PHILADELPHIA – Way back in the summer when the NHL schedule came out, the rebuilt Flyers knew the first week of their season was going to be a real challenge.
After all, the four games consisted of playing the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers twice and the rugged Carolina Hurricanes.
Plus, Thursday night’s opponent, the defending Presidents’ Trophy Cup-winning Winnipeg Jets.
While the Flyers were able to keep the high-flying Western Conference foe from skating completely wild at Xfinity Mobile Arena (Winnipeg generated only 15 shots), the Jets did convert enough chances to hand the Flyers a 5-2 defeat.
The Flyers finished this four-game test with a 1-2-1 mark.
One bright spot, the Flyers pulled their goalie, Samuel Ersson, in the closing minutes and Matvei Michkov scored his first goal of the season with 2:21 to play.
Another positive: After taking a total of 15 penalties in the first three games, the Flyers were only whistled once against Winnipeg.
Travis Konecny said despite this loss, the Flyers made it through this first week knowing they’re on the right track.
“We played well,” Konecny said. “I think for the most part we can take a lot of positives from the first four.”
Coach Rick Tocchet acknowledged going up against some of the league’s best can be a proving ground for the long schedule ahead. A valuable experience, especially for some of the team’s young players.
“You learn from mistakes,” he said. As for the Jets, he added: “You’re playing a quality opponent, [then] you have to stick with the program.”
After falling behind by a 2-0 score in the second period, the Flyers got on the board. A two-on-one rush developed. Owen Tippett had Christian Dvorak on his flank but chose to shoot and beat Connor Hellebuyck from the right circle at 16:22.
The momentum didn’t last long. Just over a shift later, Winnipeg’s Morgan Barron scored from out front with a shot past Ersson. That put the Jets back in front at 17:43 with a 3-1 edge.
The Flyers concentrated on defense in the first period and held the high octane Jets to just five shots. On the flip side, the Flyers were able to manage just three shots of their own.
One defensive breakdown was costly. Jett Luchanko failed to get a loose puck out past the blue line. The Jets quickly went the other way with Vladislav Namestnikov finishing off a rebound of Nino Niederreiter’s shot at 5:45.
In the second period, the Flyers generated more offense but the Jets managed to expand their lead to 2-0. Mark Scheifele, one of hockey’s more prolific scorers, beat Ersson from just outside the right hash marks at 7:01.
Scheifele netted his second of the game, this one on the power play at 9:40 of the third. He already has five goals in his first four games.
“It was a weird game,” Tocchet said. “In the first period, we decided not to play like we did the other four. A lot of turnovers. They only had four or five shots. But they played a perfect road game. We had our chances at a certain part of the game. That goal [at the end of the second period] was a killer.”
The lack of work probably didn’t work in Ersson’s favor.
“Every game is a chance and this is a chance in itself,” he said. “Just got to do a better job with the shots I get.”
Added Tippett: “I think it came down to execution. They didn’t do anything special. They buried their chances and we didn’t. There wasn’t a lot of energy in the building [only 16,170 was the announced attendance]. But it’s going to happen. You’re going to go to rinks where there are games like that. It’s a long season. Just have to figure things out when they aren’t going your way.”
York OK in first game back
Defenseman Cam York, who missed the first three games with a lower-body injury, made his return and played more than 22 minutes. He came out of it none the worse for wear.
He said he felt OK for the most part but any enthusiasm was probably tempered a bit by the loss.
“I didn’t think they had a ton of Grade A chances,” he said. “Our execution wasn’t as good as we wanted it to be. They just put the puck in the back of the net more than we did.
“It was a weird game, the amount of shots [32 total for both teams].”
Short shots
Defenseman Emil Andrae, who was just called up from Lehigh Valley on Monday to play in the Florida game, was returned to the Phantoms to make room for York, who came off the injured list on Thursday afternoon. With Andrae gone, the Flyers’ third defense pairing consisted of Adam Ginning and Noah Juulsen. … The Flyers have Friday off and get back into action on Saturday night when they play host to the Minnesota Wild. … Ersson entered the game with a career-best .945 save percentage against the Jets.
Wayne Fish is a freelance writer. Follow his coverage at www.flyingfishhockey.com
Source: Berkshire mont
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