3 Flyers Takeaways From Loss to Lightning: Confident Cam; Philly Joel

The Philadelphia Flyers lost to hat trick hero Nikita Kucherov and the Tampa Bay Lightning, 6-3, at the Wells Fargo Center on Tuesday night. The game had a playoff atmosphere, but the mistakes the Flyers made will break their backs in this game and in the playoffs.

We’re Talking About Playoffs?

The Lightning weren’t exactly the Harlem Globetrotters on Tuesday night, but their best players did the heavy lifting. That was the theme on Saturday against the Colorado Avalanche, and again on Sunday against the Ottawa Senators.

Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov combined to give the Lightning a 3-0 lead within the first 23 minutes of the game. Point’s opening goal was a really nice deflection, and Kucherov’s first two came off of a one-timer where he was left all alone at the right circle, and another defensive breakdown that left him all alone at the side of Sam Ersson’s cage.

In general, the Flyers were excellent. On the other hand, an experienced, championship-winning Lightning core will make you pay every single time for egregious mistakes.

For a young team looking to hit the postseason this year, this game (and losing streak) is assuredly a learning experience.

Confident Cam; Drysdale’s First With Flyers

Joel Farabee set a new-career high in points with 40, thanks to his assist on Cam Atkinson’s 13th goal of the season to get the Flyers back in it at 3-1. Farabee’s assist extended his point streak to seven games, and Atkinson’s goal extended his point streak to six games.

A PHILLY FIRST FOR JAMIE DRYSDALE! #TBLvsPHI | #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/W8RiZg8Gaz

— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) January 24, 2024

Jamie Drysdale scored his first goal as a Philadelphia Flyers player on the power play to cut the Lightning’s lead to one. Atkinson assisted that goal as well, and it was clear on the whole shift how confidently the 34-year-old is playing.

Each Atkinson shift looked better than the last, with the Flyers regularly having offensive zone possession with No. 89 on the ice. Getting Atkinson back to form couldn’t have been more important for the Flyers as the spring draws nearer.

Flyers Lack Focus… Again

Farabee pointed out the team’s lack of focus after the loss to the Senators on Sunday. Tuesday looked like a repeat effort in that category.

The Flyers gave the Lighting three power plays through two periods, and Tampa scored on two of them. The one they didn’t score on led to a Kucherov goal seconds after the penalty expired.

Going up against Andrei Vasilevskiy meant it would take time for the Flyers to score some goals. They did that eventually, as we know by the 6-3 score, but the requisite team discipline and support from the penalty kill was completely absent on Tuesday night.

Perhaps most importantly, the Lighting are a team that could sneak up on the Flyers in the standings rather quickly. This one could hurt in the long run.

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