There’s not much to say about Thursday night’s 8-7 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, although goaltender Brian Boucher’s reaction after the game is on the mark: “Probably the weirdest game I’ve played in, in my career.” Nine goals between two clubs after the first period, five more after the second, and the game winning goal in the third period is a rarity in hockey. In fact, the last time the Flyers scored seven goals and lost was against the Hartford Whalers in 1984.
Ultimately, the Flyers were too aggressive with their offensive game and the defensive side of coach Peter Laviolette’s system broke down. Once the scoring chances blew wide open for both teams, they couldn’t settle the puck down or control the pace of play. Neither Sergei Bobrovsky nor Boucher could stop the bleeding either, although Boucher hadn’t seen any ice time in almost a month.
While this week hasn’t fared all that well for the Orange and Black, with losses against the Montreal Canadiens and the Lightning, the team isn’t in a vulnerable position that they can’t bounce back from. Montreal’s game had a lot of positives to it, and they had bad timing running into a hot goaltender in Carey Price (weird to write that, but it’s true). If anything, Thursday’s game will probably serve as a jumping on point for the team to get back-to-basics.
The Flyers are facing the elite of the NHL, the Washington Capitals, for the second time this season later tonight. The Capitals have been a team over the last few seasons that can really only be beaten if the defense stifles their offensive firepower. On the other end of the ice, their defense is average and prone to the same liabilities that the Flyers let loose on Thursday.
If the Flyers can control the pace of play and implement their system effectively tonight, the team will be off to a good start in a busy week that includes a rematch against the Canadiens on Monday.
