Looking Back at the First 56 Games of the Flyers’ Season
Jan 23, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Philadelphia Flyers right wing Owen Tippett (74) celebrates his goal with teammates in the first period against the Colorado Avalanche at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
We are 56 games into the Flyers’ season; the break for the team and the National Hockey League commences, leading the way for this year’s Winter Olympics. Though we thought earlier in the season that we’d be looking at possible buying scenarios at this time, gearing up for the playoffs, the conversations led towards how the Flyers can use the break to reset, as Thursday’s overtime loss to the Ottawa Senators takes the Flyers into the break with a record of 25-20-11.
The Flyers, although not out of the picture, are in a rough spot regarding the postseason, which was not always the case. To start the season, the Flyers found themselves in a consistent spot, whether they were second or third in the division. There was even a point where the Flyers were third in the Eastern Conference and sixth in the NHL. This was all in late November, when the Flyers were 14-7-3 on November 29th, much different from their record now.
Guys like Trevor Zegras and Christian Dvorak were finding a spot in their new home, but it was Daniel Vladar who had all the confidence at the start of the season. Vladar had been excellent from the start, and even now, despite a few holes of late. In October, Vladar averaged a .939 save percentage, peaking at .970 percent on October 30th. Philadelphia had found the missing piece, it had seemed, as goaltending had always been an issue for the Flyers.
Another huge piece that had been missing was a center with elite-level talent. This talent came in the offseason, when the Flyers and the Anaheim Ducks agreed to send Zegras over to Philadelphia in exchange for Ryan Poehling and a couple of draft picks. In his time so far with the Flyers, Zegras has been nothing short of incredible, as he has certainly made a name for himself in a change of scenery. Though Zegras had been injury-prone in Anaheim, he played all 56 games leading up to the break, scoring 20 goals and 29 assists for 49 points. The Flyers were able to ride with the hot streaks of Zegras and Vladar for the first half of the year.
With the annual Cutter Gauthier game taking place on January 6th, it appears the Flyers had poured out everything they had left in that game, as the 5-2 win seemed to be the end of the Flyers’ run. With the Flyers at the time projected to finish the season with 102 points, there were a lot of expectations going into the second half. Unfortunately, these expectations were not met, as the Flyers proceeded to go on a six-game losing streak.
Though they fell to tougher opponents such as the Tampa Bay Lightning, it was rough to see them drop games against the New York Rangers at home. Despite the struggles, the Flyers were able to pick it back up for a three-game stretch where they went 2-0-1 against the Vegas Golden Knights, Utah Mammoth, and Colorado Avalanche, a game where forward Owen Tippett would record his second career hat trick.
Even after a good road trip, the Flyers lost the next four games, one of them a shutout against the New York Islanders at home, which looked to be a microcosm of the Flyers’ last ten (plus) games.
At the break, the Flyers stand at 13th in the East, a conference where they were once in third place. In terms of the playoff picture, the Flyers (sixth in the Metropolitan Division) are eight points behind the Islanders for third place in the division, and also eight points out of the last Wild Card spot.
Overall, as the team began to fall apart, tensions rose between head coach Rick Tocchet and not only Matvei Michkov, but also the media themselves as well. The culture Tocchet praised at the start of the year has drastically gone away, leading to a lot of questions regarding the last 26 games for the hockey club.
Luke Raidy
Luke has covering the the Flyers and Phillies for Philly Sports Reports since 2025. He is a junior at North Penn and being a huge Philly sports fan has brought so many experiences, such as going to the NLDS, NLCS, and even the World Series in 2022. He has also met former superstars in the city of Philadelphia, such as Wayne Simmonds from the Flyers. Though being a student-athlete, Luke enjoys his time where he is writing and reporting on Philadelphia sports.
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