Watch PHLY Flyers postgame
The Philadelphia Flyers have no discipline.
Whether it was Philadelphia’s top two defensemen, Cam Yorke and Travis Sanheim, each taking a penalty kick in the first four minutes of the game, or the sheer panic and loss of control during the penalty shootout, the Orange and Black haven’t shown enough mental toughness in this five-game losing streak.
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Again, it’s not a question of effort, but a lack of attention to detail.
As the Flyers had built up considerable momentum, Travis Konecny lost a puck low in the zone to set up a goal for the Pens. Sanheim, Matvey Michkov and Christian Dvorak never had great chances in the net. They’ve been reducing their margin for error, lacking focus, discipline, whatever you want to call it, and it’s resulted in huge losses on the scoreboard in what should have been a much more competitive game.
Issue 1
emphasize: I don’t know, got beat really bad by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first quarter. The Flyers gave up two power-play goals and took three penalties, which was more than they could afford. Denver Buckey was outstanding, taking a penalty of his own and creating some attacking chances with his skating and vision. After sitting down last night, Bucky was the freshest flyer, so hopefully that continues. But the penalties and structural damage were worrying, as was being 2-0 down inside 20 minutes.
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What I want to see in the next issue: Hit the web! The Flyers went on two power plays of their own, managing just one shot in the first 3:30 of the four-minute man-advantage period, and then the second team of Matvey Michkov and Co. applied a little pressure in the final 30 seconds of the second penalty and got two puck shots. Michkov himself had a great opportunity on the RW side in the first power attack, but missed it. Later in the period, Travis Sanheim had a great chance in the high post, and his attempt seemed to miss not only the net, but the trapezoid as well. Only seven of Philadelphia’s 20 shots reached Stuart Skinner, with five missing and eight blocked. Hit the F’N net!
Second issue
emphasize: The Penns took a three-goal lead just 1:16 into the first half on Egor Chinakhov’s goal, and Rodrigo Abols made it 3-1 on a slap shot from Cam York. But the highlight(?) was what happened after the Flyers were on the board and Rick Tocchet elected to replace Alexei Kolosov with Sam Elson instead after Pittsburgh’s early goal. Maybe the coaching staff was checking for an offside as Evgeni Malkin’s entry did seem questionable and there was no time to notify Kolosov that he was entering, or Tocchet was waiting to see how his team reacted before rolling the dice on Kohli. Either way, it’s a little weird. Kolosov stopped the first nine shots he faced, including a couple of impressive saves in tight situations, before Noel Acciari put the Penguins up 4-1 when the rebound went over Kolosov’s shoulder to restore Pittsburgh’s three-goal lead, set up by Travis Konecny’s brutal turnover in the D-zone.
What I want to see in the next issue: Practice it personally. You probably won’t win this game, so lie down. After all, this is the Penguins/Flyers. Beyond that, I’d like to see Baki and Michkov continue to show strong chemistry and maybe even convert one of the chances they create.
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The third issue
emphasize: Matvey Michkov fights! Early in the third period, Buckey found himself vulnerable in the neutral zone and was rocked by Blake Lizotte, No. 39 came to his defense, dropped the gloves and even threw a few punches before getting DDTed by Lizotte. Michkov got an extra minor penalty for inciting, but who cares, the score was 4-1. I love it! Sidney Crosby scored his 60th career regular-season goal against the Flyers (16 more than he scored against any other team), but, who cares? In fact, it made the PK numbers worse, which is good because I’ll complain about the special teams stuff a lot after the game.
Final note: Michikoff and Bucky do seem to have some chemistry. Of course, it was garbage time, but Bucky sent out two assists in the third quarter, the second of which led to Michkov’s first goal since November 29. Maybe, even a tough loss could be a spark for this struggling offense. There is hope here!
Watch PHLY Flyers postgame