97.5 The Fanatic Flyers Roundup: The Same Position That’s Always in the Headlines
Consecutive wins for the first time in 2024-25 helped fans of the Philadelphia Flyers (and John Tortorella) take a deep breath.
Despite clear talent deficiencies and goaltending questions, the Flyers looked more like the team that inspired optimism for the long-term rebuild in 2023-24 than the team that limped out of the gates this season at 2-6-1.
- Saturday 10/26: Flyers 7, Minnesota Wild 5
- Sunday 10/27: Montreal Canadiens 4, Flyers 3
- Tuesday 10/29: Flyers 2, Boston Bruins 0
- Thursday 10/31: Flyers 2, St. Louis Blues 1
No Longer “Disconnected”
The Wells Fargo Center crowd responded to an ugly game against a rebuilding Montreal team with a loud “E-A-G-L-E-S!” in the third period on Sunday night.
Scott Laughton called the Flyers “disconnected” after their seventh loss in nine tries in 2024-25.
They hadn’t executed with the same defensive structure and transition offense that helped them to a fast start in 2023-24. They struggled to produce offense at 5-on-5 in the opening weeks of the season. Goaltending issues hadn’t helped cover the mistakes, and John Tortorella hadn’t found any rhythm with a rotating lineup.
“We’re young. We’re rebuilding. We are going to take some gut punches, but we’re better than this. Easy.” -John Tortorella
The Flyers realistically might not occupy a playoff spot for the remainder of 2024-25, but they’ve looked more like the respectable 2023-24 version of themselves in consecutive victories.
They stole their first regulation win in Boston since the night the Bruins raised their 2011 Stanley Cup banner at TD Garden. Former Boston University star Joel Farabee slammed into the boards in celebration after hitting the empty net for the exclamation point on a refreshing 2-0 victory.
Bobby Brink lit the lamp in the final minutes Thursday to sink the Blues in a tight defensive struggle.
Tortorella spoke postgame about the improved structure that’s helped the Flyers suppress scoring chances and hold opponents to one goal in the last two games.
“It’s been void for most of the first 8, 9, 10 games here. I think the past couple of games, we’re getting there. What I appreciate from the players is that they’re not overextending (themselves) offensively because we’re struggling… Some of these offensive guys will get out of it, and we’ll be a better team for it if we just stay with our structure.” -John Tortorella
Goaltending Questions Already
No Flyers season will ever end without goaltending drama.
Sam Ersson owns the crease in Philadelphia. Despite a rough statistical start through six games, the second-year Swede bounced back with a 25-save shutout in Boston and another impressive effort stopping 20 of 21 shots he faced against St. Louis.
He stoned Blues captain and former Flyer Brayden Schenn in the final minute of a one-goal game to protect the lead, and he has started all four of the team’s victories this season.
Who is Ersson’s primary backup? Ivan Fedotov and Aleksei Kolosov are both on the NHL roster.
“I’m looking at Kolosov. I’ll tell you right now. That’s just the way it is. Ivan had some games. We weren’t happy with his game. We’re going to look at Kolosov. To me, that’s how I feel about it. I’m not sure where it all goes as the grand plan as we keep on going here because we also have to think about Feds too to get him some time.” -John Tortorella
Kolosov landed in the offseason headlines for his hesitation to give the North American game a chance after a short, bumpy experience in the AHL to finish the 2023-24 season.
Rumors of a possible return to the KHL in Russia will likely fade if he holds down the role as a full-time NHL backup.
Tortorella hopes to avoid overworking Ersson, remembering the young goalie’s fatigue at the end of the 2023-24 season. However, Kolosov probably won’t get the call too often in the coming weeks because of a lighter schedule without games on back to back days until November 29-30.
As for Fedotov? The towering Russian netminder will likely pass through waivers for a stint with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. He allowed 14 goals in three NHL starts to begin the season.
Both Kolosov and Fedotov will need to adjust to the North American style of play after extensive experience in Russia. Developing awareness of a different style of offense is an especially monstrous task at the NHL level given the speed of the modern game.
The KHL has played some games on NHL-sized rinks in recent seasons, but the larger international ice surfaces in many Russian arenas affect goaltenders’ space perception drastically.
KHL goalies also operate with different equipment regulations reminiscent of the NHL before the 2004-05 lockout.
97.5 The Fanatic Matvei Michkov Roundup
Matvei Michkov won NHL Rookie of the Month honors in October, but he hit a small speed bump against the Blues.
He logged a career low 13:56 of ice time and missed a few shift rotations (call it benching if you’d like). Tortorella spoke with measure about his young offensive star.
“He’s a 19-year-old kid playing in the best league in the world. I think he’s beginning to see what the National Hockey League is, as far as the speed, as far as time and space, all the things that come with it. There are going to be some major struggles with him (at) 5-on-5. We expect that.” -John Tortorella
Michkov has stormed out of the gates with four goals and five assists in 11 games. He’s only registered one assist at 5-on-5, however.
The Flyers initially didn’t expect Michkov to play under Tortorella, but they identified the opportunity for hard coaching under an accomplished bench boss as a key developmental advantage to Michkov’s early arrival in the NHL.
Tortorella didn’t rule out the possibility of scratching Michkov at some point this season. The two-time Jack Adams Award winner has sat plenty of high-profile NHL players including Michkov’s teammates Sean Couturier and Travis Sanheim.
“If we keep on seeing the same mistake, and he just totally is not concentrating on a certain part of the game – and I’ve been very honest with him about that – he’s going to miss some ice (time)… It’s not me screaming at him. It’s telling him this is how it works. If I think other guys are going – and you’re struggling (in) certain situations and it’s repetitive – you’re going to have to sit and watch for a little bit.” -John Tortorella
A long-term rebuild with a tough head coach will inevitably lead to disagreements. Michkov has already shown promising creativity and vision on the ice, especially on the power play, but there’s a long road of NHL development ahead.
- Saturday 11/2 vs. Boston Bruins, 1pm on 97.5 The Fanatic
- Tuesday 11/5 @ Carolina Hurricanes, 7pm on 97.5 The Fanatic
- Thursday 11/7 @ Tampa Bay Lightning, 7:30pm on 97.5 The Fanatic
- Saturday 11/9 @ Florida Panthers, 6pm on 97.5 The Fanatic
All advanced stats at 5-on-5, courtesy of Natural Stat Trick, unless otherwise noted
