honorable mentions
But, those three are certainly not the only players on the Flyers who are capable of doing something like this — and we’re not even sure if Martone will be comfortable enough to be annoying before he even plays 15 NHL games total. The Flyers have several players who can take up the mantle of being the team’s best on any given night.
Denver Barkey can go to the school of Travis Konecny and be that little winger who just gives that little extra hit on the forecheck and be a straight up bug against the opposing defensemen. If he was 6-foot-2 playing his game, it would almost be less annoying for the other team; it would be understandable that he just plays hard. But considering that he’s shorter and looks like he should be going to junior high instead of playing in the NHL playoffs, it’s easy to imagine him ruffling some feathers in that, similar to Zegras, little brother sense.
And there are still so many more. Tyson Foerster can be impossible to get the puck from along the boards, Owen Tippett will power through just about any defenseman, Matvei Michkov has rat tendencies and we just pray he doesn’t get penalized for it, and of course the fourth line of Luke Glendening, Sean Couturier, and Garnet Hathaway can piss off the Penguins in a more grown-up, mature way.
If the Flyers have any advantage (other than in the crease), it’s the fact that they can scramble the brains and get so many Penguins red and hot and angry just so easily with all the players they have who boast that talent.
The very first moment Konecny just smiles or chirps or makes fun of Evgeni Malkin having the face of a dog in the pound but he’s also slowly melting, is going to make us so happy.
