Haley's Opinion: The Frustration Is There, But There Are Positives
The Philadelphia Flyers enter an eight game winless streak, and although this has been disappointing, there are positives that give me hope for the future.
Kyle Ross-USA TODAY Sports - Haley's Opinion: The Frustration Is There, But There Are PositivesThe Philadelphia Flyers enter an eight-game winless streak after falling to the Montreal Canadians Tuesday night. While this is frustrating for Philadelphia hockey fans, some optimism still gives me hope moving forward.
At the start of the season, mostly everybody thought this team wouldn't be a playoff-contending team. They were sitting in a playoff spot for 124 days. Although sitting in a playoff spot versus being in the playoffs is entirely different, it was a positive for them to consistently be in that position for so long.
While the Flyers are still alive and not officially eliminated, I am more focused on watching the younger players on the team get more minutes on the ice and develop over the next three games. Players like Tyson Foerster, Noah Cates, Morgan Frost, Cam York, Ronnie Attard, Jamie Drysdale, Bobby Brink, and Adam Ginning have grown nicely. The frustration doesn't fall on the younger players; it's on the leaders with playoff experience.
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It's easy to blame the head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers, John Tortorella, but it's not all his fault. Tortorella has been coaching a team in a rebuild, which is a challenging task when Tortorella is a "win now" coach. Throughout the season, I've seen Tortorella show how much he cares about the younger players on the team, and you can tell that the bench boss was proud whenever they made an impact on the ice.
Although Tortorella faced much backlash from fans about benching captain Sean Couturier, there was reason behind that move. Tortorella is sending a message that if you're not playing good hockey, then consequences will happen. There's reasoning behind the decisions he makes. This is a coach that knows the team is capable of success and is frustrated not just because of them, but for them.
You can also look at the trade deadline and wish things went differently. Sure, was there more that could have been done? Probably. I advocated that Scott Laughton should have been dealt for a higher draft pick. Losing Sean Walker did hurt this year's team, but the return for him with a first-rounder is enormous for the Flyers' future.
Finally, remember the season is not over. There are still three games, and Philadelphia has yet to be eliminated. Yes, it does look like the team gave up, but as that famous saying goes, "Any team can win on any given night." Right now, the frustration is real, but it's not over, and until it is, there is always a chance a miracle happens.
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