The Philadelphia Flyers’ record fell to 10-9-1 after a loss to the red-hot New York Rangers on Nov. 24. Following a five-game winning streak, the Flyers are now on a two-game losing streak. What were some takeaways from the defeat for Philadelphia?
Flyers Were Bullied Physically
For a tough Flyers team, it was not a good sight to see them lose the physical battle against a skilled Rangers team. With the Flyers rostering a few notable tough guys in Nicolas Deslauriers, Garnet Hathaway, and Nick Seeler, they lost the physical battle overall. After a huge reverse hit against them from Rangers’ captain Jacob Trouba, they were unable to respond adequately. For a team that should be having their way with other teams physically considering their toughness, that was not the case in this game.
The Flyers gave some push back when they felt they were being taken advantage of, but a hit from Rangers’ defenseman K’Andre Miller on youngster Bobby Brink with zeroes on the clock did not generate much other than a shoving match between both sides. The physical aspect in NHL hockey has died down a bit in recent seasons, but still exists. If the Flyers want to be respected by other clubs, they have to be intimidating. It was the Rangers who did most of that in this contest.
Couturier Continued Solid Production
One of the positive results from this game was with forward Sean Couturier. Getting on the board late in the second period, he made the Flyers’ loss look a bit less ugly. With five goals and nine assists for 14 points in 18 games this season, his production has been solid in his return from a long absence due to injury.
Couturier might not be playing at a superstar level this season, but he has shown that the Flyers need him to win games and be competitive. He has returned to playing great two-way hockey, and has made the players around him better on a consistent basis. He deserves respect for returning to a high level of play for a rebuilding club.
Still just 30 years of age, Couturier should continue to play at this current level for many years to come. The Flyers’ centermen as a whole have not been great this season, but he has been the exception. The Flyers are not complete when he isn’t playing.
Zibanejad Still Has Flyers’ Number
For whatever reason, Rangers center Mika Zibanejad has dominated the Flyers recently. With points in 12 of his last 13 games against the club and 25 points in that span, he has played some of his best hockey against them. He did so again in this game, scoring two of the Rangers’ three goals.
Almost every game over the last few seasons, Zibanejad has had his way with the Flyers and even in a game where the Flyers limited New York to just three goals, he found a way to burn them. Locked up for seven more seasons with the Rangers, it might be a long time before the Flyers can rest easy against their Metropolitan Division rivals.
Most of the reason why he was able to have such an impact was because the Flyers were beating themselves. His opportunities were of very high quality, and he wasn’t going to miss golden chances to score. He is an elite player, so the Flyers have to put their foot down and prevent him from getting those looks consistently.
The Power Play Could Not Strike
The Flyers’ power play was actually not too bad in terms of generating chances, but went 0-for-6 when their man advantage got on the ice. Their struggles on the power play occur way too much, and happened again in this game.
Related: Solving the Flyers’ Struggling Power Play
The Rangers’ penalty kill is one of the best in the league, so maybe the Flyers shouldn’t be too hard on themselves. Their lack of success didn’t lose them this game, but was notable. They can still compete against teams without a lethal power play, but it will limit how many games they win this season and down the line. Some more goals on the man advantage will be necessary to make a surprise run for a playoff spot.
When asked about their struggles on the man advantage in his post-game presser, head coach John Tortorella declined to comment. Still trying to figure things out, there might be some heat for he and the Flyers to start improving soon. It wouldn’t be too fair to put the blame solely on him, but he holds part of the responsibility for why the team isn’t finishing on their looks and is not generating many opportunities as a whole.
The Flyers will look to get back on track in a rematch with the New York Islanders after losing against them on Nov. 25 in Long Island. The Orange and Black have an eight-game losing streak on the road against the Islanders, so they’ll be looking to break the curse.
