Flyers ready to hit the ice, find chemistry in preseason opener against Islanders

The Philadelphia Flyers will hit the ice at the Wells Fargo Center for the first time since their season ended on May 10th. They’ll look to kick things off on the right foot with a lot of new faces in place. It is just the first of six preseason games, but this is the time where Alain Vigneault and the coaching staff will get to see what players will give them the best chance to go out and win.

There has been a lot of familiarities when it comes to the lines that Vigneault has tossed out during the opening days of camp. Whether that has been familiar faces in the Flyers lineup, or those who have played together on other teams. It is all about finding the right mix of players who will be able to develop the chemistry that will make each line successful.

That has been noticed in what could be the Flyers’ top line heading in the preseason, and possibly even the season. Claude Giroux, Sean Couturier, and Travis Konecny have found themselves reunited once again. It is clear that Vigneault liked what this trio has brought to the ice and it is a good opportunity to get Konecny going again. After a less than stellar season, he’ll be looking to bounce back and should be able to go that with the two veteran players.

The trio skated together for just over 65 minutes a season ago but was strong when it came to controlling play. We’d have to go back to the 2019-20 season to get a better look at what these three players are able to do. According to Natural Stat Trick, they played just over 138 minutes together and outscored opponents 8-4. They out-chanced (57.76 CF%) and out-drove (57.35 FF%) opponents as well. So Vigneault may be trying to reclaim the success they had two seasons ago.

There is some more familiarity down the lineup as Derick Brassard and Cam Atkinson find themselves together recently. The two skated together with the Columbus Blue Jackets from 2010-13. That is something that Vigneault wants to try during these exhibition games. Oskar Lindblom is the last member of that line and based on all the conditioning tests, he is back to where he was pre-cancer. At the time that we found out about his diagnosis, he was among the Flyers’ leading scorers. So getting him back to that form will be yet another positive for this team moving forward.

“I’m hoping with everything that I’m hearing that he’s back to where he was prior to it. Obviously, we’re going to have to show a little bit of patience here but when you talk to him, you see that he feels good.” Vigneault said after Saturday’s practice. “I don’t want to say he was frustrated last year, but he was because he had the mind going. The body just wasn’t doing what the mind was thinking.”

Tyson Foerster will get the chance to put on the Flyers’ jersey for the first time in an NHL atmosphere. While it may be tough for him to crack the opening night roster, he has certainly stood out in rookie camp and now the main camp as well. He touts that shoot-first mentality and hasn’t been afraid to show it off. He’ll have the opportunity to go out in these exhibition games and show what he can do.

There will be some other players who round out the lineup as well. German Rubtsov and Connor Bunnaman will get a chance in the preseason opener to impress. Both will have an opportunity to play on the penalty kill, according to Vigneault.  And Samuel Ersson will likely get at least a period of play behind Carter Hart as he looks to adjust to the North American game.

Injuries to others such as Wade Allison and Tanner Laczynski have opened up spots and allowed others to potentially nab spots on the roster. With the cap crunch, it may be tough for the Flyers to carry a full 23-man roster, but these players will be fighting to find themselves on that list.

So we may see some different combinations moving forward as Vigneault and his coaching staff look to widdle down the remaining players and find out who will make out the 2021-22 roster. It will all start with their first exhibition game against the New York Islanders.