Mike Rathje wasn't beat because of his speed, and neither were the rest of the Flyers. The Flyers were beat because they stood still and weren't nearly aggressive enough, and as the game wore on, had no legs under them, and subsequently had a "deer in the headlights" look as they just stood around.
Mike Rathje wasn't beat because of his speed, and neither were the rest of the Flyers. The Flyers were beat because they stood still and weren't nearly aggressive enough, and as the game wore on, had no legs under them, and subsequently had a "deer in the headlights" look as they just stood around.
Well then this is a continuing trend. blowing the game in the 3rd period. And it's happening almost every game they lose (and one they won in overtime). It's certainly nothing that's going to fix itself. Playing 3 games in 4 nights is no excuse every team does it and they do it more than once a year
Well then this is a continuing trend. blowing the game in the 3rd period. And it's happening almost every game they lose (and one they won in overtime). It's certainly nothing that's going to fix itself. Playing 3 games in 4 nights is no excuse every team does it and they do it more than once a year
The fact that they played 3 games in 4 nights played a big part in their fatigue in the third period, there absolutely no doubt about it. Would they have won if the situation was different? Who knows, but there it is undeniable that the team was out of gas in the third period, and their schedule was the main reason for that.
The "blowing leads" is something that can be fixed, and I imagine that Hitchcock is working on it.
This isn't something that can be fixed in one game. The poster who said we have to beware of the faster teams is right. This is still a team that can't control teams faster than them.
You noticed the 6 goals scored on Carolina? Fast teams have nothing to do with things, it was just that it was a back to back game... You hardly win those when the other team has had days off...
You noticed the 6 goals scored on Carolina? Fast teams have nothing to do with things, it was just that it was a back to back game... You hardly win those when the other team has had days off...
As as you saw the Flyers lost. In shootouts like this one the team that gets up and down the ice the most wins. 6 goals means nothing when you give up 7.
I'm not going to throw out everything that's looked pretty good this year because of one horrible period.
I agree. This team has looked very good for the most part, and has a ton of talent and a great coach. There's no reason to get upset because of one awful period and start panicking. One game is just that, one game.
There is a silver lining though. The Flyers offense is quite good. They've scored 29 goals in their last 6 games, which works out to about 4.8 goals per game. For the season, they're at 4.3 goals per game, which is good enough for 2nd in the NHL. This is of course, with a power play that's still improving (it's up to 14th, by the way.)
Yeah, one. The first game against NYR was a throwaway game IMO. Other than that, they've been in every game and had a chance to win every single game, and in most cases, did. They were in control of last night's game as well until they died on the ice in the third period.
Yeah, one. The first game against NYR was a throwaway game IMO. Other than that, they've been in every game and had a chance to win every single game, and in most cases, did. They were in control of last night's game as well until they died on the ice in the third period.
but its not the first time this year they had a 3rd period meltdown
I wouldn't call them horrible. The game has changed a bit and you can't sit on leads like you could in the past. "Not good" would seem more fitting. And I don't doubt that some adjustments need to be made. But only last night's 3rd has been "horrible". And we've had several very good periods this year.
It's not like aren't doing "pretty good" in this new NHL. We are. We're not playing lights out by any means. But we're looking pretty good overall. We'd all just like us to play even better.
I'll give you Pittsburgh, I forgot about that one. The other two were far from "collapses." Especially the Montreal game.
The first game in Toronto, the Flyers had control of the game, had the Leafs beaten up and they got run up and down the ice in the 3rd period (after the Leafs played Ottawa the night before where they were run up and down the ice the whole game)
Ok so the result didn't go our way but an 8-6 game is always an edge of the seat encounter.
Our defence needs to tighten up but we've all season to get this sorted. Niitymakki letting in that many games is not a good sign, especially for me having him on my fantasy pool team.
At least scoring is no problem for us and if we're going to play with the attitude of whatever you score we'll score one more, then I'm well up for that, even if it means losing a few as they go by 8-6.
It was the 3rd game in 4 nights or something like that, tired legs was always going to be an issue.
Does this loss mean we are doomed?
Is the sky falling with this defeat?
Are we missing out ont he playoffs?
NO!! We'll still be there come April, no need to panic.
A) There is a lot more skating in the new NHL. Players get fatigued pretty easily. When you have defensemen like Hatcher and Rathje who are not particularly fast, you absolutely NEED to play Seidenberg for at least 15 minutes. This whole deal with Seidenberg getting 10 minutes is really a joke. I don't want to see Hatcher or Rathje playing more than 21-22 minutes per night, we need to save their legs. In fact, I would make Hatcher a healthy scratch sometimes and play Therien. Before I get shot for this, hear me out. Therien is plus 2 so far on the year and he's been decent. This would also allow us to save Hatcher for the postseason. As someone said, we're on pace for 100 points and I don't think we've played our best hockey yet. We need to save these guys for the playoffs.
B) We NEED to rotate our forward lines. While it's easy to blame the defense for the bad GA, I think we also need to realize that some of the forwards aren't backchecking enough because they're tired. Carter needs to get powerplay time. Period. I also think that losing Turner Stevenson hurts them a bit, but even before he left, he was averaging less than 10 minutes per night. Someone please tell me why Jon Sim is playing more either? He has a good shot and he's already gotten 3 goals despite getting less than 10 minutes per night.
I really think that Carter should get big minutes. He scored his first goal against Florida and Hitch rewards him by giving him 8 minutes, that's just a joke. I really like the idea of that 2nd line just on paper. I think that Carter is good enough to play RW, it just might take him a couple games. I also think that 3rd line has potential and I think the 4th should get 11 minutes or so.
C) One last plug for Handzus. Outside of Gagne and Foppa and maybe Richards, he's been our best forward this year. He's been playing really well and it seems like it's gone unnoticed by most. I think our offense can compete with anyone in the league. They just need to work on their team defense.
Bottom line: I'm not too worried. I don't think they've played very well this year. There hasn't been one game outside of the NYI and the NJ games where I've thought, "wow, they really played well for 60 minutes." Let's remember, we have one of the best coaches in the NHL. Our main weakness has been team defense. I fully expect that to change. Hitchcock's traditional strength has been defense. We have the talent. Pitkanen could be a No.1 on 2/3 or more of the teams in the NHL right now. Johnsson is also a top pairing defenseman. Rathje has looked decent and Rico has been playing incredibly well on the offensive end. Hatcher will adjust I think, but he does need to play with someone with speed. These changes won't happen right away. I won't be surprised at all if they lose against Ottawa. Let's keep in mind that I think the Flyers had the highest roster turnover in the league. They need some time, but I still view them as a top contender for the Cup.
if I would have been told before the game that Radio and Savage would each play more minutes than Richards or Handzus I would have took the game as a loss anyway.
I was out all night last night, so I only caught the 1st Flyers goal, then had to leave.
Niittymaki let in 7 goals, while I assume some were his fault, did he play poorly? Is this a time for concern?
far from it. The Flyers defense (much like the Canes PK for Ward) left Niity out to dry last night. I'd accually say that Niity and Ward were the reason this game didn't see even MORE goals last night.
