The Philadelphia Flyers had a boost earlier this month with a 4-0-1 stretch that lifted their spirits.
However, a couple of recent losses have shown how much more the Flyers need to improve as they prepare for their Saturday afternoon game against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Last Saturday, the Flyers reached a .500 record in the NHL with a 5-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres to begin a five-game homestand. But they were quickly brought back to reality with a 3-2 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Monday and a 4-1 defeat to the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday.
The Flyers were tied 1-1 with the Hurricanes going into the third period, but turnovers hurt them in the end.
“The thing that bothers me the most, and I think it’s the biggest correction we have to make, is we have to manage the puck better in the neutral zone,” Philadelphia coach John Tortorella said.
“(Carolina) wins so many sword fights in the neutral zone, the 50-50s. They have such good sticks. You think you’re going to get a pass by them, or you think you’ll be able to skate by them one-on-one, and they get you.”
The good news for the Flyers is that they are aware of the problem and know it can be fixed.
“We were hanging right with them, thought we were doing a good job through the first 40 (minutes),” defenseman Nick Seeler said. “We got away from our game.”
The loss also ended Travis Konecny’s seven-game point streak, where he had earned 13 points (six goals, seven assists).
The Blackhawks come into this game with some positivity, even though their season has already been difficult. Chicago ended a three-game losing streak with a 3-1 victory over the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers on Thursday.
Even though the Blackhawks are tied with the Nashville Predators for the fewest points in the league (15), they see things to be happy about if they stick to their plan.
“We had a commitment to winning hockey,” forward Nick Foligno said. “You know, it wasn’t perfect. It never really is, but it’s just you’re not making blatant errors and taking the life out of your own game. … That’s the big message here; it’s great, and we’re really excited about winning, and let’s do it again.”
Despite facing the defending champions, the Blackhawks got off to a strong start with a first-period goal and took a 2-0 lead in the second period.
However, rising star Connor Bedard has been struggling lately, going through an 11-game goal drought. The 2023 first overall draft pick and last season’s Calder Memorial Trophy winner as the NHL’s rookie of the year did not register a shot on goal in 19:32 of ice time against the Panthers.
“I think he played a good game,” Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson said about Bedard. “I thought he back-checked really hard to basically even up a two-on-one in the second period and stopped in front of the net.
We didn’t get him here to be a defensive specialist, but the responsibility of playing against good lines comes first. … He did everything right on the defensive side of the game against one of the top centermen in the league, playing against (Aleksander) Barkov’s line. It was a great game for him.”
