For Philly Fans Only: It's Important To Remember The Flyers Still Aren't Really That Good
Christopher Mast. Getty Images.If you're not a Flyers fan then get fucking lost, pal. This blog is for Philly fans and Philly fans only. For anybody else out there, the Flyers are going to beat your ass 7 days a week and twice on any day that ends in a Y. So take a hike.
Now that everyone else is out of there…
Listen. The Flyers are a young and exciting hockey team. It's the first time we've been able to say that about this franchise for a while now. The city sort of forgot about them for a while there, but Matvei Michkov coming over seems to have completely revived hockey in Philadelphia. If you're someone who has continued to keep up with the Flyers over the last couple of seasons, there's a good chance you have friends who have been constantly texting you with questions about the team. People are excited to get their love back for the Flyers, but it's taking them some time to figure out who most of these guys are.
Now while it's great to have so many people excited about the Flyers again, it's important to realize that games like last night's 6-4 loss to the Seattle Kraken are going to happen. The Flyers are young and exciting, but that's a euphemism for "still not a legitimate contending team". They are the 4th youngest team in the league with the average age on the team somewhere around 24. While there are still a few familiar faces on the roster like Sean Couturier and Scott Laughton, there are plenty of young guys who are looking to take that next step in their career. And then there are also two of the youngest players in the league with Matvei Michkov and Jett Luchanko.
So if you're just getting back into the Flyers this year because of all the hype and excitement around this team, just bear in mind that this team is still rebuilding. That they're not in a position yet where it's even "playoffs or bust", let alone "Cup or bust". There are going to be nights where they look great because they're young, they're fast, they're skilled, and they're definitely not afraid of anybody. But there are also going to be moments like the 2nd period of last night's game against Seattle where they just can't get a single thing going. A few rough nights throughout the season should be expected with a team that is looking to get themselves going this year, hopefully take the next step next year, and then be a legitimate contender in year 3 of the Michkov era.
Now that you know what you're in for, here's a little cheatsheet on what to expect from this team.
Forwards:
This is where the majority of the excitement around this team is going to be. The top 6 of this forward group is a legitimately good hockey team. They can hang with anyone in the league. There's not much more to say about Michkov that hasn't been said already, but he's a franchise altering talent. Guys like Owen Tippett and Tyson Foerster have the ability to consistently be 30-goal scorers in the NHL if they can take that next step. There was a time when I wrote a blog saying Travis Konecny would be the next Brad Marchand. Maybe I jumped the gun there a bit, but Konecny still plays the exact brand of hockey that makes you proud to be a Flyers fan.
The biggest issue with this forward group is the lack of a true 1C. Morgan Frost is great, but if he were on a Cup contending team right now he'd be a 2C at most, and more than likely a 3C. Sean Couturier hasn't looked great so far to start off the year, and obviously he's starting to decline a bit. That's not to say he's not still a great defensive center, but you can't have him out there with the top 6 with the type of speed they play with. And while Jett Luchanko has all the makings of being a better and faster version of Mike Richards, he's barely 18-years-old right now. So the Flyers are missing that presence up the middle, but there's still more than enough skill with this group to make up for it on most nights.
Defense:
This is where the roster starts to get a little sketchy. It's crazy that Travis Sanheim is the longest tenured defenseman on the Flyers roster considering the last time most of Philly was watching the Flyers, he was probably only in his 3rd year. I wouldn't necessarily say Travis Sanheim has one aspect of his game where he's truly great in, but he does everything really well. He's strong defensively, can move the puck well, and can be physical out there. I don't think he'd be the top defenseman on a Cup contending team, but I also think he'd be a great addition to any blueline in the league.
The most intriguing defenseman on the team is obviously Jamie Drysdale. Not just because he's the return piece in the Cutter Gauthier trade, but because of how much potential this kid has. He has the ability to be an absolute game breaker out there with insane skill both in terms of skating and puck handling. The only thing is that he's still a work in progress. He's just 22-years-old and hasn't had a ton of experience actually playing at this level considering some injury history he's dealt with. So the Flyers are still trying to teach him how to be a defenseman at this level. It always takes defensemen longer to adjust to the NHL than forwards, so I'd expect him to start really finding his game in the NHL just as guys like Michkov and Luchanko are.
I personally can't stand Zamula and Ristolainen. I think neither of them understand what their role is out there, and that's where this blueline really starts to fall apart. The Flyers have a ton of draft picks coming up in the next couple drafts, so I wouldn't be shocked to see them make a trade for a defenseman at some point. There are just more question marks than answers with that group at the moment.
Goalies:
Sam Ersson can be a really good starting goaltender in the NHL if you have a 1A/1B type of tandem going. If Ersson had a set up like Ullmark and Swayman, there wouldn't be a single issue between the pipes for the Flyers. The only issue is that as of right now, the Flyers don't have a 1B to go along with him. Ivan Fedotov hasn't looked nearly strong enough yet this year to prove that he should be splitting the net with Ersson. So when Sam Ersson is a 1 and then there's a clear #2 goalie, well it hurts both guys. When there are stretches in the season where the Flyers play 7 games in 14 days, Ersson needs at least 2 (but probably more like 3) of those games off. And when it's Fedotov on net, then there's a good chance it's going to be a rough night to watch the Flyers.
Now maybe Fedotov starts to settle into his game a little bit. Maybe he doesn't, and the Flyers call up Alexei Kolosov who ends up being a legitimate 1B option for them moving forward. But the backup goalie situation right now is what is going to either allow the Flyers to be a team who is in the hunt for the playoffs all year long, or have them out of the race by late February early March.
Wins are always going to rule. But that's not the main reason to watch the Flyers this year. The wins are going to be great, but the biggest thing is just to watch how this team develops together. To see the sparks of brilliance that'll eventually ignite the fire next year or the year after that. You want to watch every night to see what this team has the potential to become. And plus, you never know which night Michkov is going to score a Michigan for the first time. But at the end of the day, the Flyers still aren't a great team. So if you're watching every night expecting them to be perfect and beat the brakes off of teams, then you're going to be pretty disappointed and ending up sounding like a chucklehead when you call into WIP the next morning to bitch about them.