The Philadelphia Flyers saw their record fall to 11-10-1 after a 4-1 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. Now having losses in three of their last four games, some of the inconsistencies of a rebuild may be starting to show for the Flyers. What were some takeaways from the defeat?
Flyers’ Offense Still Not Producing
Since the Flyers’ five-game winning streak ended on Nov. 22 against the New York Islanders, their offense has struggled to produce. Scoring just four goals in their last four games, they are lucky to even have one win in that span. It wasn’t for a lack of trying, as the Flyers had some good chances, but they won’t win games with this lack of production. It is starting to become a theme, and there is really no true end in sight.
The Flyers have been generating fine enough during their skid, but it was a particular issue in this game. They really didn’t test Carolina, and that was the main reason why they didn’t come away with a win. Only trailing by one goal by the time the last four minutes of the third period hit, that’s when the Hurricanes started to add to their score. If there’s a positive takeaway from the Flyers’ inability to score, they are still keeping themselves in games despite it. They will get back to their scoring ways at some point, but will need it to come fairly soon.
The lack of finishing is the main takeaway for the Flyers for this game in particular, but that has really been the case most of the season. Even when they are generating high-quality shots, they are still not scoring most of the time. The margin for error against a team like Carolina is nearly zero, and that will be the case for most of the teams on the Flyers’ schedule. With them not being able to take advantage of good looks, it is no wonder why they haven’t been finding wins recently.
Goaltending is a Strength of the Flyers
It was to be expected going into this season, but goaltending has become one of the Flyers’ strengths in 2023-24. Carter Hart got the start for this game, turning aside 32 of the 35 shots he faced and keeping the Flyers in a game that they probably had no business being in for so long with their inability to finish on scoring chances. Until it is proven to be otherwise, the Flyers are a solid team in goal, and can rely on their netminders consistently.
Even when the Flyers cannot buy a goal, their goaltending is coming through and keeping them in games. Over their 1-3-0 skid over their last four games, that has essentially been the case in all of them. From Hart to Sam Ersson, the goaltending has been a complete non-issue as of recent.
Related: 3 Underappreciated Flyers’ Goaltenders Since 2000
In recent memory, it seems as though the Flyers have had their fair share of struggles in goal at times. Now, solid play out of their goaltenders is one of their biggest strengths. Both Hart and Ersson have had to face high-danger looks, and that has derailed their save percentage (SV%) to make it look much worse than it should probably be. They have both held in strong when the Flyers are not at their best, and they deserve some kudos for that.
The offense will have dry spells like the one they are currently in, which is why it is important to have reliable goaltending. Even if the offense isn’t there, the Flyers will go into every game having a chance to win. Hart was great in net, but the offense couldn’t give him any help.
Flyers Need to Try Something New
Particularly on the offense, the Flyers will need to try something new with their line combinations if they want to get out of their scoring drought. Sometimes it happens randomly, but forcing it is probably a better way to go about it. With forward Noah Cates suffering a broken foot after arguably having his best game of the entire season, it gives the Flyers fewer options to be able to find a turnaround. However, changing the lines might help the Flyers find their way offensively.
In particular, it might be best for Joel Farabee to have a bigger role in the Flyers’ offense. He is one of the team’s top producers on offense, with eight goals and 14 points at even strength alone, but is only playing 15:26 of total ice time on average every night. Even if the Flyers are going for depth and trying to get some scoring out of the bottom-six, there should be no reason why he is anywhere other than the first line. He is having the best season of his career, yet is getting the worst ice time he has seen since his rookie campaign in 2019-20. If he is not on the ice more often, it is more likely that the Flyers’ scoring issues continue. Giving him first-line minutes might be a recipe for success if it is explored.
As for the rest of the offensive lineup, there should be some slight alterations each game in order to keep chemistry but also try and explore some new things. The defense should stay the same as is, but the offense will need some reworking from time to time. No matter how slight the changes may seem, they could prove worthwhile. The Flyers have been using similar trios on offense for the past few games, and they have not been able to finish opportunities.
The Flyers are 2-3-0 on their Metropolitan Division trip, and they will look for a win against the New Jersey Devils on Nov. 30 in their final contest in the month of November. With the Devils’ SV% as a team ranking as the worst in the NHL, that might be a chance for the Flyers to find their legs again offensively. An important divisional game in terms of staying in the hunt, that will be a game the Flyers want to win.