Flyers Analysis: What Changed Between Games 1, 2, & 3 and Now (+)

Where did the scumbag go?

The Philadelphia Flyers were playing a hard-nosed, physical, and agitating brand of hockey labeled as “scumbag hockey” by many, and it was working. Philly took a commanding 3-0 lead in the series over the Pittsburgh Penguins , and the skies were as blue as ever. The sun was shining, not a cloud in the sky. There has not been this kind of Flyers’ domination in a while.

Then Game 4 happened, and a flip switch. All of a sudden, the Penguins had all of the momentum of the series in their corner. The Flyers looked lifeless while Pittsburgh was taking advantage of Philadelphia’s mistakes. They were beating them at their own game.

The Flyers still hold the 3-2 series advantage, but things have been completely turned upside down. A series that felt over after Game 3 now has new life, and the Penguins are playing with a whole new confidence.

So what happened?

Where did that “scumbag hockey” go for the Flyers? What happened to the intensity, the aggression, and the mind games? Why did the Penguins look dominant over the last 120 minutes of hockey after looking lifeless before?

Game 5 provided a good look at what changes from the first three games of the series and the most recent two. So let’s talk about it.

Read More: Flyers Fall Short Again, Penguins Force Series Back to Philadelphia

Flyers have been bullied along the boards

Since Game 4 started, the Penguins have had their way with the Flyers along the boards.

It’s a big part of why the Flyers’ offense has stalled over the last two games. Not like in the early games, the Flyers were dominating possession to begin with, but Philly was unable to set up shop in either Game 4 or 5 because the dump-and-chase tactic was failing, as they could not retrieve the puck.

It has also directly led to at least two Penguins’ goals over the last two games. Kris Letang ’s game-winner in Game 4 was the direct result of Sidney Crosby winning a board battle and passing the puck to Letang.

Elmer Soderblom scored wide open from the slot, set up by another board battle won by the Penguins, this one by Anthony Mantha . How did Soderblom get that wide open? Well, that’s another can of worms after a core of the Flyers’ most reliable defensive veterans got lost in transition. Certainly, you’d like to see Rasmus Ristolainen win the battle; he even said so himself after the game. But you cannot put all of the blame on him.

Even if not every puck battle resulted in a goal, it’s hard for the Flyers to produce chances if they don’t have the puck.

Missed chances

This has been a big issue all series, but has been prevalent in Games 4 and 5. When trailing by a goal, the Flyers have come up short in the big moment, unable to capitalize on great opportunities.

In Game 5, I think of Travis Konecny going wide from the slot. Alex Bump , who was probably the best Flyer on Monday to begin with, went high on a golden opportunity to tie the game late.

When you’re generating as little offense as the Flyers were late in the game, you have to take advantage of the chances you get. When things were going well, the Flyers were capitalizing on their opportunities. That’s not the case now.

Something that happened throughout the game was Artus Silovs giving up long bounces on saves. I cannot recall a single time the Flyers had a body in front looking to put that second-chance shot on goal. Noah Cates had one early but fanned. That’s the only one I can recall.

There were plenty of opportunities, but the Flyers were just unable to take advantage.

Flyers need more from their stars

One of the biggest factors in the Flyers’ back-to-back losses has been the play of their stars. Matvei Michkov has been nearly non-existent offensively, and paid the price for it by taking a seat for Monday’s game.

It goes beyond that.

Tyson Foerster looks like the early return from injury has finally caught up to him. It was a miracle that Foerster returned from his upper-body injury almost a month early. When he first joined the lineup, things looked seamless. Now, it looks like the game has finally caught up to him, and he, too, has been unimpactful.

Porter Martone finally looks like a 19-year-old playing in the NHL playoffs, which you cannot really fault him for. The whole line of him, Christian Dvorak , and Travis Konecny have just not had nearly the same impact that they’ve been having.

Trevor Zegras has been great for the Flyers in the postseason, but still, he missed a few chances in the game that could have changed the course of the game.

Simply put, the Flyers need more from their stars.

The Flyers are being beaten at their own game

Oh, how the tables have turned. The Flyers are being beaten at the game that they thrived in during the first three games.

Let’s start with the smothering defense. The Flyers weren’t allowing the Penguins to get a zone entry or any shots off from the middle of the ice. Now, it’s the Flyers that are being pushed to the outside and are unable to get clean zone entries.

The Flyers went from suppressing shots to having their shots suppressed.

Dan Muse commented that his team only tried to play between the whistles after Game 3. Well, since then, the Penguins have been aggressive after the whistle, and it’s getting the Flyers off their game.

For lack of better words, the Penguins have outscumbagged the Flyers.

They are outhitting the Flyers, they’re playing the mental game better, and they seem to have really gotten Philly off its game.

The Flyers have not been doing these things nearly as often as they were.

Still, two fluky goals have made the difference

Yes, the Flyers have lost back-to-back games. Sure, they do look completely different.

However, if you’re into silver linings, it’s just two flukey goals that have made the difference in the past two games.

I am still not convinced when watching Dan Vladar that he is 100%. Yet, he has still come up big and played well for the Flyers down the stretch. It just comes down to two goals that, if given a second chance, he stops 999 out of 1,000 attempts.

In Game 4, it was the play behind the net where Rickard Rakell was able to strip the puck and wrap around for the empty net score. It was a miscommunication that led to a costly goal, but if you take it away, it’s a 2-2 game, assuming they don’t score the empty netter.

In Game 5, the game-winner was a shot that went well wide, bounced off the glass perfectly off Vladar’s back, and into the net. Same thing here. If that goal does not happen, it’s a 2-2 game.

The Flyers have been drastically outplayed over the last 120 minutes. Yet somehow, it was two flukes that made the difference for the Penguins.

Now, the series is heading back to Philly, giving the Flyers once more a chance to end the series before it gets to Game 7.

Read More: Quick Fixes: How the Flyers Can Bounce Back in Game 5

The post Flyers Analysis: What Changed Between Games 1, 2, & 3 and Now (+) appeared first on Philly Hockey Now .