After getting outscored 12-2 over the weekend, the Flyers have now officially hit rock bottom on the 2022-2023 campaign. Philly hasn’t fared much better in many of its last few games in general, as the club is 1-6-1 in its past eight games as well. John Tortorella was reluctant to point to a lack effort for his team this weekend, instead he pointed to their lack of urgency with the puck on their sticks. Though it certainly seemed liked the Flyers were lethargic in Friday’s matchup with the Canadiens (it was Philly’s first game back after playing four in six nights on their western road trip), the team looked to have more jump in New Jersey, but that didn’t matter. They were still thumped to the tune of 7-0 by a superior Devils team.
You’ll read ad nauseum throughout Flyers’ twitter and elsewhere, how bad the club is and how much they lack high-end talent. In games like the one in New Jersey, it shines a light on just how badly the Flyers desperately need that. No amount screaming about accountability, benching or healthy scratches of key players changes that fact.
It was an eventful week for Philadelphia in that regard, as rumors bubbled to the surface that Joel Farabee was unhappy with the team after having his ice-time slashed by the coaches, while Travis Sanheim claimed that he received a text message from that same coaching staff to let him know that he was not going to playing in his hometown of Calgary in front of family and friends. Perhaps some of that heat between the players and coaches added to the total disconnect we saw play out this weekend on the ice? If one were to say it did, it wouldn’t come as great shock.
That isn’t meant to take a jab at the coaching staff either, as they have done the best job they can do under the circumstances with the available talent, at least through the first half of the season. However, that’s the key; there isn’t a whole lot of talent on this club to begin with, and it takes a rock-solid two-way effort and near perfect goaltending to come up with more wins on a night basis. As we all already know, that’s the major crux of the litany of issues surrounding the Flyers.
It’s always been about talent.
News and Notes
- The Flyers placed Travis Konecny on injure reserve this past weekend and recalled Phantoms forward Elliott Desnoyers in his place. Desnoyers made his NHL debut Saturday night in New Jersey and did well. The 21-year-old forward registered two shots on goal, six hits and three blocks in his 14:53 TOI.
What’s Next
The Flyers will host the high-flying New York Rangers on Wednesday night at Wells Fargo Center for a 7:00 puck drop.
