Game Day Preview #77: Flyers vs. Blue Jackets

Siobhan Nolan

Apr 6, 2024

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Siobhan Nolan

Apr 6, 2024

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There won't be much rest for the Philadelphia Flyers as they continue their four-game road trip in Ohio, taking on the Columbus Blue Jackets in a game that is crucial to keeping their playoff hopes alive.

There won't be much rest for the Philadelphia Flyers as they continue their four-game road trip in Ohio, taking on the Columbus Blue Jackets in a game that is crucial to keeping their playoff hopes alive.

A 4-2 loss against the Buffalo Sabres on Friday left something to be desired, but it also delivered a great amount of promise on how much fight is still left in this team, despite a disappointing recent stretch of games.

Keeping Up The Energy

The Flyers showed a refreshing amount of dominance throughout most of their game against the Sabres, and both the players and Tortorella are hoping to keep it up as they finish out the regular season.

Tortorella said that he thought the Flyers "played the right way," while Noah Cates agreed by saying, "We're just grinding them out, having good, hard shifts and hard changes...We need to grind it out against these teams. These are dangerous teams that have good offensive weapons, but they don't want to play in their own zone."

Goaltending Is Key

The Flyers defense has been through it this season. Injuries, trades, and exhaustion have run its course through the back line, making goaltending more important than ever in this final stretch. While the goalies are certainly not immune to burnout themselves (as evidenced by how much Sam Ersson has had to play), it's undeniable that, even when other players on the ice are struggling, good goaltending can (and has) carried games for the Flyers.

Tortorella himself said that Ersson's excellent performances were a significant part of the Flyers having a fighting chance for a playoff spot, simply stating that "we don't have a sniff [at a playoff spot]...if Sam doesn't play the way he's played."

Be Where Your Feet Are

This Flyers team has made a point of not dwelling on the past and not looking too far ahead into the future, and that mindset will be critical for their matchup against the Blue Jackets. Forget about the losing streak. Forget about the outside noise of people calculating what it will take for each team fighting for a playoff spot to make it in. The only thing these players can control is getting two points, and when they have the ability to truly focus in, play their game, and not stress about anything else, they can win against the best teams in this league (and they have).

It would be expected for spirits to be low and doubt to be seeping into the locker room, but if there's one thing this Flyers team likes doing, it's defying expectations just because they can. As Cates said, "We're in a spot that I don't think anybody thought we would be in except for the guys in here, so we're really positive and we like where we're at. We're just finding whatever way it is—'front door, back door, through the roof' is kind of what we're saying to just find a way to win. It doesn't have to be pretty, that's kind of what we need to reiterate. It doesn't need to be pretty this time of year, just getting two points is all we need to look for tomorrow."

Flyers Projected Lines:

Forwards:

Tyson Foerster - Morgan Frost - Travis Konecny

Owen Tippett - Scott Laughton - Bobby Brink

Olle Lycksell - Ryan Poehling - Garnet Hathaway

Joel Farabee - Noah Cates - Cam Atkinson

Defense:

Cam York - Travis Sanheim

Nick Seeler - Jamie Drysdale

Marc Staal - Erik Johnson

Starting Goalie:

Sam Ersson