Flyers coach John Tortorella isn’t one to wax poetically about his roster and talent, but on Monday morning after practice the coach was quick to elaborate on just how good Emil Andrae has been in the brief amount of time he’s been with the club.
“He made a couple of plays in that second period where I thought it was one of our better 15 minutes of transition and forechecking,” the coach said about Andrae’s play Saturday in the 3-0 loss to Boston. “Basically every clip I have it starts with Emil getting it up the ice, chipping it off the wall and let us skate on to it. A quick play up the ice, he’s in the tape all over the place as far as transition. So yeah…it’s funny what happens with that position when you come up from the minors and other guys are in better position maybe, or maybe they’re just better players. Sometimes a player is better in the National Hockey League than in the American league.
“I’m not sure if that’s what Emil is but what he’s done with his minutes here has certainly caught our eye and has kept Z (Egor Zamula) out longer than I really want him to be cause we still cannot forget Z cause we have to develop him. But I’m going to have to make some decision here along the way when York comes back. I’m going to have to make some decisions.”
In his four games thus far, Andrae is +2 in terms of plus/minus and saw his minutes increase to 19:12 during the Boston game. In addition to his lone assist through four games Andrae has also been a presence on the power play units. In his first game against Montreal he had 1:50 on the power play and that time has increased, albeit marginally, in the subsequent three games with 2:32 with the man advantage on Saturday afternoon. It’s something Tortorella was also quick to point out.
“Like I told him today, I think he struggles a little bit with the size of people, not a big guy himself,” the coach said. “But the part of the game that I like is his transition game. I like what he’s done on the power play too. I mean the second power play unit the other night was by far much more effective than the first. I love what he’s doing with the puck. He tends to be a little inconsistent and not on his toes as far as defending.
“If we can cure that because he’s a willing kid. But he’s got to get better anticipation skills for him to maybe get the pucks in the defensive zone instead of just closing big bodies out where that’s where he struggles. He might be able to get to the puck first and get us going. So his anticipation skills defensively, that’s what I’d like to see him concentrate on. But I’m going to leave him alone offensively because I think he makes some really good plays offensively. I think he’s got some moxie as far as not being afraid to make a play.”
Tortorella was asked about whether it could be possible that Andrae could end up being a credible replacement for Sean Walker, now with Carolina (who the Flyers face tomorrow night) and one of the keys to what was a surprisingly good Flyers defensive corps in 2023-24. “He’s a little bit different,” Tortorella said of the comparison. “I think Walks understands positioning better and is just better on the other part of the ice. But Emil has the same type of mentality as far as looking to get the puck up quick and not use his partner, looking to get up the ice quick.”
So, with Cam York reportedly going on the road trip which starts tomorrow night in Raleigh, the Flyers will have some discussions about how to make the blueline work in terms of personnel. As of now goaltender Sam Ersson has not been placed on Injured Reserve so the team is still with three goalies. Thus no roster spot is open from his injury. Meanwhile Zamula, who will no longer serve as Matvei Michkov’s translator, should be returning to the lineup at some point. But with Andrae’s strong play, it’s evident that both Tortorella and general manager Danny Briere have some issues they need to resolve.
