Flyers Game
3 Flyers Takeaways: Slow Starts; Tippett Grooving; Vladar Shines
The Philadelphia Flyers overcame yet another slow start Saturday night, and came away with the 2-1 overtime with against the Minnesota Wild.
Dan Vladar turned in another outstanding performance, helping to push his new squad to their second win of the season. While the Flyers are still looking for more production from key contributors like Travis Konecny and Matvei Michkov, players like Noah Cates and Owen Tippett have stepped up for the Flyers.
It was not the prettiest win for Philly on Saturday night, but a solid defensive performance helped keep the Wild’s shot totals low, and Vladar stood tall once again.
After the overtime win, here are three things to take away from the game.
Read More: Flyers Late Game Effort Lifts Them to OT Win vs. Wild
Flyers Still Starting Slow
Prior to Saturday’s game, head coach Rick Tocchet put emphasis on the team coming out of the gate stronger and finding a fast start. As mentioned in the preview, Tocchet said, “We got to get to our game right from the national anthem, not after 20 minutes.”
The Flyers came out of the gates with plenty of pace, dominating possession, and making selective plays. That strong start slowly faded, and the rest of the first period blended in with the rest of the season.
Thanks to a strong night defensively and in goal, the Flyers were able to overcome their slow start and come away with the win. It worked on Saturday, but the slow starts are not going to be sustainable for the rest of the season.
Owen Tippett Finding His Groove
For Flyers fans, Owen Tippett is starting his season exactly how they would hope. It’s always been about the potential for Tippett, and early this season, he is hitting his stride.
The Flyers have been missing scoring from key contributors Travis Konecny and Matvei Michkov. Noah Cates and his line have stepped up in a big way for the Flyers, but they’re not the only ones.
Through five games this season, Tippett has three goals, including one in each of the team’s last two games. Early on in Saturday’s contest, Tippett seemed like one of the only Flyers really pushing play.
His persistence paid off, eventually netting the equalizing score.
He’s pushing the pace with his speed and making things happen with his creativity. His linemate Trevor Zegras called Tippett “The fastest skater ever.”
Owen Tippett is off to a fantastic start.
Vladar Turns in Yet Another Great Game
Much like Tippett, Dan Vladar is off to a more than ideal start to his Flyers’ tenure.
Vladar, who inked a two-year deal in the offseason, has split time with Sam Ersson this season, but has made the most of the starts he has been given.
The Czech netminder is 2-1-0 to start his Flyers’ tenure with a 1.65 GAA and .934 SV%. He has not allowed more than two goals yet this season, and held Minnesota to just one on Saturday night.
He has got great play in front of him from the defense, but has made the big stop when the team needs him the most.
Much like Tippett, it’s too early to judge how the rest of the season will fare for Vladar. Saturday night was another excellent performance where Philly’s new netminder kept them in the game.
Read More: 3 Flyers Takeaways: Rookie Mistakes, Michkov’s Improvement, & Hellebuyck’s Impact
Should we be concerned by Sanheim over usage and Michkov 12 mins? 3rd pair was barely playing. This is not sustainable over the whole season. Michkov needs to play 16m+ imo
No question, MM’s TOI needs to substantially increase. And of course it’s two OT games with zero time on ice for the kid. Giving him 3 on 3 time when his creative juices can come out and play might be a good thing.
Once again, Tocchet is looking like Torts light.
Tippett is hearing the trade rumors.
I’m not sure what to think – nice win, but the last two games have been ugly.
I loved Tocchet as a player but was not enthused to see him back as our coach. Not sure who is really calling the shots but I thought this was another rebuilding year. Sitting Greb, Jett, Andrea, just doesn’t seem to push the needle forward. Nick D and Abols are good soldiers but they’re not going to be part of the future. I’m afraid we’re headed back to the days of dump and grind. Sitting Michkov for long periods seems so counterproductive, he and Zegras should be seeing as much ice time as possible.
Maybe double shift Michkov on PPs…..his shot, stick and passing are exceptional……his defense and skating are a work in progress. He should be out there more when the ice is more open….PP and OT.
Romus, I’ve followed you for years on PP, now I come to find you are a hockey savant as well as baseball
LOL…baseball and hockey are my passions. Unfortunately in Philadelphia. that can be disappointing quite often..
I agree with the boys down below. Matty Michkov and Zegras should see more time on the ice together. But I am impressed by Vladar’s play. He looked solid. If you look at the goals that were scored on him, he didn’t have a chance to stop them. So if he is stopping all the other shots I can live with that. As well as he’s playing Ersson might be getting a little concerned about that #1 slot. If this keeps up we have our goalies to move forward with. Now let’s get our blue line straight and go after Quinn Hughes! LOL! “GO FLYERS KICK ASS!!!!!”