Christmas movies are nice, but sometimes you need something with a little bit more JUICE. There has long been a debate about whether or not Die Hard is a Christmas movie. That debate is boring as hell at this point. There is no debating that Die Hard is a movie set at Christmas that uses the season for thematic purposes. The Christmas-set action movie is a tried and true tradition, beloved by writers like Shane Black to put a Santa hat on someone wielding a gun and have beautiful white snow splattered with the shock of red, red blood.
My BSH pop culture aficionado compatriot Jason and I have decided to have a draft with these Christmas set movies. Most of these belong to the action genre, but there are a few that don’t have explosions. Jason, I will be gracious and give you the first pick.
Jason – Thanks Steve! I will take the aforementioned Die Hard. It’s a cliche pick, but the right pick in a list of strong contenders. How often do you have a film that has a different, yet amazing, catch phrase based on if you are watching the edited (yipee kay yay, motherf***er) or unedited version (yipee kay yay, Mr. Falcon)? Back to the Christmas theme, “ho ho ho I’ve got a machine gun”. The film is infinitely quotable with more than I can even list. It is one of the best action films ever made.
Steve – I mean how can you not? Die Hard is iconic and a perfect action movie. I am going to roll with Gremlins here. It’s one of the funniest horror movies ever made. Speaking of icons, GIZMO is one of the single cutest creations in cinematic history. Gremlins is twisted and tells one of the most fucked up stories in Christmas set film history with the fate of Kate’s (Phoebe Cates) father many years ago. The stupid Google AI thing gave me a really weird summary of this when I searched for the scene online.
Gremlins might be the one film on here I would give a passionate argument for being a straight up Christmas movie. Christmas is pivotal to the plot in so many ways. But then they made the most bonkers (in a good way) sequel in history with Gremlins 2: The New Batch, proving that you can take the Christmas out of Gremlins and they will still be a force for comedic terror.
Jason – Gremlins is so good! Was genuinely scared of “Spike” as a kid. Not sure why my parents were letting me watch this, where were they? Next up I’ll pick up my favorite time travel film and one of my favorite Philadelphia-located films ever, 12 Monkeys. This film blew me away as a teenager when I first watched it as a recommendation from my dad. Brad Pitt was ROBBED for Best Supporting Oscar to Kevin Spacey (The Usual Suspects). For the uninitiated, Bruce Willis is sent back in time to gather information on the cause of a virus that wipes out most of the human population. It is an extremely well done and well shot film. The ending is absolutely perfect. All of this is set against the backdrop of Philadelphia at Christmastime.
Steve – I’m going to go with Trading Places. There are some aspects of this movie that have not, um, AGED WELL, but overall, it’s a hilarious look at 1980s Philadelphia and a tale of how the rich play with the lives of those less fortunate than them. Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy are such a funny pairing of SNL alums. One of the great twisted Christmas images is drunk Aykroyd in a Santa suit eating salmon through his fake white beard. Looking good, Billy Ray! Feeling good, Lewis!
Jason – That was going to be my next! Classic comedy that I try and watch this time every year because it’s so god damn funny. I’ll go with another comedy this round with the underappreciated Just Friends. This is a Ryan Reynolds vehicle that I think gets blown off as just another early 00’s comedy slop. While the Reynolds fat suit stuff in the beginning is a bit cringey, it does evolve into a very funny film as Reynold’s character vies for the affection of an old high school sweetheart as he makes an unexpected stop in his old New Jersey hometown. However the real stars are Anna Faris’ Brittney Spears-esque girlfriend and his oblivious mother played by Julie Hagerty. All of this plays out over the Christmas holiday, of course. This is an anti-Hallmark Christmas set film.
Steve – It’s time to get weird and pick one of the strangest superhero and Christmas-set movies of all-time – Batman Returns. Oh baby, does Tim Burton go off the wall in this one. Christopher Walken’s performance as Max Shreck can be overlooked between Michelle Pfeifer’s scintillating Catwoman (Dean Pelton from Community voice: “This better not awaken anything in me.”) and Danny DeVito’s disgusting Penguin. There are so many great weird moments in this movie! “I’m going to play this town like a harp out of hell!”, Batman scratching a CD like a record, the actual penguins that live with the villain the Penguin marching him to a watery grave, the giant rubber duck boat, the actual penguins firing rockets. I could go on, but who has the time?
Jason – Batman Returns feels like a fever dream at times, but in a good way. Going to pick a recent one here and one of my favorite films of the last few years, The Holdovers. This is a 70’s set film during a Christmas break at an all-boys school where some of the kids don’t have family to go to. It’s an Alexander Payne film, so it’s filled with tons of great dialogue and themes. Not to mention frequent collaborator Paul Giammati puts together one of his best performances.
Steve – Paul Giammati is a treasure and truly one of the great underrated actors. I’m going to dive into the Shane Black end of the pool and pick The Nice Guys. Black has used Christmas to set the scene in a number of films, including Lethal Weapon, The Long Kiss Goodnight, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, and Iron Man 3. I could have picked any of these here. Lethal Weapon is one of the iconic action movies, and for many people THE iconic action movie. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang has Robert Downey Jr., Val Kilmer, and Michelle Monaghan and is an awesome movie. Iron Man 3 is super fun and a blast of a lowkey MCU romp.The Nice Guys, similarly, is a ton of fun. A throwback buddy movie, The Nice Guys features great chemistry between Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe. Talk to me next year, though, and it might be one of the other Shane Black Christmas films on this list instead.
Jason – Honestly had never put it together how all of Shane Black’s films are all around this time. Neat! LOVE The Nice Guys. Feels like it could have been a whole franchise based on how well Gosling and Crowe worked together. The banter back and forth between the two is infinitely entertaining. For my last pick I’m going with the niche comedy Go by one of my favorite directors, Doug Liman. Clearly inspired by Pulp Fiction, this film focuses on three different stories that are all loosely connected and intertwined. The film takes place during Christmas-time and has many references to it. This is a wild romp that includes drugs, trouble in Vegas, and a young Timothy Olyphant starring as a drug dealer named Todd. So it basically has everything you need.
Steve – Love Go! I actually only saw this movie for the first time recently and it’s such a great late 90s time capsule. I’m going for a super cheesy but undeniably Philadelphian choice for my final pick – Rocky IV. This is without a doubt the most over-the-top of the Rocky films. The fight between Rocky Balboa and Ivan Drago is insanely long and the punching is so fake and it’s all somehow so great. I don’t think either boxer blocks a single punch.
The bonkers training montage in the middle with Rocky working out in the mountains of Russia is the gold standard for bonkers training montages. And this hasn’t even touched on how Christmas ties in! The pivotal fight between Rocky and Drago takes place on Christmas Day, with Rocky and Adrian’s son watching the match on TV with the ROBOT that they bought for Paulie’s birthday babysitting him while wearing a Santa hat and beard. Yes, you read all of that correctly. It doesn’t matter how many director’s cuts Sylvester Stallone tries to sneak in there, we will never forget the “Happy birthday Paulie” robot.
Jason Steve Die Hard Gremlins 12 Monkeys Trading Places Just Friends Batman Returns The Holdovers The Nice Guys Go Rocky IV Honorable mentions
Lethal Weapon – This should have been drafted, but I have just never had the love in my heart for the Lethal Weapon franchise that I have for Die Hard and the other films on my list. It coined the phrase “I’m getting too old for this shit” and really set the template for the buddy cop film. – Steve
Reindeer Games – This isn’t a good movie, but this is such an over-the-top joy of a weird film. Gary Oldman is soooo scummy. We actually watch this one every Christmas in my household because it’s such a great weird time. And what a loaded cast! The aforementioned Gary Oldman, Ben Affleck, Charlize Theron, Danny Trejo, Donal Logue, DENNIS FARINA! There are even bizarre cameos from Isaac Hayes and Ron Jeremy. I might write an entire piece dedicated to Reindeer Games next year. You have to respect robbing an establishment that serves both Coke AND Pepsi. – Steve
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and Iron Man 3 – See The Nice Guys above.
There are a ton of great films that we didn’t even mention in this piece. What’s your favorite movie set at Christmas that isn’t quite a Christmas movie? Sound off in the comments below!
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It’s one thing for Yegor Zavragin to get run into or be hit during the ups and downs of a KHL season. But you often expect that to happen primarily in games, and sometimes in practice. However, it’s rare that a goalie who was a backup, sitting on the bench minding his own business, was leveled as badly as Zavragin was in a game Friday.
Zavragin, a third-round pick by Philadelphia in the 2023 NHL Draft, was the backup goalie for SKA St. Petersburg as SKA played against Dinamo Minsk. In the first period, with St. Petersburg up 1-0, Dinamo Minsk forward Vitaly Pinchuk received a pass around the St. Petersburg blueline. As he entered the zone, St. Petersburg defenseman Markus Phillips, closed in on him and delivered a good hit, knocking Pinchuk off the puck. Unfortunately, the momentum of the hit, and the speed Pinchuk was going caused him to leave his skates.
It wouldn’t be a huge issue in a North American rink as he would’ve simply ran into the boards and fell. However, with one end of the KHL team benches venturing a few feet beyond the blueline into the defensive zone (in periods one and three), Pinchuk ended up sliding into the St. Petersburg bench. And instead of hitting a stanchion or the curved glass, his momentum carried him beyond the seated skaters on the bench and directly into Zavragin who was in the corner near the sticks.
OH MY! WHAT A HIT#hcSKA defenseman @mphillips_18 sends #DMN Vitali Pinchuk in to the bench area and he takes out #LetsGoFlyers prospect goaltender Yegor Zavragin.
pic.twitter.com/dLUYnGWWk1
— Hockey News Hub (@HockeyNewsHub) December 26, 2025
As you can see, Pinchuk goes full bore into Zavragin who thankfully was wearing his mask. He looked to have taken the brunt of the blow in the upper body, and was bowled over by the forward who also took some punishment from the Phillips hit. Zavragin fell to the ground as those nearby tended to the fallen goaltender. There was no word as to whether Zavragin was injured or got hurt in the freak collision. He didn’t appear in the game today which St. Petersburg won 4-1. Zavragin’s last game action with the club was on Nov. 12 as the team didn’t play any games from Dec. 7. In 11 games with the club, he’s 5-6-0 with a .924 save percentage and a 2.48 goals-against average.
With any luck, Zavragin avoided serious injury that could impede his development. It’s bad enough goalies get injured from getting run over from time to time. But to get clocked while being on the bench as the backup? Give Zavragin a break!
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Throughout the World Juniors tournament, we’ll be keeping track of all the action and bringing you all of the results in one place.
Germany vs. Slovakia
The opening match saw two teams coming off of day one losses, but considering their competition, it could be argued that neither team got off to a bad start. Slovakia kept it close against Sweden right to the end, while Germany cut the USA lead to just one goal twice in the second period. Slovakia got a big boost coming into this game, with returning defenseman Luka Radivojevic rejoining the lineup after an illness sidelined him for the opener.
Slovakia had the better of the play in the opening minutes, aided by an early power play, with Tomas Pobezal ringing a shot off the iron. Team Slovakia continued to apply offensive pressure and were rewarded on the scoreboard for their effort Thomas Chrenko opened the scoring on a broken play to give Slovakia their first lead of the tournament. Radivojevic made a pass down low from the point that bounced around in the slot, before Chrenko was able to beat goaltender Linus Viellard. Chrenko would get his second of the game after a really impressive looking power play, concluding in Adam Nemec finding Chrenko right in front of the net for a quick goal. Germany was held without a shot for the final 13 minutes of the first period, getting out-shot 19-3. It was an extremely strong showing from Slovakia, but it’s also worth mentioning how quick of a turnaround this was for the Germans, who had fewer than 18 hours between their games.
The second period saw the script flip some, with Germany controlling play and getting the better of the chances. Unfortunately for them, their momentum came to a halt when Lenny Boos was given a double minor for high-sticking. Chrenko would complete the hat trick on the ensuing power play, with a pass attempt deflecting off of a German defender and into the net.
We have a #WorldJuniors hat trick
Tomas Chrenko notches 3 for Slovakia! #IIHF #SVKGER pic.twitter.com/UBW2emQJi6
— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) December 27, 2025
Midway through the third period, after another push from Germany, Dustin Willhoft broke the shutout bid, retrieving a loose puck off of an uncontrolled entry and beating Michal Pradel one-one-one with a five hole shot. While he was not super busy for most of the game, Pradel had to make some excellent saves to maintain Slovakia’s lead in the final frame. Adam Belusko added a long-range, empty net goal with just under a minute remaining to secure Slovakia’s first win of the tournament.
Final: Slovakia 4 – Germany 1
Next game up (SVK): Dec 29, 6:00 ET vs. USA
Next game up (GER): Dec 29, 1:00 ET vs. Sweden
Latvia vs. Canada
In international hockey, Latvia has given Canada some scares, and the start of this game was yet another example. Outshooting the Canadians early, Latvia drew the first penalty of the game when Flyers prospect Jett Luchanko took a holding penalty on what was essentially a football tackle. Luchanko has had a rough start to the tournament, with his line getting dinged for three goals against in game one, and now a pretty bad penalty early in game two. A bit later, it looked as if Markuss Sieradzkis had given Latvia an early lead, but it was ruled no goal due to a distinct kicking motion. Canada finally began to find their game in the final minutes of the first period, overtaking Latvia in shots. Though the takeaway being “Canada finally overtakes Latvia in shots” really speaks to where this Canadian team is right now. Their ramp up seemed to carry somewhat over into the middle frame, and they very quickly went to work on a five minute power play after Zayne Parekh was hit up high.
Less than a minute into the power play, Gavin McKenna found Cole Reschny on the right faceoff dot, who then cut to the middle of the ice for a shot that beat Nils Maurins and broke the scoreless tie. While the shots on goal count was relatively close through the second period, Canada missed the net a ton in this game and was by this point largely controlling play. They still looked a step behind what we’d expect from a hockey powerhouse, but did recover well after a really troubling start to the game. Cole Beaudoin caught a bit of a lucky break when the referees missed a high hit he laid that could’ve absolutely been a major penalty, and soon after Ben Danford would be assessed a double minor for high-sticking. Discipline was a topic of conversation after game one — thanks in part to Porter Martone’s antics — and they appeared to be beginning to lose their composure a bit in this one as well. Martone did have a handful of run-ins with the Latvian goaltender that caused some post-whistle scrums. However, the Canadians were able to kill off the penalty and stayed out of the box the rest of the way.
The story of the third period was defensive hockey, with both teams looking to lock the other down. Eventually, the Latvians had start taking some chances as time was not on their side, and this opened the game up for both sides. Canada strung together a couple of really dangerous shifts but were unable to get another one by Maurins in regulation. With just under two minutes to play in regulation, Latvia found the game-tying goal thanks to Rudolfs Berzkalns pouncing on a rebound and kicking the puck off of his stick and into the net. A delay of game penalty put Canada on a power play with less than a minute remaining, and thanks to a pair of blocks by Antons Macijevskis, the game would head to overtime.
Still on the power play, and just 44 seconds into overtime, McKenna found Michael Hage across the ice for a one-timer to end the game. Canada got the win, but notably skated away with just two points instead of the three that a team gets for a regulation win. This is a team that is playing way under their potential right now, which has recently become an all too familiar trend for Canada in this tournament.
Final: Canada 2 – Latvia 1 (OT)
Next game up (CAN): Dec 29, 8:30 ET vs. Denmark
Next game up (LAT): Dec 28, 4:30 ET vs. Finland
USA vs. Switzerland
Heavy favorites in this one, team USA found themselves in a tightly contested first period against Switzerland. Interestingly, the Americans threatened much more offensively on the penalty kill than they did at even strength. First it was Cole Hutson on a partial breakaway, and then Brodie Ziemer only moments later on a odd man rush. Goaltender Christian Kirsch stood tall, stopping both A-plus chances to keep the game scoreless after 20 minutes. All in all, it was a period that Switzerland had to have been happy with, keeping pace with the team going for a three-peat.
Early in the second period, Ziemer gave team USA the lead with a snipe from the inside of the faceoff circle. Ziemer had a great first period and the goal was a continuation of his strong play. Soon after, there was a scary moment when Cole Hutson was hit with a point shot on the back of his neck and dropped to the ice. He remained on the ice for some time, and eventually they called for the stretcher. He was moving his arms and legs before being taken off the ice, and the most recent report is that he was discharged from the hospital.
Team Switzerland scored their first goal of the tournament when Basile Sansonnens went bar down with a shot from far out to tie the game. On the very next shift, Cyrill Henry found an opening the flew in on a breakaway but was unable to beat Nicholas Kempf. It was a massive save at a huge spot in the game, keeping the game tied at one, and coming right after the Hutson injury. It wouldn’t stay tied for long, though, as Will Zellers, who has been great through this first two games, re-gained the lead for team USA. Zellers came in on the left boards and took a shot from an angle that isn’t the most dangerous, but it was a classic RVH goal, where the shooter aims for the goalie’s helmet/over the goalie’s shoulder to find the open space.
With the net empty and just about 40 seconds remaining in regulation, the Swiss hit the crossbar, but that would be as close as they would come to tying it. Similarly to their rivals from the north, it felt like team USA didn’t deliver their best game, but Kempf came up big when needed, and the Swiss were held to just 9 shots on goal.
Final: USA 2 – Switzerland 1
Next game up (USA): Dec 29, 6:00 ET vs. Slovakia
Next game up (SUI): Dec 28, 2:00 ET vs. Sweden
Denmark vs. Czechia
An early goal from Vojtech Cihar set the tone for Czechia just two minutes into the game. It was a bit of weird one, with a Tomas Galvas shot hitting him in front of the net, with the puck then finding its way through the five hole. The lead wouldn’t last for long, however, as just three minutes later Tristan Peterson jumped on a loose puck right in front of the net following a failed shot attempt and made no mistake. Both teams were humming offensively to start, but Denmark found themselves in trouble when Jesper Olesen was assessed a five minute major for a hit to the head.
On the ensuing power play, Matej Kubiesa found the back of the net with an absolute snipe, skating down the right boards and shooting far-side over the blocker of Anton Wilde. Czechia continued to press on the power play, with Wilde facing a number of tough chances, but were held to just the one tally on the major power play.
Back on the power play in the middle frame, Vaclav Nestrasil hit a no-look shot that found the back of the net. Tomas Poletin set a great screen in front to help block Wilde’s sight, and Nestrasil showed off his accuracy while feigning pass. This comes the day after Nestrasil set up a goal against Canada with a no-look pass; he’s had a great start to the tournament. Denmark pulled within one with a goal right off of a faceoff when Oliver Larsen ripped it far-side past Matyas Marik. Just a few minutes later Marik made the save of the tournament so far, robbing Oliver Green.
Denmark cam SO CLOSE to tying the game but Matyas Marik had other plans
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) December 28, 2025
It’s at this point that game really got away from the Danes, with goals from Adam Jiricek and Stepan Hoch that increased Czechia’s lead to 5-2 prior to the end of the middle frame. The offense would continue in the third, with goals from Tomas Galvas (Czechia’s third power play goal of the game) and Richard Zemlicka to make it 7-2, which is how the game would end. On a day that included lopsided matchups on paper for both Canada and the United States, it was team Czechia that ended up producing the most dominant performance.
Final: Czechia 7 – Denmark 2
Next game up (CZE): Dec 29, 3:30 ET vs. Finland
Next game up (DEN): Dec 29, 8:30 ET vs. Canada
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It was bound to happen. We were just waiting for this sort of game from Porter Martone to come by and make a whole lot of jaws drop with the sheer magnitude of ability he has on the ice while skating for Team Canada at the 2026 World Juniors.
It could’ve been against Latvia over the weekend but the central European nation stood strong against Canada for the second year in a row and managed to be a real hard out. It could’ve been against Czechia in the tournament opener but that is a larger ask — to get up against one of the more impressive teams in the tournament and in the very first game.
All that needed to happen was for Canada to really need to put step on the throat of some poor team just trying to not be relegated to a lower division. Unfortunately, Denmark walked in front of their path and Martone and some of his teammates just lit up with a bloodthirsty smile.
The end result was a 9-1 win for Canada in which a total of 48 shots on goal were thrown at the Danish crease and all the Canadian netminder needed to do was stop 12. It was a bloodbath and one that Martone really capitalized on to show off just why he is one of the top prospects in the world and is going to be a perfect Flyer one day.
Porter Martone showed off so much in latest World Juniors domination
Martone was doing what he typically has done during this tournament through the start of this game — getting to the dangerous areas of the ice, controlling the puck along the boards and behind the goal line looking for any open teammate to create a goal from his stick. But it all materialized when he was able to unleash his hellish shot for a one-timer on the power play into the back of a wide-open net.
THE CAPTAIN!
Porter Martone makes it 4-1 for Canada!#WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/xBZK9w2Sxq
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) December 30, 2025
It’s not the most impressive goal but it is certainly one that makes you take a step back and go “Wow, okay damn” and realize that there’s this weapon in the typical playmaker that he is able to just unleash whenever the situation arises. The poor Danes had no chance.
Martone’s game only evolved from there. He earned his only assist of the game after pouncing on a loose puck and ever so faintly faking a trip down to the other side of the ice, spinning it around for linemate Michael Misa who was waiting for the chance to one-time it home. It was a near-perfect assist from the playmaking winger; a reverse pass that fooled a whole lot of defenders on the ice and something that might just be repeatable at the NHL level if the pace is brought up to the next marker.
That goal and assist against lower competition is just fine and dandy and if that was all that came off of Martone’s stick on Monday night, we probably wouldn’t think we needed to rush to the laptop and write just about how sick his game was. We would nod in approval and expect some more from him.
But, that’s not all that happened.
In the third period, with the game truly gone (but that doesn’t matter; whatever), Martone gave his best Leon Draisaitl impression and scored a goal from an impossibly tight angle. And it wasn’t just any old shot that dribbled in, it was an absolute rocket into the back of the net with an NHL-ready quality to it.
Porter Martone double-dips and it's 9-1 Canada!
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) December 30, 2025
That’s just beauty right there. That’s pure beauty. The Flyers’ top prospect doing stuff like that on the world stage while wearing the letter for Team Canada. That’s the stuff we dream about.
This whole game seemed to be Martone’s attempts finally becoming real production. He’s been doing the exact same thing throughout all three games in the tournament but all he needed was one game to really hit home that he can do this on a regular basis. He will always be a play-driving winger that will contribute in just every way possible on the ice, and some games he’ll walk away with zero points in a tough overtime win, or have two goals and an assist that are highlight-reel worthy in a dominating performance. It just depends if the bounces go his way or not.
Martone now has three goals and four points in three games in the tournament, which might not seem like something to really write home about but after Canada struggled against Czechia and narrowly escaped with a win while facing Latvia, it’s pretty much as expected given the circumstances. Now, the Flyers top prospect and his other Canadians take on Finland on New Year’s Eve in another actual test to see if they are actually worth the hype.
That Canada-Finland clash will feature four Flyers prospects as Martone and Jett Luchanko face off against Heikki Ruohonen and Max Westergard, who have been very impressive in their own right. We’ll be glued.
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This past week, the Flyers have somehow played three games while also having a four-day holiday break. In that stretch, the Flyers went 2-1-0 against three of the worst teams in the Western Conference, with wins over Vancouver and Chicago and a regulation loss against Seattle.
The week started off on the right foot with a pretty dominant 5-2 win over the Canucks, where the new look fourth line of Nikita Grebenkin, Rodrigo Abols, and Carl Grundstrom combined for two goals. The next night, Sam Ersson put in one of his strongest performances of the season in a 3-1 win over the Blackhawks. Then, after a four day holiday break, the Flyers began their West Coast trip with a lifeless 4-1 loss to the Kraken on Sunday night.
With the results this week, the Flyers now sit in third place in the Metropolitan Division with 45 points, but second in the division in terms of points percentage (.608). They are tied with division leader Carolina for the least regulation losses in the Eastern Conference with 11, and continue to find ways to earn at least a point in the majority of their games.
So, before tonight’s games in Vancouver, let’s dive into what players really stood out this past week for the Orange and Black.
3. Denver Barkey
0 goals, 0 assists, but he was a bundle of energy and fun
There were not many pure standouts on the scoresheet for the Flyers this week, so we really liked the things that Denver Barkey was doing this week. While he wasn’t able to register a point, he was frequently in and around offensive chances for the Flyers, and was an annoying pest for defenses to deal with.
One area of strength that came out for Barkey this week? His ability to frustrate defenses, and draw lots of penalties in the process. Take the play below from Sunday night in Seattle, where Barkey blocks a shot at the top of the defensive zone, gains the puck in the neutral zone, and earns a penalty on a mini-breakaway chance. Relentless, all-three-zones hockey from Barkey is going to endear him to Rick Tocchet, and that’s exactly what we saw from him this week.
The way Barkey plays, though, sometimes can come with a cost, and we also saw that this week against the Blackhawks. On a power play, Barkey went hard after a Chicago defenseman along the boards to retrieve a puck, and ended up throwing a hit that Barkey received the worst of. He left Tuesday’s game, but the injury ended up being not serious. Still, from here on out, it’ll be interesting to see how Barkey’s 5’8” frame holds up in the NHL.
2. Travis Konecny
1 goal, 2 assists, 3 games played, and he looks like he’s back
The trend started before this week, but Travis Konecny’s play as of late has really inspired confidence that the 28-year-old forward still has an extremely high level of hockey in him. He’s back to making a shift-by-shift impact, as being united with Trevor Zegras and Christian Dvorak has really played out well for the Flyers.
This week, Konecny’s point against the Canucks came on a secondary assist to a Dvorak goal. With a creative zone entry, Konecny was a key part in a goal that emphasized what he arguably does best – offensive creation on the rush.
Then, against the Blackhawks, Konecny put in one of his most complete games of the season, with a goal and an assist to show for it. While Konecny’s goal came off a ridiculous feed from Zegras, the play started with another strong zone entry from the Konecny-Zegras combo, and was also all about Konecny’s movement and creativity in the offensive zone.
And finally, later in the Chicago game, Konecny had a bit of luck with his power play assist, where his pass from the side of the net ended up on the stick of Noah Cates in front for a goal.
TK put it on a platter.#PHIvsCHI | #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/hi3o9P2TlZ
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) December 24, 20251. Nikita Grebenkin, Rodrigo Abols, Carl Grundstrom
Combined for 4 goals this week, the first really good fourth line of the season
With Rick Tocchet loving the idea of rolling all four lines all the time, even in late-game close situations, it’s imperative that the Flyers’ fourth line can keep up. For much of the season before this week, that simply wasn’t happening, and the Flyers were getting absolutely caved in the defensive zone when the fourth line was on the ice.
Well, since the benching of Garnet Hathaway, the new look fourth line of Nikita Grebenkin, Rodrigo Abols, and Carl Grundstrom has been a revelation. There’s actually some offensive tools on that line now, with the puck protection of Grebenkin and the shot of Grundstrom giving the Flyers some real quality on the fourth line.
This week, the line combined for the first two goals in the game against Vancouver. For the first goal, Grebenkin protected the puck as he entered the zone, left it for Abols, and immediately went to the netfront for a deflection goal. Strong, “gritty” work from Grebenkin and exactly what you’d like to see from the fourth line.
Jolly Old St. Nik delivered.#PHIvsVAN | #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/bmLhD2mzZf
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) December 23, 2025
On the line’s second goal of the game, Grebenkin flashed some pretty high-end skill as well. Again, Grebenkin’s puck protection skills along the boards and behind the net are some of the best on this Flyers roster, and having that in a fourth line position can be a luxury. This play below is really all Grebenkin, even with Grundstrom’s persistence for the rebound. Grundstrom also added an empty netter in Chicago to seal the deal on Tuesday night.
Persistence pays off.#VANvsPHI | #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/RiYWFsr5I0
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) December 23, 2025
Finally, the fourth line registered the only goal for the Flyers in Seattle, on an absolute rip from Grundstrom to make the score 3-1 Kraken. It’s been pretty shocking to watch Grundstrom become a serviceable player for the Flyers, and while he’s certainly not going to keep up on this pace (6 goals in 11 games), his shooting skill is real. Combine that with Grebenkin’s puck protection skills and Abols’ well-rounded game, there could be lots more offense to come by for this new look fourth line.
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The Flyers were late to the dance, but they put in the work necessary to earn a 6-3 win over the host Vancouver Canucks. Philadelphia split their first two games of the post-Christmas West Coast swing and look to get their second win Wednesday night against Calgary.
The basics
First period: 3:45 – David Kampf (Drew O’Connor, Marcus Pettersson), 12:02 – Noah Cates (Matvei Michkov, Bobby Brink)
Second period: 3:40 – Carl Grundstrom (Nikita Grebenkin, Travis Sanheim), 16:20 – Travis Konecny (Jamie Drysdale, Trevor Zegras)
Third period: 1:08 – Drew O’Connor (David Kampf), 1:34 – Bobby Brink (Matvei Michkov, Noah Cates), 17:19 – Owen Tippett (Rodrigo Abols) (SHG), 18:16 – Tom Willander (Unassisted), 19:23 – Christian Dvorak (Trevor Zegras, Travis Konecny)
SOG: 33 (PHI) – 35 (VAN)
Some takeaways
Huge matchup: Grundstrom versus Karlsson
Vancouver’s fourth-line winger Linus Karlsson has scored a few goals this month, as has Flyers fourth-line winger Carl Grundstrom. It’s strange to see two of the hotter snipers for both teams on the fourth line, but there you have it. However, in the second period, after a long shift by Vancouver who have the long change, Grundstrom picked up a loose puck deep and roofed the puck over Demko to put Philadelphia ahead 2-1. The goal was Grundstrom’s 50th of his career and seventh of the year, once again putting some punch into the fourth line.
GRUNDSTROM IS SCORCHING.#PHIvsVAN | #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/JBj26XF5Ce
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) December 31, 2025
In an insane coincidence, the game’s first three goals were all scored by players who had scored their 50th goal in their respective NHL careers. Grundstrom finished with the one goal in 13:39 of ice time while Karlsson was a minus-2 with no points in 17:22 of action.
Barkey continues to impress
Denver Barkey lost his stick in the first period but made a play that helped get the Flyers a huge clear. In the second he delivered a fantastic pass to Sean Couturier who forced Demko to make a big save. What’s clear is that the youngster is taking everything in stride and rarely looking like a fish out of water.
Barkey looked like everything Jamie Drysdale wasn’t on this night. Drysdale, who had a lone assist on the night, had a rather rough game. He was pushed back on Vancouver’s opening goal and nearly making a brain cramp in the third when, with no stick, he finally booted the puck behind the net and away from an oncoming Canuck forward. As if that wasn’t enough, he also broke his stick on another scoring chance. Hopefully Drysdale has a better evening Wednesday night against Calgary.
Tippett tossing weight around
When the Flyers appeared to be in quicksand, Owen Tippett was throwing his body around. And he delivered a few hard hits, including one on Pierre Oliver Joseph that sent him on his backside. The winger, who woke up far quicker than any other Flyer, seemed to drag Philadelphia into the fight, resulting in a far better last 10 minutes of the first period than the first 10. Vancouver still outshot the Flyers 10-5 after 20 minutes, but Philadelphia looked like they were no longer hitting the snooze button.
Although he was -1 after the first, he was tied with Grundstrom with three hits apiece. Tippett also ran into Demko midway through the second but neither party were hurt in the collision. The winger scored an empty-net goal which was also a short-handed tally which made it a 5-2 game.
Konecny and Zegras keep chugging along
Travis Konecny continues to keep motoring along, not really looking like he’s lighting the world aflame but just being consistent. Late in the second period, Konecny took a great pass from Jamie Drysdale and didn’t get the initial shot in. However, Konecny dove and got enough of the puck to lift it high over Demko to make it a 3-1 game.
Zegras — who had his point streak stopped against Seattle — started another one with a secondary assist on Konecny’s goal, giving Zegras 38 points in this, the team’s 38th game of the year. The momentum continued as Philadelphia — once outshot 10-0 to start the game, was outshooting the Canucks 22-9 the rest of the first two periods. The shots mirrored the Expected Goals For percentages: 28.29 percent for Philadelphia in the first period, but 70.62 percent in the second.
Both players ended up with a pair of points, both getting assists on a late empty-netter by Christian Dvorak which made it a 6-3 game.
Seeler decisions Kane
After taking a hit from Evander Kane, Flyers defenseman Nick Seeler didn’t take too kindly to it. The two began a fight that saw Seeler hitting Kane far more than the Vancouver winger who fell to the ice. Not an ideal start to go with five blueliners for five minutes just two minutes in, but Philadelphia was able to weather the storm somewhat. Unfortunately, because play continued, the penalty to Seeler was more like eight to nine minutes.
Nick Seeler vs Evander Kane#LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/WWscJiGcE6
— Flyers Clips (@Flyers_Clips) December 31, 2025
Good start? (Expletive) no!
The Flyers started with the line of Christian Dvorak with Travis Konecny and Trevor Zegras on either side of him. After backing in on the first shot on goal that narrowly missed Flyers keeper Dan Vladar’s glove side, Travis Sanheim had a chance that didn’t connect. Vancouver, who played Monday, looked far more ready than Philadelphia, getting the opening four shots. The first real chance was a two-on-one with defenseman Emil Andrae and Konecny. Andrae got a little too cute with the puck, opting to pass and missing a possible scoring chance. Minutes later the Flyers kept looking lethargic and it bit them as David Kampf gave Vancouver a 1-0 lead. That makes it 26 times in 38 games Flyers didn’t score first. Brutal.
Tocchet video tribute
The Canucks created a video tribute for Tocchet. But it should have been simultaneous with the coach absolutely ripping his team for their lack of effort against a team that hasn’t been dominating the league all season. Through 11 minutes, Vladar and Ersson had as many shots combined as the other 18 skaters. Having said all that, Christian Dvorak nearly tied it up after finding a huge, juicy rebound that just missed the net. Seconds later, the Flyers tied things up as Noah Cates received a nice pass from Matvei Michkov (who made a great play to start the scoring chance) to make it 1-1, beating Thatcher Demko on the glove side.
Speaking of Michkov, he nearly put Philadelphia ahead early in the second, but Demko was able to stop the shot heading for his five-hole. And with just over four minutes in the second, Michkov again had a great chance, shielding the puck from the Vancouver defender but unable to beat the Canucks goalie and give Philadelphia an important insurance goal. The Mad Russian was left shaking his head but it’s chances like that which Michkov wasn’t getting at all earlier in the season. Baby steps, but heading in the right direction.
In the third, after Vancouver narrowed it to 3-2, Michkov and Brink ended up on a two-on-one. Michkov made a great pass to Brink who tapped it into the open net for a terrific response, once again giving Philadelphia a two-goal lead. It marked his first multi-point game since Dec. 3 when he registered a pair of assists against Buffalo. And, in keeping with the theme of the evening, it marked the 50th career assist for Michkov in the National Hockey League.
All stats courtesy NHL.com and Natural Stat Trick
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Team Canada’s Olympic roster was announced this afternoon, and Philadelphia’s Travis Sanheim has made the cut. On the other hand, Flyers forward Travis Konecny hasn’t.
Sanheim, who made inroads when he had a strong appearance at the 4 Nations Face-Off, has grown into a quality, minute-munching, top-pairing defenseman. Although the roster will feature some defenseman who are obviously more offensively gifted, Team Canada could do a heck of a lot worse than seeing Sanheim possibly as a third-pairing blueliner. Team Canada Doug Armstrong said Sanheim’s size certainly didn’t hurt as Team Canada has some bigger, towering defenders.
Earlier this week, Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet all but confirmed that Sanheim would be part of the squad when play begins in Milano/Cortina next February. The roster will be the first featuring National Hockey League players since 2014. In June, Canada announced the first six players to the roster: Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby, Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon, Oiler superstar Connor McDavid, Florida’s Sam Reinhart, Tampa’s Brayden Point, and Colorado defenseman Cale Makar.
Here are the 2⃣5⃣ players who will wear theat #MilanoCortina2026!
Voici les 2⃣5⃣ joueurs qui porteront la
ROSTER: https://t.co/5I8Uz2Psfa
FORMATION : https://t.co/zbOWuEgdPQ@TeamCanada | @Equipe_Canada pic.twitter.com/dTc1YKengx
— Hockey Canada (@HockeyCanada) December 31, 2025
Team Canada’s roster is fleshed out with goaltenders Jordan Binnington (St. Louis), Darcy Kuemper (Los Angeles), and Logan Thompson of the Washington Capitals. Binnington was crucial to Canada winning the 4 Nations Face-Off with some incredible overtime saves down the stretch before Connor McDavid scored the winner. As for the blueline, besides Makar and Sanheim, Kings’ defenseman Drew Doughty, Stars blueliner Thomas Harley, Winnipeg’s Josh Morrissey, St. Louis’ Colton Parayko, Vegas defenseman Shea Theodore, and Colorado’s Devon Toews.
As for the forwards, perhaps there are a few surprises, including Washington’s Tom Wilson, the Islanders’ Bo Horvat, and Tampa’s Anthony Cirelli. But there’s also some young blood in the team, notably San Jose’s Macklin Celebrini and Montreal’s Nick Suzuki. Rounding out the lineup is Tampa’s Bradon Hagel, Florida’s Brad Marchand, Mitch Marner and Mark Stone from the Knights. Team Canada’s general manager Doug Armstrong said essentially nobody played their way off the roster. It was a case of some players playing their way into the mix, meaning as strong as Konecny’s season has been this year, a few more might have leapt over him in the depth chart.
Team Canada begins its schedule against Team Czechia on Feb. 12 and the following day against Switzerland and Feb. 15 against Team France.
There were no Flyers on the 2014 Team Canada roster but it did include a few former Flyers including Jeff Carter and Patrick Sharp. The coaching staff also included former Philadelphia head coach Ken Hitchcock. The 2010 roster featured Flyers defenseman Chris Pronger and forward Mike Richards.
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The Flyers had some chances, hit some posts and crossbars, and had a goal called back. But overall, the Flyers weren’t the better team on this night, losing 5-1 to Calgary to conclude the calendar year.
The Basics
First period: 13:30- Mikael Backlund (Matt Cornato, Blake Coleman)
Second period: 3:08- Jonathan Huberdeau (Mackenzie Weegar, Yan Kuznetsov), 8:49- Travis Konecny (Unassisted), 12:03- Rasmus Andersson (Connor Zary, Nazem Kadri) (PPG), 17:52- Yegor Sharangovich (Matt Coronato, Mackenzie Weegar) (PPG)
Third period: 9:37- Connor Zary (Ryan Lomberg)
SOG: 26 (PHI) – 24 (CAL)
Some Takeaways
Taking both of a back to back? Nope
The Flames were riding high the last little while with a 9-1-1 record at home. Toss in the fact the Flyers were on the latter half of a back-to-back and Philadelphia might have entered the game at a disadvantage. But give the Flyers credit, at least initially. They didn’t start the game half asleep, nor did they try to run and gun with Calgary. Instead they played a rather simplified game, keeping the puck ahead of them and winning the puck battles more often than not.
In the second period, the Flyers continued doing more of the same, and not getting away from their structure all that often. Even down a pair, Philadelphia kept chipping away, eventually cutting Calgary’s lead in half midway through regulation. But the Flyers ran into penalty trouble shortly thereafter. A tripping call on Cam York was followed up six seconds later by another tripping minor on Christian Dvorak. The nearly full two minutes of five-on-three saw Philadelphia eventually give up one as Rasmus Andersson (who had a Flyers fan sticking her tongue out at him afterwards) beat Ersson from far out on the glove side. The goal restored Calgary’s two-goal lead.
Rasmus Andersson scores on a 5 on 3! It's 3-1 Calgary
: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/ZBcU77qnLF
— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) January 1, 2026
Moments later, the Flames mascot Harvey the Hound presented the Flyers fan with a t-shirt that said “Rasmus Andersson Stared At Me.”
Sanheim’s day a whirlwind
Travis Sanheim had a busy 24 hours. Following the victory Monday night in Vancouver, then the travel to Calgary, Sanheim had a hard time getting some shuteye wondering if he was getting a call to be part of Team Canada’s Olympic squad. Well, we know how that turned out. Whether he was running on fumes or adrenaline, Sanheim put in another strong game with Jamie Drysdale as his partner as Emil Andrae wasn’t in the lineup. But he got dinged blocking a shot off his knee about five minutes in, hobbling to the bench. However he was out there again, fortunately eating up minutes as he usually does.
Sanheim made a great rush late in the second and tried the wraparound but couldn’t get enough on it. Through two periods he was second in minutes played among Flyers defenseman. Sanheim was at 15:56, nine seconds behind Rasmus Ristolainen.
Juulsen returns
Noah Juulsen returned to the lineup for the first time since Dec. 14 against the Hurricanes. Juulsen was paired with Nick Seeler and looked okay most of the first period. He was on the ice for the lone goal of the first which put Calgary ahead. Yet he seemed to not have a whole lot of rust on his game, especially with no playing time in 17 days. After two periods, Juulsen was at 7:16 in terms of ice time and found himself second among Flyers skaters with a 78.41 expected goals for percentage, only behind Noah Cates.
Vladar gets kudos as Ersson starts
Early in the first the Flames gave a short tribute to Dan Vladar who was with Calgary last season. Vladar thanked the crowd as the opposition tapped their sticks in appreciation for his time there. He wasn’t in net on this night as Philadelphia gave the start to Sam Ersson. The shots on goal were one each through the first 10 minutes, with Ersson’s first stop of the night a good one against Calgary’s Blake Coleman in close. Sadly, Ersson couldn’t handle a Mikael Backlund shot roughly 13 minutes into the contest. The shot beat him on the glove side and, while he might have been screened by Nick Seeler who tried to block it, it was once again a shot by Ersson you would think he could’ve got a piece of. It sounds like a broken record, but Philadelphia gave up the first goal now 27 times in 39 games. Unacceptable.
Ersson was having his standard kind of start, as two of Calgary’s first four shots were behind him. The second saw a lot of traffic in front as the puck bounced off former Flyer Morgan Frost for a goal. Philadelphia quickly replied as Nick Seeler cut the deficit in half. However, Calgary challenged the goal, believing Carl Grundstrom interfered with Wolf on the goal. Calgary won the challenge, but were called for a tripping penalty which put Philadelphia on the power play. Dvorak had a few chances thanks to some good passing by Barkey, but couldn’t finish.
The Flyers finally got a bit of puck luck as Konecny just got enough of the puck to get it by Wolf. A Flames forward tried to clear it but fortunately for Philadelphia it bounced off the far post and curled in.
Ersson wasn’t great, but the Flyers weren’t much better in front of him. A backward pass by Bobby Brink in essentially garbage time nearly made it 6-1, but Ersson atoned for Brink’s major miscue. Ersson made 19 stops on 24 shots for another ugly .792 save percentage.
Michkov could’ve had four assists
Matvei Michkov has been playing better. And he almost got an assist on a Rasmus Ristolainen cannon that was deflected. The puck nearly landed in the back of the net but just landed behind it. Late in the first, Michkov held on to the puck behind the net and fed Juulsen with a perfect pass. Juulsen rifled the shot off the post as Flames goalie Dustin Wolf thanked the iron after the play. He also fed Sanheim with a great pass but Sanheim’s shot sailed over the net. Again, no points came of the plays, but they were plays that you mainly weren’t seeing from him the first 20 to 25 games of the season.
In the second, Michkov again created a prime scoring chance, intercepting a pass in midair before sending Tippett in alone on Wolf. Tippett, like Juulsen, and Ristolainen, couldn’t score. It’s a good sign the youngster is heading in the right direction. Even more importantly, in his first 11 shifts of the game, eight of them were at least 50 seconds or more. It appears Michkov is staying out a bit longer per shift than he previously was.
Dvorak no luck around the net
As mentioned before, Dvorak missed a chance off a feed from Michkov, but had a chance to make it a 3-2 game with a solid short-handed opportunity. He missed what looked to be a near guaranteed tap in. Seconds later it proved to be a two-goal swing as Calgary came back up the ice and made it a 4-1 contest.
And finally…
Thank you all for reading, commenting, liking, and subscribing to Broad Street Hockey the last 365 days. May you all have a happy and healthy 2026!
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