November 01, 2023
For the second straight game, the Flyers generated chance after chance but struggled to find the back of the net in a 5-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres Wednesday night at the Wells Fargo Center.
They've now lost three straight going back to Saturday against Anaheim and are starting to show the growing pains of a rebuild.
But hey, it was going to happen at some point. Now it's about how they work through it.
Here are five thoughts from the loss...
Within the first five minutes Wednesday night, the Flyers received both the gift of puck luck and the curse.
The gift: A very fortunate bounce on a pass from Joel Farabee that turned into the opening goal instead – on a sequence that was just all kinds of a disaster for Buffalo.
With Sabres defenseman Henri Jokiharju caught pinching way down in the zone, Travis Sanheim retrieved the puck behind the net and fed it right to Farabee along the left-side boards to take straight up the ice on the odd-man rush.
Looking for the pass through the middle to Bobby Brink, Farabee's attempt instead deflected off the stick of Jokiharju trying to hurry back, which sent the puck knuckling by goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkoen for the 1-0 Flyers lead just 55 seconds in.
Just the way @FarabeeJoel drew it up. #BUFvsPHI | #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/8vyQ8LB307
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) November 1, 2023
The curse: A couple of minutes later, Farabee was streaking up the ice with the puck again and looking for that exact same play, but this time the pass went off the stick of Sabres winger J.J. Peterka and over Brink, with Jeff Skinner able to chip it into the neutral zone to get play going the other way.
Egor Zamula was caught backpedaling all alone, and the sequence ended with Buffalo flying downhill and Casey Mittelstadt all alone in front to beat Carter Hart and tie it up 1-1.
Casey Mittelstadt and JJ Peterka partake in a give n go, 1-1 #LetsGoBuffalo #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/CeSZlztbDM
— Buffalo Hockey Moments (@SabresPlays) November 1, 2023
Great break then a brutal break.
Puck luck giveth. Puck luck taketh away.
What followed for a majority of the first period after Buffalo's tying goal was...weird.
There were some real headscratchers on the Flyers' part. Morgan Frost, already at the faceoff dots in his own zone, not only started stickhandling backward with Sabres forecheckers cracking down, but toward his own net, getting bailed out from Cam York also being there in front to clear the puck out. Then later in the period, with both defensemen down by their own goal line, Zamula sent a dangerous pass directly across the crease to Sean Walker, again with Sabres forecheckers crashing down.
There was a lot of open ice the Flyers let up to the Sabres that period too – Skinner coasted right by everyone on a goal that was called back after a review for offsides – and missed assignments, like an unmarked Brandon Biro crashing in front that gave the Sabres a 2-1 lead midway through it and caused Carter Hart to exit the game with an injury (more on that in a bit).
BRANDON BIRO GOES TO THE NET AND SCORES HIS FIRST NHL GOAL! pic.twitter.com/UziPo3DIx8
— The Charging Buffalo (@TheChargingBUF) November 1, 2023
A lot of it just seemed oddly passive for a team that, to this point so far, has prided themselves on getting after everyone at the very least.
The shift, however, came with Cam Atkinson's goal to knot it back up at two late in the period, in a sequence that started with a successful sweep at the puck by Travis Sanheim with Buffalo trying to enter the offensive zone, then a quick breakout and hop in on the rush from the defenseman.
AtkinSIX goals already. #BUFvsPHI | @CamAtkinson89 pic.twitter.com/eyIJ4nqeFf
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) November 1, 2023
Momentum built for the Flyers from there as they went on to outshoot the Sabres 10-4 in the second. However...
For all the chances the Flyers generated in the middle frame, they still left it without any goals to show for.
They had so many opportunities to put Carolina away on Monday, but couldn't cash in on any of them, with it all coming back to bite them in a loss that got away late.
On Wednesday, it bit them again.
The Flyers kept firing away in the third, outshooting Buffalo 40-15 for the game, but the Sabres saw two breaks and took advantage via deciding goals from Owen Power and then Tage Thompson.
If anything is clear right now, it's that this team needs to learn how to finish on their scoring chances.
After the loss to Carolina, head coach John Tortorella said the players would learn from it and that he needed to keep perspective of where the team actually is in its development and how he can help push them along.
And finishing off plays is something a club can only really get a grasp on through reps and experience. It isn't going to happen overnight, which means it might cost the Flyers a game or two in the meantime until they figure it out.
But maybe that's okay.
Remember: rebuild.
"I think we created over 20-25 scoring chances," Tortorella said after the loss to the Sabres postgame. "What we need to do is just stay with it, and I think that's the most important thing is to not overthink it and just continue to try to play the right way, and I thought for a good portion of the game, we did – checked well, jammed the neutral zone, had a ton of chances, but we just did not – give the goalie [Luukkonen] credit. He played a good game."
The power play, by the way, is still struggling. It went 0-for-3 on the night.
"I think the decision-making needs to be simplified," Tortorella said. "Not to go back into the old 'shoot the puck and look for a rebound' but I think there are some shots to be taken...I think we need to simplify that and just try to generate more to the net, and then I believe things will open up for other plays after that.
"I just don't think we've generated enough pucks to the net."
Carter Hart needed to be checked on by a trainer twice in the first period, and on the second visit, after he was crashed into on Biro's goal, he exited the game with what the Flyers are designating as – for now – a "mid-body injury."
Sam Ersson took over between the pipes and fared better than in his start on Saturday against Anaheim – you can only go up from allowing seven goals – though still in a losing effort where he got beat on two of just the nine shots he saw.
Details on Hart are going to be scarce for the night but we'll likely hear more in the next day or two.
Hart, however, has played a ton of minutes already and has been a major reason why the Flyers have held up as well as they have so far.
They'd rather not go without him for any substantial amount of time, but if they have to...
"That's my job," Ersson said. "That's why I'm here. To stop pucks."
To gather into one collective fifth thought.
• With his goal to open the game Wednesday night, Farabee now has six points in the last seven games and seven points (five goals, two assists) in 10 on the season so far. He's been clicking well on the line with Brink and Noah Cates, and between his anticipation for where the play is going and a bit more aggressiveness in his game, he's been overall pretty impressive.
• The fourth line of Nic Deslauriers, Scott Laughton, and Garnet Hathaway was hitting hard Wednesday night, and that physicality helped lead to a scoring chance up ice late in the first period. Down in their own zone, Hathaway threw a check along the half-boards that jarred the puck loose for Laughton to pick up and take up on the rush with Deslauriers, who tried to beat Luukkonen on a move from the backhand to the forehand on the scoring chance that the Buffalo goaltender read the whole way. Great idea, better save, and just one of the many opportunities the Flyers couldn't put home.
• Adding on to all the missed chances the Flyers had Wednesday night, Tyson Foerster saw a couple as well, including a shot from in tight that he fired high and wide. He needs that first goal badly.
• Thompson's goal to put the Sabres ahead 4-2 was just a backbreaker.
Tage Thompson, 4-2. listen to the relief/excitement #LetsGoBuffalo #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/KXg918S4eg
— Buffalo Hockey Moments (@SabresPlays) November 2, 2023
But the Flyers will have another shot at the Sabres Friday night in the back half of a home-and-home series now heading to Buffalo.
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