With the Flyers up 2-1 and trying to hang on for a regulation win against the Boston Bruins on Saturday, Flyers captain Sean Couturier had the puck in the neutral zone. There was just over a minute to go, and Couturier could’ve simply taken a shot at the wide open net and, hopefully, hit the twine and finally score a goal. Fortunately for the team, the veteran skated the extra few strides, got over the red line and fired it toward the Bruins net. If he missed it was not the end of the world, it would’ve avoided the icing and pushed Boston back in their own zone to kill a few more precious seconds. However, Couturier’s shot hit the net. He scored, ending a ridiculously painful to watch slump.
Prior to Saturday’s goal — his sixth of the season — Couturier’s last goal was on Dec. 7 against the Avalanche. A stretch of 31 games. But it’s over. Thankfully for everyone. And it’s something that Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet addressed following Saturday’s game, recalling something a former star relayed to him earlier in Tocchet’s career.
“I had Adam Oates as an assistant coach and he was a high-end player obviously, he used to say, ‘A cheap assist, some kind of I don’t care what kind of goal can give a guy confidence,” Tocchet said. “And it makes sense. It loosens you up, even just to see your name up on the board. I don’t care if it’s an empty net or not, it loosens people up. I always remember Oates telling me that so maybe it helps Coots relax a little bit. He played a solid game for us.”
Sean Couturier’s first goal since December 7th 🚨
— Nasty Knuckles (@NastyKnuckles) February 28, 2026
pic.twitter.com/ax8sTPy74s
Sean Couturier finally scored, can this lead to something more?
With six goals and 22 assists, Couturier isn’t probably going to light the lamp up a lot the rest of the way. But, as Tocchet said, having a goal under your belt, regardless of the situation, circumstance, or the timing is irrelevant. Had the puck went off his face and into the net, Couturier probably would’ve taken it and been spitting out what few teeth he still has left. Especially when you’ve struggled to the degree Couturier has most of this season. It might have been a simple case of being due to score. The center had shots in seven of his last eight games, including four shots against Boston on Jan. 29 in a 6-3 loss, and three shots against Washington on Feb. 3. So it’s not like Couturier wasn’t trying,. It just wasn’t happening for him.
Thankfully, an insurance tally can help Couturier’s game simply by not gripping his stick so tight or stuck in his own head with the streak on his mental front burner. It’s also possible that when Denver Barkey returns to the lineup, and returns to playing with Couturier as he’s done a good chunk of his season, Couturier could be the recipient of a few more passes.
Those passes could result in the center finding the back of the net a little bit easier now the proverbial monkey is off his back. Nobody is expecting him to end up with 20 goals at the end of the season, but if he could get between 10 to 12 goals to finish off the 2025-26 season, it might be a little easier to swallow.
Regardless of whether he scored or not, Tocchet used Couturier a heck of a lot on Saturday. His ice time (20:20) was the first time he eclipsed the 20-minute mark since he played 22:10 against Carolina on Dec. 14, a 3-2 shootout loss on the road. It’s conceivable Couturier is going to be used a bit more down the stretch as the Flyers try to at least keep playing meaningful games for the time being despite needing to go on a lengthy winning streak to get back in the playoff conversation.
Nobody has questioned Couturier’s work ethic on the defensive side of the puck. He’s still essentially the go to guy in terms of important faceoffs, although Christian Dvorak has lightened that load a bit. But scoring that goal might be enough to see Couturier contributing a bit more on the offensive side. That certainly would be a welcomed sight the last 23 games.
