Erik Gustafsson
The Flyers may be sitting fifth in the East, three points out of a playoffs, still very much mathematically alive. But their defense is in shambles. Almost every core player that was expected to produce on the higher end offensively has shown struggles. The goaltending has been questioned. To put it simply, the Flyers are a mess right now, and it’s become clear that the current system is just not working.
Times like these leave the masses calling for action of any kind. You certainly got that on Tuesday from the Flyers. Less than 24 hours after completing a comeback win over the Buffalo Sabres, 4-3, in overtime, the Flyers made an interesting move, placing defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere on waivers.
GM Chuck Fletcher didn’t gloss over the cold hard facts of where the Flyers rank in various categories. He called out the puck management problems. But his most telling response came when he was answering a question regarding Erik Gustafsson that ultimately transferred over into the defense as a whole.
Losses are losses at this stage of the season. Whether it’s 9-0, or 6-1, or 2-1 in overtime, they all hurt the same in the standings. It’s a missed opportunity at two points that you had when the night began. But in this game, when the Flyers did deliver the effort and executed better for almost the entire 60 minutes, two glaring mistakes cost them, and this time, they didn’t have the answers to make a couple of mistakes change the result.
In Saturday’s game, it took just over six minutes for the Flyers to allow a goal. After another 10 minutes, the Islanders had four on the board and the game was as good as over. Two more third-period turnovers padded the score further, resulting in a 6-1 defeat for the Flyers. There’s an awful lot to unpack in another result like that.
Claude Giroux had three assists as the Flyers struck for two goals in the first and second periods, holding off the Rangers in a 4-3 win on Wednesday night at Wells Fargo Center.
The Flyers were back on Tuesday for practice with a limited group and more players are expected to rejoin the team on Wednesday ahead of Thursday’s game against the New York Rangers. The Flyers also had five games rescheduled by the NHL in the wake of COVID-19 caused postponements.
Sean Couturier had two goals, including the game-winner in the third as part of a three-point night, and Scott Laughton pitched in with his first career hat trick in a 7-4 victory over the Washington Capitals on Sunday afternoon.
A goal out of a netmouth scramble tied the game, then a distance shot that was misplayed by the goalie proved to be the deciding factor. The Flyers dropped yet another meeting against the Bruins, and while the process was better, and the execution was there, the result was once again the missing piece.
The Bruins scored twice in 27 seconds, including the eventual game-winner from Sean Kuraly, as they claimed yet another win from the Flyers by a score of 2-1 on Friday night at Wells Fargo Center.
