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Flyers Crumble Under Adversity, Lose to Wild 5-4

By Collin Coyne

PHILADELPHIA, PA - MARCH 03: Frederick Gaudreau #89 of the Minnesota Wild celebrates with Kevin Fiala #22 and Dmitry Kulikov #29 after scoring a goal against Carter Hart #79 of the Philadelphia Flyers in the final seconds of the first period at the Wells Fargo Center on March 3, 2022 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - MARCH 03: Frederick Gaudreau #89 of the Minnesota Wild celebrates with Kevin Fiala #22 and Dmitry Kulikov #29 after scoring a goal against Carter Hart #79 of the Philadelphia Flyers in the final seconds of the first period at the Wells Fargo Center on March 3, 2022 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /
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The league basement Philadelphia Flyers hosted the cup-contending Minnesota Wild in Philadelphia this Thursday for a game that ended up far closer on the scoreboard than maybe either team expected.

THE GOOD:

THE SERGEANT: Scott Laughton has been electric this entire nightmare season, often feeling like one of the only players that actually cares on ice for the Orange and Black. And that has far from expired. Laughts had a pretty quality game, highlighted by his early goal that saw him undress not just the Minnesota defense, but the goalie as well.

THE SCORER SCORES: Travis Konecny has found himself in an interesting place when it comes to Flyers discourse. A player with a history of goalscoring suddenly becoming more of a playmaker is sure to draw ire when the goals dry up. Despite the fact that TK has greatly improved his playmaking, the lack of biscuits in the basket has become some concern, so it’s always refreshing to see him get one.

THE BAD:

BEST BAKERY IN THE EAST: The Flyers would be one of the best bakeries on the planet if they got paid for every turnover they produced. Multiple goals the Wild were able to score, especially the goal in the final moments of the first period, came as a direct result of egregious Flyers turnovers. While failed clears have become somewhat of a theme for recent Flyers teams, hanging Hart out to dry for seemingly the majority of the Wild’s goals is inexcusable.

LINEUP FAILURES: While not the reason for the outcome tonight, Chuck Fletcher’s decision to return Isaac Ratcliffe to the AHL in favor of players like Derik Brassard and Max Willman is a definitive point of criticism. Brassard was solely responsible for the goal at the end of the first, and was easily forgettable throughout the rest of the game. Even if Fletcher is trying to showcase his trade deadline pieces, burying young talent isn’t the way to build a contender.

THE UGLY:

ANOTHER ONE, AGAIN: The Flyers didn’t win. The playoffs are obviously out of the picture, and losing theoretically should help the team long term via the lottery, it certainly still hurts to watch the Flyers fumble a game where they probably should have won.

I DON’T WANT IT, YOU TAKE IT: In complete and total bad Flyers fashion, the team would score a goal only to immediately give the lead back to the other team in embarrassing fashion. The individual instances could be talked about to death, but ultimately, the Flyers can’t hold a lead for the life of them, and it’s stopping them from winning games where they visually should have outplayed the opponents.

The Minnesota Wild’s Jared Spurgeon set the Wild’s record for games played as a defenseman, and the Orange and Black were more than courteous by letting him celebrate a win on this massive day. The Flyers stay at home this weekend, facing the Chicago Blackhawks for a matinee on Saturday.

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