It was a depleted Flyers lineup that hadn't scored in over two games versus a high-powered Colorado offense that scored five goals in their last game. That alone should've told how this game was going to go.
The Flyers, already without Morgan Frost and Joel Farabee after the trade, were also without their new additions Andrei Kuzmenko and Jakob Pelletier due to visa issues. They hope to have both available on Tuesday against Utah. Owen Tippett, Nic Deslauriers, Ryan Poehling, and Egor Zamula all remained out due to injury.
Despite calling up Jacob Gaucher and Emil Andrae, Philadelphia was forced to play 11/7 due to their lack of healthy forwards. Add in Rasmus Ristolainen missing the entire third period after suffering his own injury and you get the end result. Another shutout loss.
Offense drying up
The Flyers have not scored a goal in over three games. Their last came on Scott Laughton's empty netter against the Devils, four games ago. That's 180:15 without a goal. They became the first group in franchise history to be shut out in the regular season for three straight games. Philadelphia was shut out three straight times in the first round of the 2002 playoffs before that.
If you look at the last time they scored a goal with a goaltender in the net, the number jumps to 217:11. It's becoming increasingly clear where this team is headed. They've been outscored 10-0 in the last three games and have lost five of their last six. Even with goals in the prior games, the Flyers have been outscored 21-6 in that stretch.
The Flyers will eventually find the back of the net again, but this stretch of games is indicative of what this team is at this point. It's not as if they aren't trying because they are. They dominated the Avalanche in the first period, leading 9-0 in shots at one point. But they aren't getting the bounces and when that isn't happening, frustration can set in.
Once the second period was a few minutes in, it became clear how much the frustration was getting to the Flyers. Colorado sprung for two goals and used sharp goaltending to guide them the rest of the way. While the Flyers have been shut out in three straight, Mackenzie Blackwood earned his second straight shutout.
Rasmus Ristolainen's injury adds more tough luck
The first domino dropped when Frost and Farabee were traded. It signaled Briere's clear message of how seriously the Flyers were going to take this rebuild. Another player who could be on his way out in Ristolainen. And while Briere said the team is not in a hurry to trade him, the team's current play could change his mind.
Teams have called about Ristolainen and his style of play is typically heavily desired by playoff teams. But we may have to put a pin in that for now. Ristolainen's last shift came at the tail end of the second period before he was not seen again. At first, it seemed like it could be another Frost situation. The rumors never appeared and it was confirmed that Ristolainen suffered an injury.
It's not clear what happened, but all John Tortorella could say was that it was an undisclosed injury. There's still over a month until the NHL's trade deadline. But if Ristolainen is to miss any amount of time, the chances of a trade begin to diminish.
The Flyers don't have to trade Ristolainen as his play has greatly improved over the last few seasons. There's a reason Briere isn't in a rush to move the defenseman. But if the Flyers are going to continue to get this rebuild right, they have to make another tough decision.
The Flyers will make their first visit to Utah as their search for offense continues. Hopefully they will have a few new faces in the lineup.