The Flyers, fresh off a nifty 3-2 shootout winner Friday night to get things rolling in Vancouver, faced off against Calgary Saturday night. After a moving ceremony dedicated to the passing of Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau, the Flyers were flying but simply couldn’t finish in a 6-3 loss to the Flames.
The basics
First period: 5:37 — Jonathan Huberdeau (Martin Pospisil, Anthony Mantha), 7:43 — MacKenzie Weegar (Jonathan Huberdeau, Andrei Kuzmenko) (PPG)
Second period: 7:05 — Travis Konecny (Scott Laughton, Erik Johnson) (SHG), 14:41 — Nazem Kadri (Andrei Kuzmenko, Jonathan Huberdeau (PPG), 18:11 — Joel Farabee (Bobby Brink, Sean Couturier)
Third period: 14:46 — Mikael Backlund (Blake Coleman, Connor Zary), 15:34 — Jonathan Huberdeau (Martin Pospisil, Jake Bean), 17:10 — Travis Konecny (Matvei Michkov) (PPG), 18:16 — Nazem Kadri (Andrei Kuzmenko, MacKenzie Weegar) (EN)
SOG: 40 (PHI) — 33 (CAL)
Some takeaways
Fedotov OK in second start ever
Although there was some speculation that Sam Ersson would get the start again after Friday night’s opener, Sam Ersson was given the night off and Ivan Fedotov was given his first start of the season. The start wasn’t great, giving up a fluke of a goal from Johnathan Huberdeau’s right shoulder that bounced in. Why it was even reviewed, I haven’t the foggiest, but it was an early 1-0 Flames lead.
The second goal he let in was a power play goal that he didn’t have much of a chance stopping high on the blocker side. The third goal? Well, that was one Fedotov needed to stop to keep the Flyers within a goal. He didn’t.
It might be ridiculous to determine what the Flyers have in Fedotov so soon. What would have been great though was seeing him make a key save to prevent the third Calgary goal. But, one has to remember he has two career starts. That, and he kept the Flyers in striking distance with some unorthodox stops to wrap up the second and start the third before things went pear-shaped. As most fans understand with this team, any stop no how matter how ugly it looks is a good thing.
Noah’s Arc
Noah Cates did very little in training camp to make a case he belonged in the lineup. However, after watching the opener from the press box, coach John Tortorella opted to give Jett Luchanko the night off and put Cates in. Cates was pretty much a non-factor early, the only time his name being mentioned was flipping the puck in for an offensive zone face late in the first period.
Midway through the second, the Flyers were obliterating the Flames in the faceoff circle yet Cates was at a rather paltry 33.3 percent that far into the game. On the whole it was not a great night for him when he’s trying to keep himself with ice time.
MMgood
After a decent first shift that gave the Flyers their first chance of the night, Matvei Michkov’s consistency started to show. There was no jaw-dropping plays or attempts at Michkovigans. It was just that every shift in the first for the Mad Russian the Flyers seemed to be in the right end of the ice and with a better than average chance to score. A chances for percentage (CF%) of 75.00 after the first period indicates they are buzzing, just yet to finish. Paired with Travis Konecny and Morgan Frost, Michkov could’ve sealed a fantastic rush that started with Drysdale and a few back passes before Michkov’s shot sailed wide.
There was some concern in the second when Frost looked like he got bowled over with a clean check, ending up heading to the bench before heading down the hallway to the locker room. During a television timeout Frost was seen heading back on the ice which was obviously a good sign. What is obvious is that Michkov creates offensive and opportunities, resulting in the Flyers having a decisive edge in shots after 40 minutes.
Late in the third, with the game almost sealed up, the Flyers got a power play and Michkov got his first NHL point, an assist on a goal by Konecny.
Couturier still finding his way
Sean Couturier’s pace and John Tortorella’s pace might be two very different paces. But Couturier being one of the first to blow his own zone is a rarity. The captain’s first shift saw him cheating up ice as the Flames had a great chance. Fortunately Fedotov had a much better save. Couturier dodged a check in the first and also slid into the boards but looked no worse for wear on either occasion. After seeing some time between Owen Tippett and Bobby Brink, Couturier unfortunately had a clean sheet (no points, no shots but over 85 percent on face offs) but a rush up ice on a line with Brink and Farabee resulted in the Flyers crucially cutting the lead in half.
It seemed the longer the game went, the more Couturier looked to be in the right spot or trying to do something productive. Whether Tortorella sees the same thing is anyone’s guess, but the captain might have known with a possibly banged up Frost, no Luchanko, and Ryan Poehling taking idiotic penalties it might have been on his centerman shoulders to carry more of the weight.
Special teams
The Flyers got themselves into a bad spot seven minutes in. After Konecny and Calgary’s Brayden Pachal took coincidental minors, Ryan Poehling (who also took an idiotic penalty in the second) took a rather lazy tripping call that gave the Flames a 4-on-3 advantage. And they took very little time getting their second of the night as MacKenzie Weegar blew a top shelf shot over Fedotov for a 2-0 lead. Philadelphia got their first man advantage halfway through the first and opened it with two good looks, albeit from far out.
It’s worth noting the Flyers are playing a lot quicker with the man advantage over 2023-24, creating a lot more space and a lot better chances. Another plus it this was the same execution whether Egor Zamula was at the point for the second unit or Jamie Drysdale was there for the top unit. Having Poehling on either unit was perplexing if not downright head-scratching. Rewarding him for dumb penalties? Well, they did score their first short-handed goal of the season on Poehling’s second minor of the night as Konecny started a pretty give-and-go with Scott Laughton before potting it past Flames’ goalie Dustin Wolf.
Unfortunately, they got themselves into deep doo doo in the second. After Jamie Drysdale was nailed by Martin Pospisil, Tyson Foerster took it upon himself to pull a Couturier — that is, defend a player he thought got taken advantage of. Foerster held his own against the Flames forward but the decision to go after him cost Foerster 17 minutes in penalties. During Foerster’s minor Travis Sanheim took a minor, leaving the Flyers down two men. Two power play goals against a penalty kill that was steady most of last season is not a great sign. It’s early, yes, but still not a great way to start. Nick Seeler’s eventual return (we hope) will probably have a say in how quickly this penalty kill gets back to its effectiveness. Otherwise, one might start thinking Rocky Thompson is running the penalty kill this season …
