Howie58

I am getting angry watching our attack on PP.  Too expletive cute.  Just shoot the puck and get on the net. I will need multiple Merlots for numbing. 

Well, glad NAK engaged the enemy...he took a few hits and steadied.  Like it.  

Gosh, can we score on a power play?  

Greetings:

Occ--thanks for taking my job from me.....

We are underdog again:

https://www.thespread.com/nhl-articles/020521-bruins-vs-flyers-2-5-21-nhl-betting-predictions

It looks like we have Rask again.  He feasts on the Flyers.

Can we play a consistent 60 minute game?  Can we prevent their first line from blitzing us?

2 hours ago, Samifan said:

Almost every game this year opponents look like they are 10x faster to every puck in the Flyers zone. When they do manage to get to a puck first it’s a soft out attempt or blind pass through the slot in front of Hart/Elliott which is usually almost always a turnover. I don’t understand how they continue to get pinned in their zone for extended periods while 5v5.

Sad;y. this is a question we have been asking for sizable chunks of the decade we've been on this board.  Last night, we played well for the first 10 minutes. Then it began to deteriorate. If the empty netter hit, we might have held on.  Yikes.  

This was a sloppy and undisciplined loss.  Dumb penalties and errant passes.  Sad.  

Apparently it is Rask vs. Hart.  

By the way, it's interesting that Taryn Hatcher gives in-game odds during the first intermission.  I suspect the volume of online wagering is going nuts during the pandemic.  Comcast offers bandwidth, so they aren't detached outsiders. 

Fletcher is not happy with level of forward support on D. He isn't pleased with transition but had good things to say about our 4th line, which deserves it. CF says the team finds a way to win. 

I was thinking about our first round picks over the last decade and wondering if they are jinxed? The news on Frost is sad. Apparently,  Rubstov is a bust in the KHL. Sam? PTL for Provo, Scott, and hopefully, Farabee.

Greetings:

We are going into this matchup as a "homedog," with the Bruins at -135:

https://www.thespread.com/nhl-articles/020321-bruins-vs-flyers-2-3-21-nhl-betting-predictions.

Another pundit likes our chances:

https://sportschatplace.com/nhl-picks/2021/02/03/philadelphia-flyers-vs-boston-bruins-nhl-picks-odds-predictions

These are two hot clubs.  It is a benchmark to see  how we've improved from our first two against them.  

LGF!

Howie

No to DeAngelo.  

Patrick, from what I gather, is not having health issues but seems to need time for calibrating his game.  That was from one Inquirer post.  Hope that is correct. 

We nearly squandered a hat trick and good-to-great performance in goal.  I am glad we won but something has to give on the 3rd D-pairing.   I don't know if it is bringing up Pulliot, ending the Morin wing experiment, or bringing in  "other," but it is no fun watching good performances going to waste.  We won't win overtimes like a Swiss watch. 

I put myself in AV's shoes and try to figure out what to do...wear the Isles out physically, or activate the D and do everything possible to keep the puck in their zone? I even think about the old Toronto style D of a 1-4 and simply fight trap with clog and pray our goalies survive? Seriously, Trotz has a great system and our absence of a "real" first line with speed and grit shows.  

41 minutes ago, Cheesesteak said:

Hey, but they are winning, I'll take it but they can't keep this up, can they?

Good Afternoon:

There is a big debate on this online.  Some see AV's benching of TK as recognition it can't.  Others say our goaltending and D aren't so bad.  Either way, it is hard to watch.  We can win 3 x 3 with the Islanders because we aren't as "trappable."  How this pans out tonight and in coming days, can't say.  Our inability to get out of our zone reminds me of the bad squads in the early 2000's or just after '07, when we couldn't get the reality of a new game with new rules.  After a decade+ of drafts and trades, I'd expect better.  I still think we need a really dynamic first line that can turn a trap on its head.  But that may be a year or two off. Meanwhile, we keep fingers crossed. 

It looks like Moose in goal and TK in the lineup. 

The O and B are are marginal favorites but I am posting less than an hour after the Saturday win.  The message to TK sank in for the first period and we were playing as well as we have this season.  Then we succumbed to the Devils Trap Redux.  

I hope the Bunnaman line continues to work hard and dig deep.  They seem to be carrying play better than their top-6 teammates.  Ghost is playing well, which is a positive. 

My take:

1.  The Bunnaman line was best.

2. Ghost seems to be playing intelligently and has mobility.  He's earning his keep.

3.  If we had a really top-tier first line, they'd break through the new and improved version of the Devils trap played by Trotz and company.  

I am glad we got the second point, but it seemed that the Islanders dug in after the second goal and made the Flyers look pretty inept.  In prior years, we'd outshoot and win more faceoffs than our opponents, but find a way to lose.  This year, we are getting outhit, outshot, and lose faceoffs..but find a way to win.  Strange.

Howie

Greetings:

The Flyers are moderate favorites (-125) for the game:

https://pickdawgz.com/nhl-picks/2021-01-30/new-york-islanders-at-philadelphia-flyers-1-30-21-nhl-picks-and-prediction

It's hard to believe the Isles are sub-.500 and having scoring issues.  The Flyers are winning but 5x5 isn't good and AV wasn't very positive about his top lines after beating the Devils on Thursday.  It looks like Hart versus Varlamov between the pipes.   This is an interesting back-to-back against a team that made us look slow in the playoffs.  

Nate Prosser was sent back to the taxi squad.  Myers may be ready to return.  

LGF!

Greetings:

Several pundits note we had no pre-season and limited training camp, leading to sloppy play league-wide.  If you think about it, we probably finished the "pre-season" about now.  The O and B need to settle lines and D pairings as soon as possible.  Prosser may be a better 7th man than Hagg, but let's not jump to conclusions after one game.  Meanwhile, we have more shuffling once Myers returns. If Ghost and Provorov work, fine.  Gus may be an very expensive seventh man.  If nothing else, you give Fletcher some credit for going back to his Minnesota past and bringing the guy into the system.  As for Gus, his shot on goal was hard to handle and led to the scoring scramble.  

Seriously, the ice and/or the players make for disheveled play. That said, the 4th line works. 

Ugly but it counts. 

Prosser just had an excellent penalty kill. He is a better value than his partner.

What this says about Morin is sad.  He is being morphed into a winger...shoot, yeah, and we have a retread as a stop gap.  Hagg must have compromising photos of AV with one of Trump's mistresses....

Greetings:

The Flyers are significant favorites, despite playing a poor first period on Tuesday:

https://sportschatplace.com/nhl-picks/2021/01/28/new-jersey-devils-vs-philadelphia-flyers-nhl-picks-odds-predictions

It looks like Hart versus Blackwood between the pipes; we hope Hart has gotten his last start out of the system. 

I really hope the team establishes a competent first line.  I am not even saying dominant (Mc Kinnon, Bergeron).  

I'm glad JVR had his Wheaties.  Elliott kept us in when we were being overrun. Ghost > Gus. Hayes does a lot of little things well.  Patrick is showing signs of growth.  All of that said, we really seem to have a tough time getting the puck out of our zone at times.  We are OK, not great.  Two points count, even ugly. 

Our 5 x 5 is subpar. Glad JVR can still collect garbage. Re-signing Moose may be Fletcher's best move. Might make up for Gus.