If we are going to be fair, Owen Tippett started his Flyers career under a cloud. He was the centerpiece, along with a first-round pick, that would eventually be packaged to move up to select Jack Nesbitt, for Claude Giroux. It's hard to replace a legend like that. It's like Charlie Hayes replacing Michael Jack Schmidt. You may be good or decent, but you will never be like "them".
In his first 21 games, he didn't inspire much confidence. After all, he scored four goals and seemed to struggle to make any connection with his new teammates. You made some assumptions as to why the Panthers would cut ties with their former first-round pick for a future Hall of Famer who was just a rental piece.
So, it was a surprise the next season when Tippett scored 27 goals, double the amount he had scored in parts of three seasons in Miami. The following year, he set career highs with 28 goals, 25 assists, and 53 points. Sure, they weren't a huge leap from the year before, but they were all up. That's all trending in the right direction. Surely, a 30-goal and 60-point season wasn't out of the question. Baby steps to greatness, right?
The Flyers thought so as they signed him to an eight-year, $49.6 million extension. He was going to be part of the core of this team moving forward. It was expected that he, along with Travis Konecny, Sean Couturier, and Travis Sanheim, would be the main fixtures of this team. And with young stars like Matvei Michkov and Jett Luchanko waiting in the wings, a new era of Flyers hockey was looking bright.
What Happened in 2024-25?
First of all, blaming Tippett for a bad season ignores the bigger problem. The whole team had a rough season. Most players saw a dip in point totals. How much of that was due to the players and how much was due to the former coach is still up for debate. The team went through extended periods where goals were as hard to come by as a successful QB for the Cleveland Browns. Interestingly enough, goal totals started to increase after John Tortorella was dismissed. Take from that what you want to.
The truth is, however, that Tippett did have a down year. He went from 28 goals to 20 and 53 points to 43. It is interesting to note that his assist total dropped by two from the season before. And while he wasn't the only player to have a statistical drop this year, he seemed to take the brunt of the criticism about it.
We know that Tippett was injured during the season. We know he was held back in some lines by Tortorella at a few points during the season and was criticized for his "puck awareness". At the same time, it's hard to find a player on this team who didn't get some criticism from their head coach during the season. It's part of why the coach was dismissed, but again, part of that rests with the players. Tippett admitted as much.
A new horizon ahead?
With a new head coach in town, a new season will dawn for the Philadelphia Flyers. Can Rick Tocchet unlock the full potential of this team, or have we been fooled all along? Have we seen the best that this squad can bring?
Either way, Tippett will be a litmus test for this season and what Tocchet can do. If Tocchet can help Tippett become the scrappy goal scorer we all believe he can and should be, this year could be a success. If Tippet continues to regress, a change may have to be made.
There have already been many calls by fans and prognosticators to deal Tippett away. Some of that was because of this season. Some of it came after he arrived here because he wasn't "Big G". However, it is time for him to step out of Giroux's shadow and take the reins of his career for himself. Dealing him now would be a huge mistake because of the financial commitment due to him, as that's a lot of money the Flyers would have to eat up.
Tippett has shown he has speed, a good, solid shot, and a gritty style of play. All of these things fit into a lot of what Tocchet can teach this team. And let's be clear, if Tippett has a career year, the players around him will also have good seasons.
Don't give up on Tippett yet. It's easy to believe his best is still yet to come.