In Philadelphia it isn't all that surprising when a team gets out to an 0-2 start to hear whispers of panic. I actually had people tweeting me that the Flyers are going to be in the Connor McDavid sweeps....ah.... It may be just a little early to go there.
A lot of this definitely stems from last year's horrendous beginning to the season and the team's focus on not starting this year the same way. Last year start was epic bad and saw the firing the coach only a few games in....and that's not happening this time.
Last year the Flyers came out without any sort of fight in them...this year in two games they have shown resilience, fought back from a three goal defecit.
Last years Flyers didn't score 3 goals in a game until their 10th game of the season. Last night the Flyers scored four.
Last year's Flyers weren't even in a game in their first week of the season against mediocre teams. This year they lost 2 to 1 on the road in the final minutes to a Boston Bruins team most feel is among the the best in the east and were tied midway through the third period with the New Jersey Devils in game 2.
Last year Claude Giroux didn't get his first goal of the season until the Flyers were a month in.. He scored last night and Wayne Simmonds put together two goals beautiful in less than a minute to tie the game.
As Giroux said last night the Flyers are getting the same kind of weird bounces they got a early last year to go against them..that much is true.
Is this the kind of start the Flyers wanted? Of course not.
But either of the Flyers first two games could've gone either way. They didn't go to Flyers way and that's what matters in the standings, but the effort has been there and this team has shown the same fight in them that made them one of the top teams in the NHL from November on last season.
The early schedule is not easy for Philadelphia with several playoff teams on deck. Two weeks from now there might be a legit reason to send up the panic signal. The loss of Brayden Coburn on defense is huge with the defense on Philly still very much getting used to playing with each other.
But there is no panic in this years Flyers team, so don't expect the normal fireworks that we have seen in the past.
And there are positive signs in their play so far.
The Flyers have found a fourth line that brings energy and work ethic to the rink. That is something they haven't had for at least four seasons. Bellamaire is a real diamond in the rough and I would highly recommend picking him up in your fantasy pool. He is such a smart player, very patient with the puck and has incredible vision. Couturier is looking once again like a star player who can not only defense but has a serious scoring. Wayne Simmonds was great last year and this year looks even stronger. He is quickly becoming a premier power forward in the NHL and for my money is one of best players in battles along the boards. Vincent Lecavalier looks completely revived and way more comfortable in his skin. He is also been playing very sound defensive hockey.
Steve Mason has once again looked very strong on his skates and while a few of the the goals last night were questionable most of them were crazy deflections which he had zero shot on. Mason played extremely well against Boston. Flyers goaltending won't be an issue this year as long as Steve Mason remains healthy.
The Flyers also have real talent in the AHL chomping at the bit to get up to the big club. Hey Flyers fans, when was the last time you were hoping someone might be getting caught up from the Phantoms? Probably not since Claude Giroux was in the AHL, right?
Having been around this team for so many years I feel I have a sense of when the team is in trouble. Last year when they were unquestionably in trouble from the outset. You could see that from camp on.
This years team feels entirely different.
Hey anything is possible, but in my opinion these flyers will be right in the hunt (as they were last year) and won't get off to the same kind of start the put them so far behind the eight ball.
But that's why we play the game....as they say