In their 71st game of the season, the Philadelphia Flyers moved one step closer to a playoff berth with a 3-2 win over the NHL’s point leaders, the Boston Bruins. Moving to 36-26-9 on the season for 81 points, they still control their own destiny as they sit in third place in the Metropolitan Division. What were some takeaways?
Konecny is Producing Once Again
Travis Konecny missed some time both late in February and early in March, disrupting a solid run for him. Once he returned from injury, he wasn’t scoring at the same rate and his overall game fell a little bit as well. In this game, however, he had his best effort in a while. His two goals led the way for Philadelphia and they definitely would not have won without his presence. The Flyers’ star forward is finally back.
When the Flyers needed him most, Konecny showed up. He hasn’t played particularly well against elite teams like the Bruins this season, but he completely flipped the narrative here. He was both creating and finishing in this one.
With two tallies against the Bruins, he is now a two-time 30-goal scorer for the Flyers. Sitting at 61 points, he is now tied with his career high that he set in both 2019-20 and 2022-23. It wouldn’t be unrealistic for him to reach 70 points, and that’s a mark that no Flyer has obtained since 2018-19.
Couturier Was Great in Return
Being a healthy scratch in two straight contests, as a captain no less, must have been tough for Sean Couturier. But he didn’t let that get to him. He had a solid performance in this one, outplaying a scary Bruins team overall. At even strength, his 72.7 percent Corsi share (CF%), a 50.7 percent expected goal share (xGF%), 69.2 scoring chance share (SCF%), and 60 percent high-danger chances share (HDCF%) all proved to be great marks.
Couturier was limited to just 5-on-5 ice time with all of it being served on the fourth line, but he excelled in the circumstances with linemates Noah Cates and Olle Lycksell. It’s not an easy position to be in to have your offense limited in that way, but the 31-year-old captain showed up nonetheless. He had some quality looks.
If it weren’t for the excellence of the Flyers’ first line with Owen Tippett, Morgan Frost, and Konecny, Couturier’s line would have easily been the best. It arguably still was with its limitations, though. The Flyers need their depth to produce, so it’s good that it was.
Johnson Had His Best Game as a Flyer
It hasn’t been the greatest for veteran defenseman Erik Johnson since joining the Flyers at the trade deadline, but he arguably had his best game with the team versus Boston. In fairness, he has gone up against almost all Stanley Cup contenders since debuting on March 9. Still, it has undoubtedly been a struggle for him albeit with some good plays in there.
But here, he was more than serviceable. He had a 50 percent CF%, 54 percent xGF%, 53 percent SCF%, and a 70 percent HDCF%. All of those numbers have been well below average this season for him both overall and just with the Flyers. With 16:10 of ice time, though, he was a genuine asset.
If Johnson can produce like he did in this game for the duration of the absences of Nick Seeler, Rasmus Ristolainen, and Jamie Drysdale, which have lasted essentially the entirety of March at this point, that’ll be good news. He cannot be a liability, and he was nothing but that in a challenging test.
Foerster Showing His Elite Shot
Once in a while in open space, Tyson Foerster will make some magic happen. With less than 90 seconds to go against the league-leading Bruins, he went top-shelf over the reigning Vezina Trophy winner in Linus Ullmark to give the Flyers a late lead and their eventual win. On a nothing play for most, he made a difference.
Foerster’s shot is something that has never gone away. He’s been heavy in the forechecking game and actually excelled there, so it’s rare for him to get open looks. In the NHL in general, the kind of chance he had only comes a few times a game. When he gets them, though, he usually takes advantage.
The 22-year-old rookie is an immensely talented player. Foerster is now third in the NHL in goals among rookie skaters this season, putting him in a pretty good spot for his career. His flashes of potential are always inspiring — he might be a top-six forward for the Orange and Black for years to come.
Related: Flyers’ Tyson Foerster Deserves Calder Trophy Consideration
The Flyers are now 2-2-1 through five contests of their seven-game gauntlet versus some of the best teams in the NHL right before the end of the regular season. The penultimate one will transpire at Wells Fargo Center against the Florida Panthers on March 24. Despite the Panthers having a 45-20-4 record this season and being right in the conversation for the Presidents’ Trophy, the Flyers can sweep their season series with a win.
