Quick Hits: Nov. 1, 2021
1) The Flyers (4-2-1) will practice at 12:30 p.m. ET on Monday at the FTC in Voorhees. The next night, Alain Vigneault's team will host Andre Tourigny's winless Arizona Coyotes (0-8-1) at the Wells Fargo Center. Vigneault, along with team captain Claude Giroux and veteran defenseman Keith Yandle (who started his NHL career with seven full seasons and two partial seasons as a member of the Coyotes) will address the media after Monday's practice.
2) On Monday's edition of Flyers Daily on the Flyers Broadcast Network, Jason Myrtetus and I break down the team's recent western Canada road trip. We talk about taking too many penalties across multiple games -- whether killed successfully or not -- has a cumulative wear-down effect on a team. We also discuss why it's not only important for the Flyers to earn two points against Arizona but why doing it the right way -- don't get sloppy, don't fail to "show up on time" and end up chasing the game, don't keep taking so many needless minors -- has value leading in to what figures to be a series of tough games on the other side. To listen, click here.
3) The Lehigh Valley Phantoms finished the month of October with a winless 0-5-2 record and just 10 goals scored (vs. 20 goals against) along with a 2-for-32 showing on the power play. It's been hard to find many positives to talk about so far except for the goaltending; particularly by Felix Sandström.
The last two games were improved to some degree -- there was nowhere to go but up -- but neither of the last two third periods were what Lehigh Valley needed them to be. There have already been line combo changes including the top two forward lines and some benchings -- Morgan Frost for the final 10 minutes of the second game of the season, Isaac Ratcliffe a healthy scratch on Friday night, and 18-year-old rookie Samu Tuomaala in five of the first seven games. It's been eventful, in a bad way.
I will write here what I've told colleagues privately. I don't believe in rushing to judgment. I've also heard enough positives on-record and off-record from those who Ian Laperriere worked with as a development coach and NHL assistant to say that I disagree with those who slam his coaching potential in general. Laperriere is nothing if not a good communicator who brings energy and enthusiasm.
However, this year is the first time he has ever been a head coach, which is a whole different animal. He's learning on the job at the AHL level and it's shown. It cannot be debated just how badly the team has struggled in process areas and not just in results. Laperriere and his staff (Jason Smith and Riley Armstrong) seem to be racking their brains trying to find things that will click.
I think they deserve time to get the team on the right track, but the only way the first seven games could have gone worse was if the goalie play had been routinely leaky and the close losses on the scoreboard had been blowouts.
It still has to get better: a LOT better. Playing with a couple of recent mid-game leads is a start, but when none of the leads are protected or built upon it's not much consolation. Ditto the team starting to show a little more jam in puck battles and a little more of a shooting mentality. It's modest progress, but too modest.
The Phantoms return to action on Wednesday, hosting the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. The Pens have already played the Phantoms three times this season, winning all three games.
4) Today in Flyers History: Nov. 1, 1986
In an exciting game where the momentum seesawed, as the Flyers dominated the opening frame and the visiting Boston Bruins controlled the second as a game at the Spectrum entered the third period tied at 2-2 after goals by Ray Bourque and Cam Neely knot the score.
The Flyers struck back to control the third period, outshooting Boston 12-5, and getting goals in the final minute by Tim Kerr (power play) and Dave Poulin (empty net) to prevail by a 4-2 final. Ron Sutter and Brian Propp also tallied for the winning side. Rookie goalie Ron Hextall earned the win.
5) Nov. 1 Flyers Alumni birthdays:
* Speedy and scrappy left winger Bill Lesuk was born November 1, 1946 in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan.
* Longtime NHL goaltender Phil Myre was born November 1, 1948 in Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, Quebec.