Flyers finally win in Toronto as Michkov and Zegras finish a 3-2 shootout statement

Down Travis Konecny and staring at another long night in Toronto, the Flyers dragged the game into deep water, then won it with poise in overtime and swagger in the shootout as Matvei Michkov and Trevor Zegras sealed a 3-2 statement win that finally snapped the Toronto drought.

The last 3 games since coming back from the Olympic break have had a playoff feel, and tonight was no different. Coming into Toronto has been a bit of a house of horrors lately, and they have had 2 losses this season against the Toronto Maple Leafs already. Things looked even more bleak with Konecny being scratched after the morning skate with an upper-body injury.

Tonight’s game was going to be an intense game, with it being a must-win game for both teams, and the intensity was there from the opening draw. The first period was fast-paced and gave the feeling that you shouldn’t blink because you might just miss something incredible. This led to the period ending tied after Dakota Joshua and Christian Dvorak traded goals in the first. The second period was more of a survival period for the Flyers, but the third ended tied after Noah Cates and William Nylander each scored, sending the game to overtime.

In the overtime period, the Flyers played much better, with them not feeling the need to press, and reset well, keeping the game tied and forcing a shootout. In the shootout, the Flyers looked like their earlier-season selves, with Michkov and Zegras scoring incredible shootout goals to take home a 3-2 win.

This was the first Flyers win in Toronto since 2019, and it couldn’t have come at a better time.

After the game, Vladar said what should be posted above the exit on the Flyers dressing room: “We just have to keep grinding.”

Flyers Power Play Wakes Up

At the end of the first period, the Flyers came up big with a huge goal to tie the game, when Dvorak finished a shot past Toronto golatender Anthony Stolarz to not only tie the game, but to also snap a horrible 0-17 power play streak; they were 0-6 since the Olympic break with the man advantage. There wasn’t a ton of hope of a change coming for the beleaguered power play unit in tonight’s game, with Konecny being a scratch coming into the game. This allowed Owen Tippett to take a leadership role on the power play unit, and he took full advantage of this by anchoring the unit, doing the gritty work that was needed to break through.

The way the Flyers played on the power play tonight was a blueprint of how it needs to be executed to turn their fortunes around on the man-advantage. It could be just the boost they need to get back into the playoff picture and carry them for a deeper playoff run.

Flyers Passing Needs to Improve

The thing that nobody seems to want to address is that when the Flyers look the worst is when the passing isn’t crisp, and tonight, when Johnson got the first goal for the Leafs, it was a direct result of the poor passing of the Flyers in their own zone. This has been something that has plagued this team since December consistently. They have had trouble maintaining pressure with their passing being just a little off, costing them chances. Tonight in the second period, the Flyers’ passing woes kept the puck in their zone for 2/3 of the period. That can’t continue to happen, especially if they have desires of making the playoffs this season.

An example is from the third period, the Flyers’ backcheck caused Michkov to get a step on all Toronto defenders, and when Noah Cates noticed this, he rushed a pass up the ice that was onside, but also completely missed the stick of Michkov gliding harmlessly to Stolarz. What could have been an incredible scoring chance turned into a walk-in-the-park save for Stolarz. On the other side, the sloppy passing led directly to an 11-2 shot difference in the second. To further prove the point, the goal that broke the tie in the third was set up by a beauty of a saucer pass from Bobby Brink to Cates who finished the play well, but it started with an accurate pass to put Cates in a good situation.

The Shots on Goal Deficit is Becoming an Issue

Coming into tonight, the Flyers had tied a team record with 6 games with less than 25 shots. This streak was snapped tonight with the Flyers getting exactly 25 shots in the last 30 seconds of the game. This has historically been an issue for Rick Tocchet‘s teams, but with the way the Flyers play under him, they need to find a way to get better shots on goal. Part of this is due to the poor passing, but more than that, it’s more about the focus on the backcheck and grinding out possessions than it is about setting up advantageous offensive situations.

To keep themselves in the playoff conversation, they have to truly be more focused on focusing making offensive opportunities. This will not only invite chaos into the opponent’s zone, but it will also keep the rush away from Vladar and keep the puck moving in the right direction. If this is addressed, the Flyers’ slim postseason chances could be enhanced.

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