It took one month and fourteen days, but it finally happened. Travis Konecny mercifully snapped perhaps the worst slump of his NHL career when his wrist shot snuck past Dallas Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger in the second period of the Flyers’ 3-2 overtime loss at American Airlines Center on Saturday (from ‘Flyers’ Travis Konecny’s dreadful slump is as surprising at it is concerning’, The Athletic, March 15, 2025). The Philadelphia Flyers’ leading scorer had been goalless since Feb. 8, a drought spanning 13 regular-season games plus two appearances with Team Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off.
Travis Konecny and Matvei Michkov celebrate a goal for the Philadelphia Flyers (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)
“You could see it coming the last game. You could see he was around the puck more… he just looks quicker. He looks more reactive,” said head coach John Tortorella. When I see him more reactive, less thinking’s going on, so hopefully he’ll feel good about that and keep going.”
That goal provided a much-needed feel-good moment for the Flyers and Konecny. The Flyers earned a point for the second time in their last 10 games and haven’t won in regulation since Feb. 25 – the second game of Konecny’s malaise. It could be the start of a positive development to drown out the disappointment of a fifth consecutive playoff miss. Or it may just be a standalone moment in a long stretch of misery. Either way, it’s worth further examination.
Breaking Konecny’s Goal Down
After such a long wait, any goal would have been incredibly satisfying for Konecny. It could have been a triple deflection, a 200-foot empty-netter, an intended pass that somehow slipped through the goaltender’s five-hole – you name it, Konecny probably would have taken it.
But he didn’t have to settle. With just under seven minutes remaining in the middle period, Konecny took a cross-ice feed from Sean Couturier in stride down the right wing. Konecny cruised to the right circle unimpeded and let a wrist shot fly.
“Been getting lots of chances, so, just sticking with it, and that one happened to go in,” Konecny said.
Perhaps the best part of the goal is that it looked like a classic Konecny tally. If you randomly tuned into Saturday’s game after missing the previous six weeks, you wouldn’t have thought Konecny had ever missed a beat. It was a skilled play by an experienced player. It was extra refreshing given the team’s offensive struggles, as they had been shut out in 10 of their previous 11 periods.
Konecny is the only Flyer other than Ryan Poehling and Sean Couturier to score in the team’s last four games, showing how desperate the Flyers are for him to find his top form. Tortorella and Konecny noted that he was playing a more aggressive game Saturday than he had been, especially after passing up a 2-on-0 shot in the previous game against the Washington Capitals. Konecny has always been at his best when playing with his emotions and energy, and Saturday’s goal should stabilize both facets for him.
What Konecny’s Goal Means
In addition to getting the monkey off his back, Konecny is now within two points of his career-high 68 points, which he set last season in 76 games (he’s played 71 so far this season). While hopes of Konecny being the first Flyer to be a point-per-game player since Claude Giroux tallied 85 points in 2018-19, he should be the first Flyer to hit 70 points since Giroux and Couturier (76) that season.
Konecny must finish strong both for his confidence and the success of his current right-winger Matvei Michkov. During the nadir of his skid, Konecny was moved down to the third line, playing alongside players like Poehling and Olle Lycksell, who aren’t high-end NHL scorers. But now that he’s back with Michkov, there’s no excuse for Konecny not to produce.
While Michkov seems firmly in fourth place in the Calder Trophy race, the rookie scoring race is still up for grabs. Michkov trails Lane Hutson by five points but is only one goal behind Macklin Celebrini for first among freshmen. Earning first place in one or both categories would be a significant achievement, regardless of its effect on the votes.
Sure enough, Michkov earned an impressive assist a few minutes after Konecny’s goal, banking the puck up the ice while taking a hit to spring Poehling for a tying goal. That play showed the underrated toughness in Michkov’s game and his desire to do whatever it takes to contribute to his team.
“He’s a competitor. He has a will about him. And he knows the guy’s taking a run at him. I think he waits ’til the last second to bring him all the way to him and makes that play. So, that’s what you have with him. He can do a lot of those things because of his willingness, let alone his skill,” Tortorella said.
Konecny had also nearly set up Michkov for a goal on the same shift he wound up scoring, showing perhaps just as much evidence that he’s back on track as the goal itself.
“I don’t think I’ve really done that in the last 20 games, so, it was a positive thing that my mindset went to that, and I just thought about attacking and I’ve just gotta keep getting to the inside,” Konecny said.
There is still room for growth, though. Konecny’s 27.56% expected goal share on Saturday (per Natural Stat Trick) was last on the Flyers by a wide margin. He has cleared 50% in just one of his last five and seven of his previous 10 contests. Hopefully, for Konecny, the confidence boost from scoring helps the rest of his game come around.
Flyers’ Quick Turnaround
The Flyers have just over 24 hours between puck drops as their five-game road trip continues Sunday with a trip to Chicago. The Blackhawks found themselves in the news Saturday when former Flyers draft pick Pat Maroon announced he plans to retire at the end of the season. Maroon has played 840 regular-season games plus another 163 in the playoffs, the majority coming from 2019-2022 when he made the Stanley Cup Final each year, winning one Cup with the St. Louis Blues and two with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Michkov and Konecny performed well the first time the teams played on Nov. 23 in Philadelphia. Konecny registered two assists, including a gorgeous backdoor pass to Michkov for a power-play goal in overtime, completing a comeback from 2-0 down.
