Flyers Held Scoreless in Home Opener Against Vancouver
Travis Konecny, #11 of the Philadelphia Flyers, reacts in the second period during the game against the Vancouver Canucks at the Wells Fargo Center on October 19, 2024, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Photo by Mitchell Leff / Getty Images
The day started off very hopeful for fans of Philadelphia hockey. The Flyers were set to play their first home game of the 2024-2025 NHL season, squaring off against the team that they beat to begin the season four games prior in the Vancouver Canucks.
The game was played at a reasonable hour of 7 pm EST as opposed to 10 pm EST as was the case for the first four games. And to cap it all off, this would be most fan’s opportunity to witness Matvei Michkov for the first time, the one touted as the future of this entire franchise.
None of that seemed to matter though, as once the puck dropped and the game was underway the Flyers were utterly outplayed for sixty minutes en route to a 3-0 defeat to the Canucks. The club is now 1-3-1 on the year, and each loss seems to expose a new flaw.
Previous losses were mainly the result of poor defense and poor goaltending, particularly when Ivan Fedotov has tended the net. Tonight though, Samuel Ersson saved 29 of 32 shots for a 0.906 save percentage, which is his second-best tally of three games so far. Unfortunately, the problems tonight came from the offense, as they were unable to generate any goals as Canucks’ goalie Kevin Lankinen converted on 26 save opportunities.
The scoring started for Vancouver with a Nils Hoglander wrister in front of a wide-open net after Ersson sold out on Elias Petterson who was coming right down the middle with the puck before dumping it off to Hoglander.
The Flyers tried in vain to tie the score, but the offense just looked lethargic and incapable of getting any kind of crisp puck movement together.
After a pair of second-period Vancouver goals were scored within 50 seconds of each other by Brock Boeser and Kiefer Sherwood the game was all but over.
After scoring on the power play at least once in each of the first four games, the Flyers were finally unable to convert, as they failed on each of their three attempts tonight. However, the Canucks were 0/2 on their power play opportunities, so the Philadelphia penalty kill remains one of the team’s main strengths.
Despite not scoring in the game, Michkov again dazzled with his ability to control the puck and create scoring opportunities. There were at least two moments where he could have earned an assist if his teammates were able to convert on his passes. If he keeps up this pace, and all signs indicate that he will, he will be a point-scoring machine throughout his career, and in the more immediate future, a very strong contender for the Calder Trophy.
For their next game, the Flyers will take on the Washington Capitals at home on Tuesday at 6 pm EST. You can watch the game on ESPN.
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Bo Lynett
Bo has been a fan of Philly sports his whole life and has spent the entirety of his four years at Colgate University working to start a career in sports media. Double majoring in Economics and Film & Media Studies gave him the opportunity to study both the financial/ analytical and broadcasting/ production sides of the sports world. Outside of the classroom, he’s worked as a director and producer for Colgate’s athletic events streamed on ESPN+ and a writer for the Colgate Athletic Website. Through all of this, however, it was his love of Philly sports that drove him to this career.
