Flyers in need of quick turnaround on Long Island
By Colin Newby
The Philadelphia Flyers (14-10-3, 31 points) will meet the New York Islanders (19-7-4, 42 points) on Thursday at the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island in the first of three consecutive meetings between the two clubs. The game will be televised locally on NBC Sports Philadelphia. Face-off is set for 7pm.
Where They Stand- Trending in Different Directions
The Flyers let the floodgates open on Wednesday night in an embarrassing 9-0 loss to the New York Rangers. They hung goaltenders Brian Elliott and Carter Hart out to dry with an atrocious defensive performance in their worst road shutout loss in franchise history. They now have six regulation losses in their last nine games.
Recent struggles came to a full, undeniable display on Wednesday night. Philadelphia is spiraling downward away from a playoff spot and in desperate need of defensive reinforcements. In a back-to-back situation with the red-hot Islanders looming, they need to find their legs quickly.
The Islanders had won nine consecutive games before losing 3-1 to the Washington Capitals on Tuesday. The two respective teams are currently tied atop the East Division. The Islanders have leapt through the standings since losing on consecutive nights to the Flyers in overtime on January 30th and 31st.
New York did get some bad news over the weekend, as it was announced that captain Anders Lee would miss the remainder of the season with an ACL injury.
Flyers Looking for a Turnaround
The Flyers are 1-5 in their last six games against teams currently in playoff position. They cannot afford to continue the trend in the upcoming three against the Islanders if they still hope to regain playoff positioning.
In hopes that the surging Islanders might regress, it is notable to point out that seven of the nine wins during the aforementioned winning streak came against the East Division’s bottom two teams, the New Jersey Devils and Buffalo Sabres.
Barry Trotz’s squad is 11-2-0 this season against the three bottom teams in the East. They are 6-5-4 against the Capitals, Bruins, Flyers, and Penguins.
The Islanders were also a streaky team during the 2019-20 season. They won ten consecutive games in the span from October 12th-November 5th, 2019. Prior to the NHL season’s pause in March 2020, they had lost seven consecutive games and 11 of their previous 13. They were trending downward and very well could have missed the playoffs if the full 82-game regular season was played.
Their success in the bubble is a familiar narrative for Flyers fans.
Players to Watch
The Flyers defensive corps was exposed in the worst of ways on Wednesday. Head coach Alain Vigneault was counting on Ivan Provorov, Travis Sanheim, and Phil Myers as his top defensemen entering the season. They simply have not played like it, and the Flyers will not reach the playoffs without improvement from each of these three even if a key defensive acquisition is made.
Center Kevin Hayes, typically a reputable 200 foot forward, also highlights the long list of Flyers in need of a strong bounce back effort after committing glaring mistakes in his defensive responsibilities in recent weeks.
Islanders winger Brock Nelson leads their squad with 12 goals this season. Nelson tortured the Flyers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals last year, notching four goals and three assists in seven games. His strong netfront presence is especially key with the man-advantage, as he has 6 power play goals in 2021.
Center Mathew Barzal presents a tough test for a Flyers team having trouble with defensive coverage in their own zone. Barzal’s puck skills are as good as anyone in the NHL, and the Flyers cannot continue to be caught “puck-watching” if they have any hopes of containing him.
Getting Set for Tonight
The Flyers currently sit as underdogs at +143 on the moneyline, and the over/under is set at 5.5 (odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook).