The Philadelphia Flyers go back-to-back after a hard-fought shootout victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Friday night, hopping on a plane to Calgary for their second of four West Coast games to kick off their season.
Coming into this next game off of solid debuts from Matvei Michkov and Jett Luchanko, an excellent performance in net by Sam Ersson, and having both the powerplay and penalty kill looking dangerous, the Flyers are feeling good—and that confidence will be crucial in getting another two points against the Flames.
All About Momentum
The Flames overcame a 3-0 deficit to beat the Canucks in a 6-5 overtime win on Wednesday, so it’s safe to say that they’re a team that will be able to skate with the Flyers as long as they need to in order to secure a win.
However, Morgan Frost quite perfectly described the Flyers as a “pesky” team—one that doesn’t let up in front of the net until the play is dead. Combine that relentlessness with the tricky offense they’ve been able to create and a general confidence to try any and all shots (whether they be wraparound sneaks into the net or annihilating one-timers from far out), they’ll be working the Flames’ defense to the bone.
“We Find A Way To Win.”
Head coach John Tortorella praised the Flyers’ relentlessness throughout the Vancouver game, admitting that, while slip-ups were made, the team deserved to come away with two points.
“We just grind it out,” he said post-game. “[We] keep on playing…and we find a way to win.”
Morgan Frost, who scored a stunning goal to seal the Flyers’ win, added that “it [was] our first game [of the season], and we haven’t played a preseason game in a while, so you’re gonna see some mistakes. I thought we held our composure, and when you have [Ersson] back there making some of the saves he did, it keeps us in the game. We’re kind of just a pesky team… I wouldn’t say it’s our best game, but I thought we did some good things.”
Joel Farabee joked that the infamous conditioning tests that the Flyers have to endure under Tortorella in training camp prepared them well for these early games, saying, “”I think we did enough laps during camp that we were ready to play. We felt good, I think our legs looked good out there.”
Megan DeRuchie-The Hockey News
Welcome To The Show
Jett Luchanko and Matvei Michkov officially made their NHL debuts against the Canucks (and took their rookie laps together!), and it’s safe to say that they held their own against top-level opposition.
Tortorella acknowledged that Michkov “looked a little nervous” and Luchanko got caught out on a play that resulted in the Canucks’ second goal, but overall, he liked what he saw from the Flyers’ debutantes.
“They deserved to play,” he said. “Both of them were in situations, both of them made some good plays and had some struggles too, [but] I like what they bring. I don’t think they’re afraid of anything.”
Farabee, who made his NHL debut in 2019, added, “When I played my first game, I was just trying not to mess up out there. Those guys just went out there and played their game, and that’s what we need them to do if we want to be successful. It’s only one game, but we keep building and moving on.”
It’s likely that fans will get another taste of Michkov and Luchanko in Calgary as the Flyers continue to experiment and see where they fit in best in the lineup, but their debuts proved that while they’re still young and learning, these kids can keep up with the vets.
Megan DeRuchie-The Hockey News
Projected Lines
Philadelphia Flyers
Forwards:
Matvei Michkov – Sean Couturier – Travis Konecny
Owen Tippett – Morgan Frost – Tyson Foerster
Joel Farabee – Jett Luchanko – Bobby Brink
Scott Laughton – Ryan Poehling – Garnet Hathaway
Defense:
Cam York – Travis Sanheim
Erik Johnson – Jamie Drysdale
Egor Zamula – Rasmus Ristolainen
Starting Goalie:
Sam Ersson
Calgary Flames
Forwards:
Samuel Honzek – Nazem Kadri – Andrei Kuzmenko
Connor Zary – Mikael Backlund – Blake Coleman
Jonathan Huberdeau – Martin Pospisil – Anthony Mantha
Ryan Lomberg – Justin Kirkland – Adam Klapka
Defense:
Mackenzie Weegar – Daniil Miromanov
Kevin Bahl – Rasmus Andersson
Jake Bean – Brayden Pachal
Starting Goalie:
Dustin Wolf
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