The Philadelphia Flyers penalty-kill units could look slightly different in terms of personnel in 2019-20.
Much like their power-play, the Philadelphia Flyers penalty-kill struggled mightily during the 2018-19 season. They were consistently in the basement of the NHL throughout the year and even though the group improved after Scott Gordon took over as the Interim Head Coach, they still finished sixth-worst in the league with a 78.48 penalty-kill percentage. While some of this was due to the Flyers hardships and constant injuries in-net, most of the blame was rightly pointed to Assitant Coach Ian Laperriere and the system he ran.
Lappy has since been moved to the press box and will focus on pre-scouting duties for Philadelphia while Mike Yeo will take control of the shorthanded unit. With the shift in coaching and a couple of new additions from General Manager Chuck Fletcher this offseason, the Flyers penalty kill could have some new faces on it this upcoming year. Now, as I prefaced in the power-play article, I have no idea what the Flyers coaching staff has in mind as far as systems or personnel are concerned. I’m purely speculating on what the kill could end up looking like since we’re a couple of weeks away from the start of Training Camp, so having said that, let’s get into it.
The top shorthanded unit should still consist of Sean Couturier and Ivan Provorov, once Philadelphia and the Restricted Free Agent defenseman get a deal done. Couturier was one of, if not the best penalty-killer on the Flyers roster in 2018-19 and though Provorov wasn’t his usual self, he’s the best two-way blue-liner on the roster at the moment. Travis Sanheim could give him a run for his money if the Russian D-Man continues to flounder in 2019-20, but for now, it’s Provorov’s job to lose.
Additionally, I would like to see Kevin Hayes and Matt Niskanen round out the squad. Hayes has been solid on the kill the past few years, and while he’s normally been used on the second unit rather than the first, I’d be interested to see how he fairs in a more significant shorthanded role. As far as Niskanen is concerned, the Washington Capitals weren’t awful killing penalties in terms of unblocked shot rates against with him on the ice according to Hockey Viz, but it’s worth noting they were more successful in suppressing shots in dangerous areas without him. I’m willing to take the risk that he’ll bounce back from a down season and prove to be effective alongside Provorov while shorthanded.
Moving onto the second group, Scott Laughton should continue to receive time there with Oskar Lindblom getting an opportunity to shine beside him. Lindblom was solid in his own zone for the Flyers at even-strength and saw brief time on the penalty-kill last year, as well. I wouldn’t be surprised if his success at even-strength translated when Philadelphia’s down a man and even if it doesn’t, Yeo could opt to use a guy like Tyler Pitlick or Michael Raffl instead.
On the blue-line, I would prefer to have Sanheim and Philippe Myers kill penalties together, but I’m assuming Justin Braun will almost be a shoe in on the unit given his defensive skill set and how long he’s been in the NHL. I’m skeptical on Braun being a penalty-killer in Philadelphia due to the fact that he wasn’t very good at doing so for the San Jose Sharks this past season. The Sharks were slightly better on the PK without him, and Braun’s Relative Corsi-for percentage has steadily declined since the 2016-17 campaign. Giving him less time on the second group could help, but I’d rather see the Flyers gift younger players like Sanheim and Myers with the opportunity first before rolling out Braun.
Steady goaltending and a new system should have the Flyers penalty-kill improve in 2019-20, but nothing’s guaranteed in the game of hockey, and it’ll be up to the players mentioned above to help turn things around.