A Week to Regroup
The Philadelphia Flyers wake up this morning with the fewest points in the NHL. They are off to the worst start (1-7-0) and have the fewest goals (11) through eight games in the history of the franchise. They've been outscored 12-2 in third periods, which is the time of game where the best teams typically shine and the worst clubs fade.
That says it all, or does it?
If you look a little deeper into the eight games played to date, you will find that the Flyers entered the third period of each and every game leading (twice), tied (once) or trailing by no more than one goal (five times). They haven't always deserved to be in that position -- with the horrific second period of Thursday's game against Pittsburgh being the ultimate example -- but the goaltending of Steve Mason has thus far been the club's main hope for salvation.
Here's a little bit of hopeful news at a time when that's in short supply around the Wells Fargo Center and Skate Zone. With the exception of the Penguins (6-1-0), every other team in the Metropolitan Division has a losing record. The second-place Hurricanes are 3-2-3. The third-place Islanders are 3-2-2. The Rangers and Columbus are both 2-4-0. The Capitals are 2-5-0. The winless Devils are 0-4-3.
The Flyers are idle until the Rangers come to town next Thursday. While other teams in the Metro are bound to pick up some points between now and then, the season is still very young. With the new setup of Divisions and new playoff format, the top three teams in each Division are guaranteed playoff spots. Quite frankly, every other team below Pittsburgh has its own set of glaring flaws right now.
If you really look deep into each of the Flyers eight games this season, you will find that there have been segments of just about every match in which the flow of play was rather even or Philadelphia had the better of it. At different times, the Flyers have had certain elements that it takes to win -- solid five-on-five play, an abundance of scoring chances, good team defense, above-average goaltending play.
Unfortunately, the Flyers haven't been able to finish scoring chances to save their lives and they've remained prone to a couple massive defensive breakdowns per game that end up in the net and cancel out good work on other shifts. That's a losing combination when a team has almost no margin for error and plays reactive hockey -- rather than dictating the game -- in crunch time.
Can this team get better without making sweeping roster changes? Perhaps. I have said before and will reiterate again that I have seen teams with lesser talent either up front or on defense make it to the playoffs and even win a round or two.
Realistically, however, I am still not enamored of the mix on the roster. The team is not fast enough to consistently push the pace and yet also not big and strong enough to grind teams down and cycle them to death (ala the Terry Murray teams of the mid-1990s). On an individual basis, I like most of the players and believe they have demonstrated an ability (or at least a potential ability) to be effective NHL players. When I look at the puzzle pieces as a whole, though, I'm not sure how well they fit together.
COMING TOMORROW: A discussion of trade possibilities, an update on prospects, and a look at the upcoming 40th anniversary of the Flyers' first Stanley Cup championship.
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