The Philadelphia Flyers dropped to a 1-1-0 record after a road matchup versus the Calgary Flames, defeated 6-3. There was at least some silver lining, as rookie Matvei Michkov scored his first NHL point—a primary assist. Travis Konecny found the back of the net twice and Joel Farabee did so once, while netminder Ivan Fedotov sacrificed five goals on 31 shots. What were some takeaways?
Flyers Fix Last Season’s Mistake
Against the Pittsburgh Penguins last season, young defenseman Jamie Drysdale took a massive open-ice hit. Grabbing his shoulder as he rushed to the bench, he was visibly hurt—he missed over a dozen games because of it. So, surely the gritty Flyers responded by instantly dropping the mitts, right? Well, no.
In the eventual 7-6 loss, the Flyers were not only defeated by their in-state rivals when they really could’ve used two points, but they didn’t even defend their 21-year-old teammate. While doing so would’ve likely brought upon an instigator penalty, sending a message has a bigger impact than maybe allowing a power-play goal in the month of February. The team made a choice, and it was one that they seemingly regret.
It’s apparent that they regret said decision because of what they showed against the Flames. There was a similar open-ice hit in the second period, albeit a play where Drysdale got up and looked fine. Instantly after the hit was thrown, Tyson Foerster sprung into action and dropped the gloves. Not only did he lose the fight, he looked like a fish out of water. But the message was sent—don’t mess with Drysdale. The team was penalized and gave up a goal on an eventual 5-on-3, but the decision could make players think twice about throwing a hit like that. Next time, maybe they’ll have to answer to a real fighter.
Flyers’ Defense Needs Seeler Back
On injured reserve thanks to a blocked shot (actually, a pass) in an Oct. 1 preseason matchup, the Flyers will be without Nick Seeler for a bit. It shouldn’t be for a long time, but it’s long enough to make an impact. Though a $2.7 million cap-hit player who has never hit 17 minutes of average ice time in a season doesn’t seem like he’d be essential, the 31-year-old is an exception.
In particular, Drysdale hasn’t had the greatest performances without Seeler by his side. That potential pairing seemed promising entering the new campaign, but with one man down, an adequate replacement hasn’t been there. The youngster picked up where he left off in an underwhelming 2023-24 with two subpar performances.
This has an impact on every pairing aside from the top line of Cam York and Travis Sanheim. Everyone else is affected by this change, specifically Egor Zamula who has had a rocky start to 2024-25. Receiving a two-year extension in the offseason with a $1.7 million cap hit, his deal was a bet that he could take the next step. Without a steady partner, that just hasn’t been the case.
As a whole, the Flyers’ defense has been poor this season. It was one of their biggest strengths when they touched the ice last October (though partially aided by a defensively responsible forward core), so that’s one of the more concerning sights early on. Hopefully, this is just a little bit of rust and Seeler can be the final piece to the puzzle.
Michkov Could Be a Different Beast in Some Time
In this game, Michkov notched a primary assist, giving him his first NHL point. The eerie coincidence here is that Danny Briere, the general manager who drafted him, scored his first point with the Flyers in the same exact building in October 2007 (of course, versus the Flames as well). Weird, right?
TK lights the lamp and grabs that puck for MM39. #PHIvsCGY | #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/jKEezH507J
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) October 13, 2024
Strange occurrences aside, Michkov has looked stronger than the stats indicate yet still hasn’t had a superstar performance. He probably should have multiple points this season, as Vancouver Canucks netminder Kevin Lankinen channeled his inner Dominik Hasek to keep him off of the point sheet on one golden chance, while Konecny missed an empty net in this game directly off of a feed from the 19-year-old. He is undeniably creating, but the finishing hasn’t been there.
Even with Michkov’s great play thus far, he can be better. He has only had a few high-end shifts this season, which is something that we can be confident he’ll improve upon. The Flyers’ offense hasn’t had many good looks thus far, pretty similar to when the team was in a rut in their final 11 contests last season. When the team does start clicking on that front, expect the youngster to get more looks and be a delightful player to watch.
Related: Matvei Michkov Can Take Flyers’ Power Play to the Next Level
For Michkov, this really just feels like the beginning. While he has played about as well as one could’ve expected, there is another gear to unlock here. Rather than in a few years, that could be achieved in just a few months—that sweet first NHL goal is hopefully right around the corner.
Next up, on Oct. 15, the Flyers take on the Edmonton Oilers on the road at 10 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. After two contests, the Oilers are still looking for their first win since Game 6 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final. October struggles aren’t exactly new for Edmonton, but that doesn’t mean this isn’t one of the last teams the Orange and Black want to face. Getting a win could be wonderful for the Flyers’ confidence moving forward.
