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Philadelphia Flyers

5 Reasons Why Flyers Will Be Improved This Season

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Owen Tippett, Philadelphia Flyers
Will this be a breakout season for Flyers RW Owen Tippett, who starred in juniors and the AHL? Photo: Zack Hill.

It’s been a long, disheartening summer for long-suffering Philadelphia Flyers fans.



More injuries. Few moves. No marquee additions.

But enough with the management-created negativity for a change. Today is a day to look at five reasons why the Flyers will improve on their 61-point season. Hey, it would be difficult not to get better, right?

Here goes:

  1. Sean Couturier and Kevin Hayes are back after injuries limited them to a combined 77 games last season. Not many teams can survive with their top two centers missing so much time. Having them in the lineup will bolster an offense that finished next to last in the league, averaging 2.56 goals a game.
  2. John Tortorella is the new bench boss and he will hold the players accountable. His defense-first approach will also add some much-needed structure to a team that allowed 3.59 goals per game last season, 27th in the 32-team NHL. Tortorella, by far the Flyers’ biggest off-season addition, guided some less-than-powerful Columbus teams to the playoffs.
  3. The power play will be much better than last year, when the Flyers clicked at 12.6 percent, the second-worst mark in franchise history. Couturier and Hayes will help the unit. So will newly acquired defenseman Tony DeAngelo, who likely will quarterback the power play.
  4. This should be a breakout season for Owen Tippett, the right winger acquired from Florida in the Claude Giroux trade. Tippett scored 113 goals in his last 165 OHL games, then had 25 goals in his last 58 AHL games. The potential is there, and this will be his first full NHL season. He showed glimpses of success with the Panthers and Flyers and, at 23, seems on the verge of a breakthrough.
  5. There will be no pressure on the Philadelphia Flyers, who open training camp with on-ice activities Sept. 22. No one views them as a Metropolitan Division contender. Expectations are low. This team can play loose. That can lead to some surprising results, right?           Epilogue: I’m predicting modest improvement to, say, 75 points, but that number will be higher if defenseman Ryan Ellis recovers from a pelvic injury and can play at least 60 games. There will be baby steps this season, for sure. But they will be important steps if some of the young players — guys like Tippett, Morgan Frost, Cam York, Noah Cates, Tanner Laczynski, and Wade Allison — make significant strides in their development.
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Flyer416 Fan

Sam – pretty lazy article to say the least. Ryan Ellis has been re-habbing for a year and still no timeline. 60 games seems like a bridge too far…what is an extra 2 months of rehab gonna do for him?? No Ellis and more mediocre goaltending from Carter “The Great Pretender” Hart equals a sub-61 season. Naming TK as Captain was a mistake. It tells me they are going to our only legitimate top-line forward (Couts) at the Trading Deadline. At least this is the last season of The Albatross JVR (the 3rd worst signing in Flyers history after Hayes and Brizzy)!

Joe McRippo

Yeah well the only problem is these guys were out with bad injuries if they can make it through a full season and the way the Flyers medical staff is I highly doubt it

Gregg M

75 points equals purgatory. 100+ was needed last season to make the playoffs and the Flyers need to be worse than they were last season in order to get one of the three generational draft picks available. Anything else puts them in quicksand, resulting in a slow death. Trade JVR & Braun at the deadline and possibly TK and/or Provy depending upon how they respond under Torts system.

R M

Yep, trade anyone but Hart and Gauthier, for future first round picks, and do it at the Feb trade deadline so they stink and get a top 3 pick next summer.

BigLeftHandie

Hart has really shown nothing so far. If he doesn’t have a great season, he will be worthless in a trade.

tor

The flyers were named as having the worst organization in the NHL. That says it all.

Henry

Sam, great reporting as alway! Glad you got away from that tag of a paper with the woke policies! Same, what do you make of the Flyers not signing a 6’3 D man who scored 25 points for Yale last year fir a paltry 950k and then Hextall comes in and signs him instead? Is this more great work by the Front Office? Ty

Paul Smith

Improve!? I would say this should be a purge season. Out of town: JVR/Ellis/ TK/Risto/Hayes/Coots. Draft picks, draft picks and more draft picks. Clear the salary board, tired of 35-50 pt players. Take anything for JVR, Ellis, Risto. 20-25 million saved right there.
This season is over with this group of declining, aging and injury prone players.
Next, a total front office reconstruction and approach to hockey. If they do this, you’ll see this franchise turn around and return to dominance.
The reality, this will never happen and the only attraction will be an ugly big hairy orange mascot called Gritty. The name Gritty is the DNA of a franchise that refuses to let go of the 70’s!
SAD

R M

I hope not Sam. They need studs, all stars, young pillars, they need to be in top 3 spots in next year’s draft. But with Fletcher the GM, I could see them doing just enough to be back drafting in mediocre hell.

BigLeftHandie

Gotta love Sam’s positivity! But 75 points gets them to about .500 for the year.

Kodiak guy

Penalty kill will be different with Brad Shaw in charge

RoadRules

Disagree. The Philadelphia Flyer Hockey Organization needs a thorough long over
Due Overhaul. Im talking Front Office; GM; Scouts; and more than a few Players. The Flyers are light years away from from making the Playoffs; let alone actually contending for the Cup. When the Flyers Won their first Stanley Cup; i was a kid in Junior High. I officially Retire in about a month. I would love to see the Flyers Win the Cup one more time before i leave this mortal coil.

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