There was plenty to like in the Flyers’ 5-4 overtime loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins Thursday night. But there was also plenty to dislike at the same time.
While the Flyers dominated the first half of the game, their second-half collapse proved that they still have much to improve on if they want to be taken seriously in the playoff hunt.
Here are three thoughts on Thursday’s overtime loss:
Matvei Michkov had a big night on offense.
In just 13:54 of on-ice-time, Flyers’ rookie Matvei Michkov had a three point night (2G, 1A), and jumped to the rookie lead in goals (19), tied for the lead in points (44), and the most assists (25) of all the rookie forwards.
Michkov continued the impressive stretch of hockey since the end of the 4 Nations break. He now has eight points (3G, 5A) since the start of the final 25-game stretch (3 games).
However, an excellent night for Michkov was tainted by one mistake in the overtime period.
Michkov is not alone in the blame, but he lost Malkin in the neutral zone, allowing him a free trip up the left side and a two-on-one chance for the game-winner. Mistakes are bound to happen; the cliche is called “a rookie mistake” for a reason. Michkov is young, and he’ll learn from it. However, after how good of a game he had, it stinks watching him lose Malkin on that final play.
While the Flyers are a long shot, they are still vying for the final wild card spot in the East.
A team that wants to seriously make a push for a playoff spot does not blow a 3-0 lead—not to a rival, not to a bottom-feeding team, not to anyone.
The Flyers choked away a 3-0 lead with just under 31 minutes of regulation time left.
On Tomasino’s goal to get the Penguins on the board, the Flyers began their rush before the puck even left the defensive zone. A Brink turnover on the exit led to an uncontested shot for the Penguins. You could not do much about Karlsson’s first goal, but it opened the door for Pittsburgh. On his second score, to me, the Flyers just flat out gave Karlsson too much space. The same goes for Malkin’s third period goal.
The Flyers had a defensive collapse.
Even in losses, Noah Cates’ line finds a way to stand out in a positive light.
When Cates, Tyson Foerster, and Bobby Brink are on the ice together, good things find a way to happen.
Aside from Brink’s one turnover, the entirety of the Cates line looked to be among the best players on the ice yet again.
While they did not appear on the scoresheet after the first period, the Cates line once again, played great defense–something the Flyers did not have much of in the final 40 minutes.
With Brink and Cates each adding a point, they are up to 12 combined points in their last two games.
