For the primary time since final April, the Philadelphia Flyers returned to the Wells Fargo Middle ice. Whereas their third of seven preseason contests didn’t carry practically the identical weight because the playoff implications from the spring, it was a chance for a few of the crew’s prime gamers to play towards one other group for the primary time in months and for brand new faces to make their correct debuts in Orange and Black.
The Flyers received the sport by a 2-0 remaining, taking the lead on a third-period aim by Erik Johnson, the lone Flyer to attain within the crew’s 2023-24 regular-season finale. Prime prospect Matvei Michkov, who notched a secondary help on the aim, potted the empty-netter for his first aim within the Flyers dwelling rink. Right here’s what stood out in Philadelphia on Thursday evening.
A crew’s greatest gamers don’t at all times pop in preseason. These video games are extra of a tune-up for them, they usually can naturally take a again seat to prospects or depth gamers preventing tooth and nail for an NHL function.
However that wasn’t the case for the Flyers. The Owen Tippett-Morgan Frost-Matvei Michkov line bought its re-evaluation of the preseason. Although they didn’t present up a lot on the scoresheet earlier than the New York Islanders pulled their goaltender, the trio continues to construct chemistry collectively. Michkov particularly was stellar as a playmaker, making a number of artful entry passes to spring his linemates into the offensive zone with velocity. Whereas his help was secondary, it was fairly spectacular, organising Travis Sanheim proper within the slot, with Johnson burying the rebound off the boards. He most likely ought to have drawn a tripping penalty within the third interval, though no name was made.
Michkov the sniper had a bit rougher efficiency. He had two significantly nice seems, each on one-timers arrange by every of his linemates, however he couldn’t beat Marcus Högberg on the primary and missed the web on the second. He additionally doinked an empty-net bid from the purple line off the publish earlier than changing a second likelihood seconds later and exhibiting his emotion to the group.
It wasn’t simply the Michkov present, even when No. 39 drew the most important ovations from the sparsely populated crowd. Tippett and Frost had a pleasant give-and-go sequence within the first interval and one in every of Tippett’s greatest shifts got here on a mish-mash line with Rodrigo Abols and Garnet Hathaway. Tippett’s 5 pictures led the crew, which is hardly shocking for the 24-year-old sharpshooter.
Nevertheless, Johnson’s aim was all of the help Samuel Ersson wanted between the pipes. The Swedish netminder stopped all 34 pictures the Islanders fired his means, together with an onslaught early within the second interval and several other difficult scramble conditions at point-blank vary. All in all, he completed with a 37-save shutout.
Ersson’s struggles on the finish of final season have been probably simply because of the heavy workload he shouldered, however it was good to get somewhat extra affirmation that his first-half kind wasn’t a mirage.
Luchanko Strong However Not Spectacular
By the numbers, one would possibly assume 2024 No. 13 choose Jett Luchanko elevated his odds of constructing the Flyers out of camp as an 18-year-old, a minimum of for the nine-game trial granted to Canadian Hockey League prospects with out burning a yr of their entry-level contract. His 59.13% anticipated targets share was fourth greatest amongst Flyers forwards. He earned a daily function on the penalty kill, which carried out effectively all evening and was a good 46.2% within the face-off dot, an space younger facilities usually wrestle in.
Nevertheless, Luchanko didn’t do a lot to face out. Aside from a few blocked pictures, he was absent from the stat sheet, and he solely tried one shot (though it was a high-danger likelihood). By The Athletic’s Dom Luszczyszyn’s recreation rating metric, his total efficiency was extra in the course of the pack, and performing head coach Rocky Thompson didn’t come away wowed, both.
For Luchanko to make the Flyers on his first try, he should bang the door down. Simply being within the dialog for a roster spot makes this a profitable camp for Luchanko, however returning to his junior crew (the Ontario Hockey League’s Guelph Storm) seems extra probably after final evening.
Depth Gamers Fail to Pull Away
Luchanko was the principle participant on the roster bubble to look at final evening, however a number of others had a chance to impress. Up entrance, Abols had a few scoring probabilities and was additionally a part of the aforementioned stout penalty kill. Oscar Eklind struggled with turnovers on a number of events, although. He additionally couldn’t deal with a possible breakaway feed from Sanheim late within the first and performed a game-low 11:04 at 5-on-5.
Emil Andrae and Adam Ginning each had some good and dangerous moments all through the sport. Ginning stood out early earlier than making some sloppy errors, together with a tough failed clear on the penalty kill that would have simply resulted in a aim. Thompson stated he favored Andrae’s recreation, in addition to Helge Grans’. The 22-year-old isn’t prone to break camp with the Flyers — he’s waiver-exempt and nonetheless trying to discover his stride as a prospect. However it’s solely a very good factor if he enters the American Hockey League season with optimistic momentum and he could have earned one other preseason recreation along with his efforts.
Up Subsequent
The Flyers return to the Wells Fargo Middle 48 hours after the beginning of Thursday’s recreation for his or her second dwelling preseason recreation, this one towards the Boston Bruins. They’ll additionally play the Islanders as soon as extra within the exhibition season, heading as much as UBS Area on Monday.
Associated: Flyers Who May Win Crew’s Ultimate 2024-25 Roster Spot
On Wednesday, the Flyers lower 14 gamers from their coaching camp, returning 5 prospects to their junior groups and assigning 9 others to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. That brings their roster right down to 44. Realistically, there are solely about 30 gamers with sturdy hopes of constructing the crew, so one other roster discount could come within the subsequent few days.
All superior statistics through Pure Stat Trick except in any other case said.