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[Philadelphia Flyers]

World Juniors daily recap: Close calls, but no upsets here

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 #WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/mThIPTbPu7

— 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

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/post/world-juniors-daily-recap-close-but-no-upsets-here/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Takeaways: A lifeless loss in Seattle

In what was one of the most boring games of the season, the Flyers snoozed their way to a sloppy 4-1 loss in Seattle on Sunday night. Messy neutral zone play and little offensive creativity abound, the Flyers couldn’t solve Phillip Grubauer in their first game out of the holiday break.

The basics

First period: No scoring

Second period: 3:48 – Jordan Eberle (Kappo Kakko, Matty Beniers)

Third period: 5:49 – Chandler Stephenson (Eeli Tolvanen), 17:30 – Eeli Tolvanen (Stephenson) (EN), 18:03 – Carl Grundstrom (Rodrigo Abols, Nikita Grebenkin), 18:24 – Tolvanen (EN)

SOG: 32 (PHI) – 20 (SEA)

First period things

The opening 20 minutes had no score, and it was a pretty sluggish start for the Flyers coming out of the holiday break. Through the first eight or so minutes of the game, the Kraken had the Flyers on their heels a bit, and the Flyers couldn’t move the puck very well through all three zones, registering just one shot in the opening eight minutes.

However, once Nikita Grebenkin drew a penalty at the 7:40 mark, the Flyers really gained the upper hand in puck possession and dictating play. Against the dead-last Kraken penalty kill, the Flyers came up empty, but they generated numerous high-end scoring chances. Later, on a second power play (on a penalty drawn by a Denver Barkey breakaway), the Flyers came up empty again. There was a lot to like on both power plays, and each of the opportunities really eased the Flyers into the offensive flow of the game, but you have to capitalize against the league-worst unit. So, it was a bit of a strange start to this game, but there were things to like from the Orange and Black.

Flyers allow the first goal, again

For the 25th time in 37 games, the Flyers let up the first goal of the game. As has been discussed over and over again throughout the first half of the season, the Flyers have been one of the most impressive come-from-behind teams in the NHL. However, at some point, the Flyers are going to need to start scoring first with more regularity, right? It’s great that the Flyers are resilient and all, but you’d think the Flyers are due for some regression in a negative direction in terms of wins.

That regression may have started tonight, where the Flyers just truly never got their bearings on this game. Falling behind 1-0 in the second period on a pretty unstoppable Jordan Eberle goal, the Kraken never really looked back, and Grubauer really just shut the door.

1-0 #SeaKraken

Excellent transition from Eberle and Beniers before their line combines a laterall pass below the goal line to Kakko and then a slot pass to Eberle. Really pretty play pic.twitter.com/sUjaiXUS0U

— Alison (@AlisonL) December 29, 2025

Flyers get goalie’d, sort of

On top of the Flyers never truly getting into the flow of the game, Phillip Grubauer was at his highest level, making high-quality saves when the Kraken needed it. So, why did it just feel like nothing happened offensively at all in this game? The Flyers just felt like a lifeless team tonight, and it didn’t seem at all like they made Grubauer’s life very difficult whatsoever.

According to Micah Blake McCurdy’s model, the Flyers actually won the expected goals battle with 3.1 expected goals to the Kraken’s 1.2. The Flyers also had 10 high danger chances to the Kraken’s 1, and carried a 57.3 Corsi-for percentage in the game, according to Natural Stat Trick. And, by the shot counter, the Flyers had 32 shots on goal to the Kraken’s 20. So, by all accounts, the Flyers actually dictated quite a bit in this game, and had a strong underlying process that should have resulted in a win on most nights. Maybe the real story of tonight is that the Flyers ran into a goalie on a hot streak, but it’s hard to leave that game thinking the Flyers played as well as the underlying stats imply.

Power play struggles

Outside of Grubauer, if you’re looking for the difference in this game, the Flyers’ inept power play is No. 1 on the list. With three opportunities in the first two periods against an absolutely horrendous penalty killing unit, you just have to come up with a goal or two in that situation. As mentioned previously, the Flyers created plenty of chances on those power plays, but it ultimately doesn’t matter when you can’t cash in against a penalty kill operating at a 70 percent clip. The Flyers’ power play, currently ranked 24th in the league, continues to show little signs of improvement as we enter the new year. When you combine that with the Flyers often playing from behind and their middling underlying numbers on the whole, it’s hard not to think that regression is on its way, but we’ll see how they respond for the rest of this road trip.

A late Grundstrom goal!

Hey! Carl Grundstrom scored again! For the third straight game, Grundstrom and the fourth line were productive. Tonight, the Grundstrom goal came in garbage time with the Flyers trailing 3-0, but his goal prevented the Flyers from being shutout for the second time this season. It also was another showcase of Grundstrom’s shot, which has proven itself to be a pretty useful attribute so far in his tenure with the Flyers.

Carl Grundstrom extends his goal streak to three games. #PHIvsSEA | #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/NVJeYHSbQp

— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) December 29, 2025

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/post/takeaways-a-lifeless-loss-in-seattle/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

World Juniors daily recap: Finland dominates, Ruohonen, Westergard pop

Throughout the World Juniors tournament, we’ll be keeping track of all the action and bringing you all of the results in one place.

Sweden vs. Switzerland​

The Swedes kicked off the tournament with a close win over the Slovaks, and while they surely came out of that game looking to pick up some more steam and show a little bit more dominance in their offense, this wasn’t quite a level they were able to reach in yesterday’s matchup with the Swiss.

They certainly got themselves off to a hot start, as they were able to jump out to a very early start on a goal from Eric Nilson scored just 54 seconds into the game. The Swedes bought themselves the early edge in momentum with that one as well, but it proved to be an edge not so easy to hold on to — they had two opportunities on the power play before the midway point of the period, but they weren’t able to generate a ton, or as much as they would have like to, and instead the Swiss took the momentum from those two big kills and ran with it. The Swiss were able to capitalize on the good offense they were generating (even with those penalty kills, they would come out of the period with a 15-13 edge in shots) and get themselves on the board with just under six minutes to go in the first frame, and it was an even game again.

The Swiss were nicely able to build on that effort on the other side of the intermission, and while their effort wasn’t perfect — they handed the Swedes another prime opportunity on the power play early in the period — they did some good work to shut down the Swedish offense, holding them to seven shots while putting up another goal themselves, this one from Lars Steiner, to pull them back into the lead.

It was looking, for a time at least, like they might just be able to keep up this level of effort and pull off the first major upset of the tournament, but by the third period, with desperation mounting, the Swedes were able to really find their legs again and run away with this game. They were able to find the equalizer again very early in the period (this time 57 seconds on, by Viggo Bjork), and this time, they weren’t going to let go of that momentum so easily. They were able to build on that, grabbing the lead just under six minutes later on a goal from Lucas Pettersson, and despite a bit of an anxious moment building when they followed that up by taking a tripping penalty, it was their turn to come up with a big kill to take the wind out of the Swiss’s sails. They put up some good chances, but the Swedish goaltending wouldn’t be beaten again, and this one ended with a second goal for Pettersson into the empty net to seal their second win of the tournament.

Final: Sweden 4 – Switzerland 2
Next game up (SWE): Dec 29, 1:00 ET vs. Germany
Next game up (SUI): Dec 29, 8:30 ET vs. Denmark

Finland vs. Latvia​

If the first game of the afternoon was a nicely enough balanced game, the second and final of the day between Finland and Latvia was anything but. Both teams were coming into this matchup on a bit of a high — Finland dominated Denmark in their first game of the tournament, beating them by a 6-2 score, while Latvia once again stepped up as a major disruptive force to the Canadians, and despite losing that game, still played them well and managed to take them to overtime — but only one was going to be able to keep that up, and the Finns answered quite decisively that it would be them.

This is a game that, in truth, they had full control over for just about the whole of. The Finns were able to get themselves on the board early in this one, with Emil Hemming scoring just inside the four minute mark, and while they weren’t able to build on that lead immediately — and they did have a prime opportunity, as the Oskars Breidis was called for a delay of game penalty just 25 seconds after giving up that goal, but the Latvians came up with a big kill — that was soon to come.

The Finns were able to pour on two more goals before the period was out — the first by Jasper Kuhta and assisted on by Flyers prospect Max Westergard, and then Westergard got his own first goal of the tournament with just 44 seconds remaining in the frame — totaling three goals while holding the Latvians to just three shots on goal, and with this, it would seem, they were only getting started. Hemming scored on the 5-on-3 power play early in the second period, and Joona Saarelainen (assisted by another Flyers prospect in Heikki Ruohonen) tacked on another to make it five goals unanswered and an official out-scoring of the Latvians’ shots total (one on the period to make it four in total).

We won’t belabor this point, but it was a pretty complete thrumming by the Finns from start to finish. The Latvians managed to generate marginally more offense in the final frame (three shots, matching their first period output), but the Finnish offense continued to overwhelm them. The Finns added three more goals in the third period — from Roope Vesterinen, then a first for Ruohonen, and the final from Lasse Boelius (assisted on by Ruohonen to make it a three-point game for him) — to well and truly put this one away, though it was over well before that point.

Final: Finland 8 – Latvia 0
Next game up (FIN): Dec 29, 3:30 ET vs. Czechia
Next game up (LAT): Dec 30, 4:30 ET vs. Denmark

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/p...ap-finland-dominates-ruohonen-westergard-pop/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Porter Martone finally dominates with perfect World Juniors performance

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! #WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/BuMWbv6wW4

— 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.

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/p...nates-with-perfect-world-juniors-performance/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Flyers’ 3 Stars of the Week: Barkey remains fun, and the fourth line finally steps up

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.

Denver Barkey is an ANIMAL.

Draws a penalty here. #Flyers pic.twitter.com/XLcjg0nnxF

— Flyers Nation (@FlyersNation) December 29, 2025

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.

CHRISTIAN DVORAK BATS IT IN (BARELY) BELOW THE CROSSBAR AND TREVOR ZEGRAS EXTENDS HIS POINT STREAK TO 8 GAMES!!! WHAT A RUSH. 3-0!#LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/bItjfFRzj1

— Flyers Clips (@Flyers_Clips) December 23, 2025

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.

TK ft. TZ: A perfect collab.#PHIvsCHI | #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/wpFARZ02yW

— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) December 24, 2025

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, 2025

1. 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.

Carl Grundstrom extends his goal streak to three games. #PHIvsSEA | #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/NVJeYHSbQp

— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) December 29, 2025

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/p...ins-fun-and-the-fourth-line-finally-steps-up/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Takeaways: Flyers start slow but end up doubling Vancouver in a 6-3 road victory

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.

WHAT A GOAL FROM TRAVIS KONECNY!!!

3-1 #FLYERS!!! pic.twitter.com/JkbHDQVYTq

— Flyers Nation (@FlyersNation) December 31, 2025

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.

David Kampf back in the lineup and gets the games opening goal pic.twitter.com/Y0jMoSrVZY

— Bik Nizzar (@BikNizzar) December 31, 2025

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.

MICHKOV FEEDS NOAH CATES!!!

1-1!!! pic.twitter.com/MPbe4jyk58

— Flyers Nation (@FlyersNation) December 31, 2025

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.

What a response by the Flyers to reinstate their two-goal lead 24 seconds later. Matvei Michkov dished a beauty to Bobby Brink, 4-2.
Goal: Brink (10) pic.twitter.com/oVrzz0V3UX

— Andrew Coté (@acote_88) December 31, 2025

All stats courtesy NHL.com and Natural Stat Trick

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/p...-up-doubling-vancouver-in-a-6-3-road-victory/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Flyers’ Travis Sanheim officially makes Canada’s Olympic roster, Travis Konecny does not

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 the at #MilanoCortina2026!

Voici les 2⃣5⃣ joueurs qui porteront la à Milan-Cortina!

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.

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/p...nadas-olympic-roster-travis-konecny-does-not/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Takeaways: Flyers conclude 2025 with more iron than twine in 5-1 loss to Calgary

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.

FLAMES GOAL

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.

FLYERS GET ONE BACK OFF AN EXTREMELY WEIRD GOAL (which I believe is Travis Konecny's)! DVO AND ZEGRAS ASSISTS. #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/cFP5E9NuY9

— Flyers Clips (@Flyers_Clips) January 1, 2026

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!

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/p...-more-iron-than-twine-in-5-1-loss-to-calgary/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Buddy comedy solutions for getting Rick Tocchet and Matvei Michkov on the same page

Philadelphia Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet has had a great deal of success in his first few months with the team. They’re in playoff contention and routinely take some of the top teams in the league to overtime. Trevor Zegras has flourished under Tocchet, averaging around a point per game. However, there is one glaring omission to Tocchet’s success so far – Matvei Michkov.

The second year winger has not replicated the success from his rookie season. His minutes are down, as is his production. It certainly didn’t help that Michkov took the summer off to race cars and explore the multiverse or whatever he did. Things have not seemed to fully click between Michkov and Tocchet to this point, and it’s time to think outside the bun.

Since my mind primarily works on pop culture references, my first thought as far as resolving tension between two people is how classic sitcoms (situation comedies, for you hockey nerds) and comedy films would handle this sort of tension.

Trap them in an room/elevator together​

Examples:​

Community – “Cooperative Calligraphy”

Parks And Recreation – “Leslie And Ron”

That’s My Bush! – “Trapped In A Small Environment”

Seinfeld – “The Chinese Restaurant”

The Breakfast Club

This is a classic sitcom trope. You trap two people in a confined space for a long period of time until they hash out their problems. Community does a great sendup of this in their episode “Cooperative Calligraphy”. Personally, I’m picturing The Breakfast Club here, with Keith Jones as the Principal who forces Tocc and Mich into detention together.

Imagine, Michkov and Tocchet are working late at the Skate Zone and then someone locks them in. It starts with complaining about being stuck in the Skate Zone all night, followed by boredom. Then, before you know it, Tocchet and Michkov are dancing on top of the hot dog stand counter and doing all sorts of best friends stuff.

Send them on a road trip​

Examples:​

Tommy Boy

The Simpsons – “Bart on the Road”

Road Trip

Arrest Development – “¡Amigos!”

What can bring people better together than a road trip? Sharing snacks, meals, small talk, music, bathroom breaks – the classic road trip has it all! My favorite example of this is the Chris Farley and David Spade film, Tommy Boy. Tommy (Farley) and Richard (Spade) are total opposites that have nothing in common except for their desire to save Callahan Auto. After going through every mishap that can possibly happen to a car, the two become a sales machine and join together to save the day.

Tocchet and Michkov can learn to live, laugh, and love with each other while learning just what makes each other tick. After making these guys travel from Philadelphia to San Diego via a winnebago on its last legs, there’s no way that they won’t be the best of friends.

Stick them on a competitive team together (non-hockey)/give them a common goal​

Examples:​

The Simpsons – “Mountain of Madness”

The Office – “Traveling Salesmen”

Seinfeld – “The Andrea Doria”

Community – “Foosball and Nocturnal Vigilantism”

One of the great ways to bring people together is a little competition. Put them on a quizzo team together (bar trivia for you non-Philadelphians). Have them do a race together. One of my favorite examples of this is an episode of The Simpsons titled “Mountain of Madness” which ends up pairing Mr. Burns and Homer Simpson together as well as Wayland Smithers with Bart and Lisa Simpson. The Springfield Power Plant has a team-building competition to race to a cabin, with whoever arrives last getting fired. Mr. Burns and Homer is such an odd pairing that had not been utilized much to that point. Briefly, the richest man in Springfield and average Joe Homer are the best of pals! That is, before they start hallucinating fake armies and try to kill each other amidst an avalanche that had trapped them together. But everything works out great for everyone in the end. Except for poor Lenny…

Maybe a scavenger hunt throughout the city of Philadelphia will do the trick. If they win, the boys get a big party sponsored by Xfinity and good times will be had by all! If they lose, Briere and Jonesy are going to sell at the deadline again and guarantee there will be no playoff games in South Philly this spring. The pressure is on, guys!

Precarious situation​

Examples:​

Lethal Weapon

Die Hard With A Vengeance

Brooklyn 99 – “Coral Palms”

The Other Guys

Every buddy action movie ever

If all else fails, nothing brings two people together better than immediate danger. Every classic buddy cop film utilizes this. Think about Lethal Weapon, where Riggs (UGH Mel Gibson UGH) and Murtaugh (Danny Glover) have to mix young wildcard energy with “getting too old for this shit” to save the day. After 100 more movies (Editor’s note: there are 4, you drama king) and a TV show that everyone forgot existed, they sure did.

So, I propose, let’s drop Tocchet and Michkov into an abandoned factory in the middle of nowhere handcuffed together, with a small army of mercenaries coming for them. These guys will HAVE to work together in order to survive the experience. Let’s maybe not hire the very best mercenaries, though. I’m confident that this will work, but not THAT confident…

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/p...-tocchet-and-matvei-michkov-on-the-same-page/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Thursday Morning Fly By: Happy New Year!

*The Flyers were coming off of a big win over the Canucks on Tuesday night heading into last night’s final game of the calendar year. We’ll put a bow on that win before we pivot to last night’s game. [PHLY]

*We’re pivoting begrudgingly because that one was a loss and it was simply not a very good game for the Flyers. What a way to end the year. [BSH]

*It’s not all bad news around here though! We got some very good news yesterday as well, as it was announced that Travis Sanheim will be representing Canada in the upcoming Olympics. [BSH]

*You can hear from Sanheim about the selection and meaning of this opportunity here. [NHL]

*And a bit more in the news department: the Flyers made a swap with the Penguins, sending them Egor Zamula in exchange for depth forward Phil Tomasino. [BSH]

*Charlie has his extended analysis of the move herein. [PHLY]

*Rumors have been swirling that the Flyers are moving towards an extension for Christian Dvorak, but is this a good idea? [The Athletic]

*And finally, some fun stuff: our staff discusses some of the very best tv and movies we consumed in 2025. [BSH]

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/post/thursday-morning-fly-by-happy-new-year-2/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Why Flyers’ Trevor Zegras should’ve made Team USA’s Olympic roster

On Friday, the United States revealed its roster for the upcoming Winter Olympics. Initially, we knew that six players were confirmed for the team: Toronto’s Auston Matthews, Florida’s Matt Tkachuk, Ottawa’s Brady Tkachuk, Vegas center Jack Eichel, Bruins defender Charlie McAvoy, and Minnesota Wild defenseman Quinn Hughes. The rest of the mix was widely speculated and, to some, seemed to be set in stone. But Team USA’s general manager Bill Guerin and his inner circle still had some tough decisions to make. Could Montreal’s Cole Caufield and Lane Hutson make the cut, even though not being part of the team’s orientation camp prior to the regular season starting? Well, we all found out this morning.

Introducing the 2026 U.S. Olympic Men’s Ice Hockey Team #MilanoCortina2026

U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Rosters: https://t.co/hUC1A7aZ7R pic.twitter.com/V1DV63Jyie

— USA Hockey (@usahockey) January 2, 2026

Most of the “experts” named a lot of forwards who earned their right to be in the conversation and eventually made the team — including Buffalo’s Tage Thompson, Winnipeg sniper Kyle Connor, Detroit’s Dylan Larkin, and New Jersey’s Jack Hughes. However, a glimpse at National Hockey League’s scoring leaders on Jan. 1 showed that there’s a certain Flyers winger who had more points than Thompson, Larkin, and Hughes. Granted, Hughes missed time due to a freak injury, but Trevor Zegras had more points than those aforementioned players heading into action Thursday night.

So, with a very credible, consistent, highly productive half-season — and distancing himself from the injury-plagued season in Anaheim — was it possible Zegras was even in the mix? He might have been a dark horse, but a look at some basic numbers indicated he should at least be talked about, not virtually ignored regarding an Olympic spot.

The numbers don’t lie​

Zegras has 39 points in 39 games, which is a point per game. Anybody believing he’d be capable of that output heading into the season with a new team, a new coach, and a fresh start might have been drinking too much of the Kool-Aid when it came to “Ziggy.” So far he has two game-winning goals and 12 points on the power play. This means that over two-thirds of his production has come at even-strength. Meanwhile, let’s look at a few other statistics prior to Thursday’s games which, while not making an argument that he should’ve been guaranteed a spot, should have at least put him in the mix.

Player	Points Per 60 Minutes
Trevor Zegras	3.21
Cutter Gauthier	3.20
Brady Tkachuk	3.17
Tage Thompson	3.03
Jake Guentzel	2.88
Clayton Keller	2.57

As you can see, Zegras has a greater rate of points per 60 minutes than Gauthier, Tkachuk, Thompson, Guentzel, and Keller — all but the infamous Duck made the roster. The Philadelphia winger (or very sporadic “hybrid” center) has been more effective generating offense (albeit marginally) than some fellow American-born players. And he’s almost three-quarters of a point better than Utah’s Clayton Keller. While these numbers demonstrate the kind of season Zegras has been having, what makes it even more eye-popping is that his minutes are drastically fewer than some of the American players mentioned previously. Take a look.

Player	Games played	Time on ice	Goals	Assists	Points
Dylan Larkin	41	843:36	21	16	37
Jake Guentzel	39	813:01	18	21	39
Kyle Connor	38	796:09	18	27	45
Clayton Keller	40	769:06	12	21	33
Tage Thompson	39	732:58	20	17	37
Trevor Zegras	39	728:10	15	24	39

Zegras has played roughly 115 fewer minutes than Detroit’s Dylan Larkin yet has more points in two fewer games. As well, both Guentzel and Suzuki have played approximately 85 more minutes than the Flyers forward yet have the same or just slightly more points than him. The lone forward who has roughly the same amount of usage is Thompson. But outside of Thompson, some of those possibly heading to Milano/Cortina next month have played a lot more. Yet they all roughly have a lesser or equal output as Zegras does.

So, the numbers made a case for Zegras to some extent. But if Guerin emphasized consistency or production, then perhaps there are a handful of players who are more suitable to wear the USA jersey. After all, Zegras had rather dreadful numbers the last two seasons while looking lost and the odd man out in Anaheim. And nobody is going to argue that Zegras has been an elite-level talent over a substantial amount of seasons. However, not even hinting that he could end up on the roster seemed to be a rather silly omission. Especially considering one very important component that nobody has really addressed just yet.

Shootouts decide Olympic games!​

According to the International Ice Hockey Federation official site, the gold medal game will not be decided by a shootout. If it takes four overtimes for the game to be decided, then that’s how long it’ll take. Same as playoff hockey in the spring. What is stated quite clearly is that the quarter-final and semi-final games aren’t decided by sudden death. After one 10-minute overtime session, the game will be decided by a shootout. And regardless of whatever might be said or not said about Zegras, he is the greatest American-born shootout performer in National Hockey League history. And it’s not even close!

Despite missing his last few attempts in Flyer shootouts, Zegras has a 60.7 efficiency (17 for 28). That’s better than Caufield at 46.9 per cent (15 for 32), Matthews at 36.6 per cent (15 for 41), Guentzel at 35.7 per cent (10 for 28), Kyle Connor at 34.8 per cent (8 for 23), Matthew Tkachuk at 34.6 per cent (9 for 26), Thompson at 33.3 per cent (9 for 27), and Larkin at 28.6 per cent (10 for 35). Of course, while it’s difficult to slot one player specifically for a possibility in elimination games, it would be hard to ignore Zegras’s talent when a shootout could be the deciding factor in at least getting to the gold medal game. Having him sitting on the sidelines watching the United States in a shootout to move forward or go home would definitely have armchair quarterbacks fuming. Especially knowing what he’s capable of. But, the decision has already been made. He won’t be there.

Did he even have a shot?​

Zegras has had a career filled with some peaks and valleys. He’s no longer the new shiny toy like he once was. Nor does he have the Stanley Cups like Stone and Matt Tkachuk to rest on. Zegras has made the most of a new opportunity and has put together a great first half of 2025-26. But if Guerin judged players more by what transpired in the 4 Nations Face-Off and in the previous few seasons, than the Flyers winger was more of a longshot.

A lot could change between now and the Olympics. Players get injured and replacements could be named. Zegras didn’t have his name on the roster Friday morning. But, he should have at least been on a very, very short list of players knocking on the door. Perhaps a snub like that could be more incentive for him to light the league on fire with an even better second half, which would only help the Flyers hoping to get into the playoffs. A Trevor Zegras with an axe to grind or chip on his shoulder might be even more lethal than the current version Philadelphia has now.

All stats courtesy of Moneypuck.com and NHL.com

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/p...egras-shouldve-made-team-usas-olympic-roster/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Garnet Hathaway gets back in Flyers lineup after lengthy break

For the first time in a while, Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet is changing up the lineup and instead of putting some lines in a blender or making some weird addition that feels a little awkward, he’s putting back in a veteran winger who has had such a horrible season that he somewhat surprisingly has been out of the lineup for weeks.

Garnet Hathaway has had a bad season. Almost every single person, including himself, would recognize that the 34-year-old has rapidly declined to where he is almost unrecognizable compared to the efficient fourth-line veteran forward that we would happily clone and take three of to solidify the Flyers’ depth. Hathaway has just been not good — and it’s not just the fact that he has zero points through 33 games, but in most areas of the game he has been well below expectation. Looking slow, not active enough to win puck battles, not as physical as he once was; Hathaway clearly was not having a positive impact on the game.

So, even after months of deserving to sit, Tocchet finally put him up in the press box and formed a fourth line of Carl Grundstrom and Nikita Grebenkin flanking Rodrigo Abols. A little bit of scoring touch mixed with physicality and a higher pace than however they were playing with Hathaway on the ice. And the production was immediate.

In the six games that Hathaway has been up in the press box for, the fourth line has outscored opponents 4-2 and all four goals have been scored by Carl Grundstrom. They aren’t necessarily lighting the world on fire since the underlyings still go to the opposition, such as that most recent fourth line having just 44.94 percent of the shot attempt share while on the ice, but it is still much better than the impact they had on the game when Hathaway was in the lineup.

So, after an embarrassing loss to one of the NHL’s worst teams in the Calgary Flames, Tocchet is switching things up and in comes Hathaway to play his first game since Dec. 18. Oh, and it’s against Connor McDavid and the Oilers in Edmonton.

Garnet Hathaway returns to the Flyers lineup after several healthy scratches​

At Flyers practice on Friday, ahead of the Saturday matinee matchup against the Oilers, the lines were revealed and Hathaway was put back in rotation and out comes Grebenkin. The young Russian winger was already the victim to Tocchet deciding to ice Nic Deslauriers for a stretch of time, so this is not unfamiliar ground for Grebenkin. But, that’s all the changes that Tocchet makes to the forward lines.

Hello from Edmonton.#Flyers lines at practice

Zegras-Dvorak-Konecny
Barkey-Couturier-Tippett
Michkov-Cates-Brink
Grundström-Ābols-Hathaway
Grebenkin

York-Sanheim
Andrae-Drysdale
Seeler-Ristolainen
Deslauriers-Juulsen

Vladar (looks like he’s in the starters net)
Ersson pic.twitter.com/MfXV6Iq9ef

— Jackie Spiegel (@jackiespiegel93) January 2, 2026​

It’s not extremely offensive or a disaster to have Hathaway back in the lineup. Veterans cycle in even if they are in most inconsequential 13th forward of all time, so having Hathaway pop in after a demoralizing defeat to the Flames and on a road trip that has been a big mixed bag, is not the end of the world. It only depends if that is exactly what it is.

Due to Hathaway’s season, unless he suddenly looks like an improved version of last year’s Garnet, hitting everything that moves and skating around the ice with purpose, he should exit the lineup once again when the Flyers return home before hosting the Anaheim Ducks next Tuesday. That is what should happen and Hathaway should really be a pure rotational forward, just going in when someone over the age of 30 is preferred to be on the fourth line for some reason.

Instead, the concern is that Tocchet is too worried about changing that dynamic and this was just a six-game rest and reset for the veteran winger and we’ll once again see Grebenkin or Grundstrom undeservingly sit on the sideline. If that does happen and we see Hathaway a whole lot more than we have through the last couple of weeks, it wouldn’t be a nightmare but it would at least be concerning if Tocchet fully reverted back to preferring Hathaway over a player like Grebenkin for the rest of the season.

Basically, it’s a big wait-and-see thing.

In other news, Emil Andrae comes back to the lineup after taking one game to sit up the stands and watch as Noah Juulsen laced up in Calgary in his place. So, that’s good news.

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/p...ts-back-in-flyers-lineup-after-lengthy-break/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Flyers @ Oilers: How to watch, lineups, and gamethread

The Philadelphia Flyers continue their Western Canada swing and are now visiting the Edmonton Oilers in what should be a very interesting Saturday matinee matchup.

Puck drop: 3:30 p.m.
How to watch/listen:
: NBCSP
: 97.5 The Fanatic

Pregame reading​

• Team USA announced their roster for the Olympics next month and Trevor Zegras wasn’t on it. While it’s not a surprise at all that the Flyers forward was left off, there is an argument to be made that he should’ve. [BSH]
• As we’ll surely touch on later, Garnet Hathaway draws back into the Flyers lineup after taking six games off as a healthy scratch in this down-right bad season from the veteran. [BSH]

Pregame watching​

By the numbers​

Philadelphia Flyers – 20-12-7 (3rd in Metro)

Goals: Trevor Zegras (15)
Assists: Trevor Zegras (24)
Points: Trevor Zegras (39)

Edmonton Oilers – 20-15-6 (1st in Pacific)

Goals: Connor McDavid (24)
Assists: Connor McDavid (46)
Points: Connor McDavid (70)

Projected lineups​

Philadelphia Flyers

Trevor Zegras — Christian Dvorak — Travis Konecny
Denver Barkey — Sean Couturier — Owen Tippett
Matvei Michkov — Noah Cates — Bobby Brink
Carl Grundstrom — Rodrigo Abols — Garnet Hathaway

Cam York — Travis Sanheim
Emil Andrae — Jamie Drysdale
Nick Seeler — Rasmus Ristolainen

Dan Vladar
(Sam Ersson)

Edmonton Oilers

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins — Connor McDavid — Zach Hyman
Vasily Podkolzin — Leon Driasaitl — Jack Roslovic
Quinn Hutson — Adam Henrique — Trent Frederic
Ike Howard — Curtis Lazar — Matthew Savoie

Mattias Ekholm — Evan Bouchard
Darnell Nurse — Alex Regula
Spencer Stastney — Ty Emberson

Calvin Pickard
(Connor Ingram)

Storylines to watch​

Hathaway back in, Grebenkin out

It’s something we were all too familiar with earlier in the season, but is now just hopefully a little bit of single-game rotation. The youngster Nikita Grebenkin is going to be a healthy scratch for this afternoon in Edmonton as veteran Garnet Hathaway is back on the fourth line. In case you don’t necessarily remember why Hathaway was brought out of the lineup to begin with, the 34-year-old winger has yet to register a single point this season and has not been anywhere close to even last year’s slightly above-average performance as a consistent depth forward. Is this a permanent decline or just a very rough start to the season? He has the opportunity now to show that it’s the latter.

Deciphering the Oilers attack

Obviously, playing against the NHL’s leading scorer and the best player in the league is something that a team will have to figure out — and then add Leon Draisaitl to the equation and it’s just a whole other problem. It’s not anything new that this Flyers team has had to try and best the Oilers’ plan of attack and focus on getting the right matchups to take advantage of the weak depth that Edmonton has.

And now the Flyers’ lineup has one less depth weapon with Grebenkin out of the lineup, but that’s just something we’re used to at this point. The Oilers’ own fourth line that features their top two prospects flanking Curtis Lazar might pose a threat. While both Howard and Savoie are not even close to their pre-season expectations from some optimistic Oilers fans, they still do have plenty of individual skill and talent. Without being able to hard-match Noah Cates against McDavid’s line, this is going to be a very interesting coaching battle.

Another game, another chance for Matvei Michkov to explode

This is probably just an eye-rolling storyline at this point, but we’re just waiting for the multi-goal game from the young Russian star and something we can all remark as the turning point where Michkov just ran through the rest of the season.

When the Flyers visited the Oilers last season, all the way back at the start of their campaign, it was then when Michkov scored his first NHL goal in a two-goal effort. It ended up being a 4-3 overtime loss for the Flyers but it was kind of the coming out party for the rookie. Could we see the same this afternoon?

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/post/flyers-oilers-how-to-watch-lineups-and-gamethread/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Ex-Flyer Egor Zamula already in trouble after AHL no-show

The Philadelphia Flyers made one final trade in 2025, sending defenseman Egor Zamula to the Pittsburgh Penguins for forward Philip Tomasino. Tomasino reported to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in the AHL and made his debut on Saturday night in Belleville.

However, while Tomasino was hitting the ice for the first time with his new team, Zamula was suspended by the Penguins, according to the AHL’s transaction log.

Zamula recently changed his agent to Dan Milstein of Gold Star Hockey in an effort to facilitate a move from the Flyers. There were talks that Zamula wanted to have his contract terminated in order to find a new home, but the Flyers waited it out and swapped the disgruntled defenseman for Tomasino.

Zamula hilariously suspended after no-show on new AHL team​

It’s still only been a few days since the trade, and nothing has come out from Zamula or the Penguins regarding the suspension, so it might just be a formality. The blueliner may be working with the Penguins on a delayed arrival in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton or a possible contract termination.

Acquired earlier this week from #LetsGoFlyers, the Penguins #LetsGoPens have suspended defenseman Egor Zamula for failure to report to AHL Wilkes-Barre.

— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) January 4, 2026​

Zamula may be looking to return to Russia to play in the KHL, but that’s pure speculation. He played in Russia as a 16- and 17-year-old before coming over to North America for the 2017-18 season.

Whatever the reason, Zamula has failed to show up after getting what he wanted and was traded away from the Flyers since there was no place for him in the lineup anymore after plenty of defensemen overtook him in the depth chart. But apparently it wasn’t the right situation or maybe he didn’t realize that since he cleared waivers less than 30 days ago, he can still be easily sent down to the AHL like he was assigned there by the Penguins immediately following the trade.

The now 25-year-old Zamula failed to establish himself as more than a bottom-pairing defenseman in the last few years for the Flyers. He’s played 168 NHL games in his career, though, so it’s possible that one of the other 30 teams outside the state of Pennsylvania may desire his services. If not, a return to his home country could very well be in the cards for the defenseman.

Swapping Zamula for Tomasino was the latest of subtly shrewd moves by Danny Briere and the Flyers. They’ve been able to find undervalued players in recent years and turn them into important players and trade pieces (Sean Walker), as well as some role players like Carl Grundstrom in the Ryan Ellis trade.

Tomasino does have the potential to contribute at the NHL level. He was the 24th overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft by the Predators and has put up strong numbers in the AHL. That hasn’t quite translated into a ton of success in the NHL, though, even with a change of scenery to the Penguins.

It’ll all be worth it if it results in Flyers fans getting a chance to poke fun at Pittsburgh for Zamula refusing to play there.

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/post/ex-flyer-egor-zamula-already-in-trouble-after-ahl-no-show/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Could Porter Martone solve the Flyers power play

As a tool for prospect evaluation, sometimes the World Juniors can be a bit overblown. It is technically as close to “best-on-best” as you can get at the U-20 level, but it is ultimately just a one-off tournament during the holidays that disproportionately benefits players who are playing well at that specific moment.

With two of the Flyers’ most important prospects representing Canada in Porter Martone and Jett Luchanko, it has been intriguing to watch how they have adapted to their linemates and different roles on what is a stacked roster full of future NHLers. At the same time however, there is only so much to be gleaned from games where they blitz an unsuspecting Danish team with nowhere near as much talent.

What has been more consistently interesting to watch is how the players are being deployed. Canada’s head coach Dale Hunter is one of the more respected names in Canadian Junior hockey, and his talent evaluation has been part of building a dynasty with the London Knights that the Flyers have benefited from greatly in recent times. So when he plays Jett Luchanko in pressure situations and on the penalty kill, it is a confirmation that those skills exist and should be an asset at the next level.

In the same vein, the Canadians have deployed Porter Martone in one particular way that could offer a glimpse into his future usage at the NHL level.

Martone has primarily played alongside Utah prospect Tij Iginla, and the Sharks’ Michael Misa. As by far the biggest player on the line (Iginla is listed at 6 foot, Misa 6 foot 1), it hasn’t been surprising to see Martone try and force his way to the front of the net, while the other two work more on the perimeter.

But it’s been Martone’s power play involvement that has been the real illuminating factor for a Flyers team that has struggled with the man advantage for the better part of the last decade. Canada has opted to use Martone as a net front presence on their “second” power play unit, which also features Luchanko. Martone uses his big, 6’3 frame to screen the goalie, and has created some great opportunities for electric Canadian defensemen like Zayne Parekh and Kashawn Aitcheson to get dangerous opportunities through screens.

This goal from Michael Misa is one of the best illustrators of this, as the Slovakian goalie’s view is completely eclipsed by Martone, who gives him no chance to even react before Misa’s shot is behind him.

CANADA IS COMING OUT HOT! MICHAEL MISA SCORES CANADA'S THIRD GOAL OF THE FIRST PERIOD! #WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/bIg6JtPTuE

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) January 3, 2026

Even more encouragingly, Martone hasn’t just been confined to a run of the mill netfront role. While he has profited from that spot, he has also been free to flare out to either side of the net and make plays. Whether it be recycling the puck to the point men, looking cross-seam, or even letting sharp angled shots fly, Martone has shown himself to be a dangerous weapon that can beat you to the net with both physicality and skill.

On both his weak or strong side, Martone has been capable of getting shots to the net while constantly relocating, and while yes, the NHL will be another level up than the Danish U-20 team, it is promising to see his confidence on the man advantage be so evident.

Porter Martone has his second goal of the World Juniors. pic.twitter.com/DkDD0YBlRs

— Andrew Coté (@acote_88) December 30, 2025

While it isn’t the only problem the Flyers’ power play faces, the lack of a dominant netfront presence has helped make the team’s man advantage historically inept over the last half-decade. And while there will still be questions regarding his transition to the next level, right now Martone is looking like he could offer a light at the end of the tunnel.

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/post/could-porter-martone-solve-the-flyers-power-play/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Oliver Bonk scores first AHL goal with Phantoms in Toronto

It’s certainly been a good week for Oliver Bonk.

The Flyers prospect, though having gotten off to a late start to his professional career after an injury taken during rookie camp left him sidelined until a bit into the month of December, has been steadily ramping up his play through his first month of play with the Phantoms, and has really seemed to turn a corner since the team returned from their holiday break. Bonk closed out 2025 on a high note, getting in for his ninth game with the team and picking up his first professional point — the secondary assist on Lane Pederson’s first goal of the game — along the way. He continued to build up a solid run of play over into the next game, contributing a pair of shots against the Belleville Senators on Saturday and keeping up a high level of impact in their transition game, even though he was held off the board, but Sunday in Toronto saw him take that next step forward.

Past the halfway point in the period and holding on to a tie game at one goal — but only just barely — the Phantoms were looking for a bit of a jolt, a way to tilt the ice back in their favor. But with a second penalty taken in under six minutes and the Marlies gifted another power play to work with to continue to build on their mounting momentum, this game had a chance to go sideways on the Phantoms fast, but Bonk stepped up to bail them out in a big way.

Just as the power play was beginning, Tucker Robertson was able to kick start a breakout for the Phantoms, but instead of just chipping it deep into the Marlies’ zone and going for a change, the Phantoms went for the rush play — Lane Pederson skated it into the zone with some speed, and was able to thread a pass cross-ice through some traffic to the trailing Bonk, and even with an extra second to close in on goal and dust off the puck, Bonk was able to beat the Marlies’ goaltender cleanly, pulling his team back into the lead.

A BEAUTY #LVvsTOR| #LVPhantoms pic.twitter.com/0jweRxcKGF

— Lehigh Valley Phantoms (@LVPhantoms) January 4, 2026​

Bonk has noticeably been ramping up his level of play, but this has also come with an apparent increase in usage — he’s getting some more play on the power play, and while the Phantoms have the benefit of the depth available to roll all three pairs pretty evenly, the eye would suggest that (a vague impression that, without time on ice data publicly available for the AHL, we’ll simply have to trust). The Phantoms have been careful in their handling of him, not wanting to throw too much at him too quickly as he makes a big jump up in levels, but he’s been taking everything in stride, and continuing to earn more trust and opportunities from his coaching staff.

It’s been a big weekend for former London Knights in the Flyers’ pipeline, as yesterday also saw Denver Barkey — forever linked with Bonk — pick up his first NHL goal on the road in Edmonton. Here, too, it was a nice exclamation point put on a strong run of play put together of late, as both have been continuing to put in good work to acclimate themselves to their respective levels. The narrative, it would seem, just writes itself.

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/post/oliver-bonk-scores-first-ahl-goal-with-phantoms-in-toronto/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Why Sam Ersson not making Sweden’s Olympic roster is great for Flyers

It was just over a year ago, and Sam Ersson was feeling some national pride knowing he’d be on the Swedish roster when the 4 Nations Face-Off took place in mid-February. In the three games leading up to the National Hockey League break for the international tournament, Ersson, the then Flyers starting goaltender, laid claim to three consecutive games where he had over a .900 save percentage. He lost a 2-0 decision to Colorado, making 30 of 32 stops. The following game, Ersson was sensational, stopping 39 of 42 shots against host (and pre-Mammoth) Utah in a 3-2 overtime loss. Finally, he got a victory at home against Pittsburgh, stopping 31 of 33 in a 3-2 regulation win. He was heading into the tournament strong.

During the tournament, Sweden fared okay but weren’t the team to beat, especially given the depth and talent Teams Canada and the USA had. But Ersson did earn a victory in the lone game he started, stopping 32 of 33 shots (.970 save percentage) in an impressive appearance defeating the United States 2-1 in the round-robin portion. Perhaps the goaltender could ride that wave of self-confidence and boost himself into being the Flyers starter not just by default but on merit.

Well, that didn’t work out so well. Despite three games over that .900 marker in the three consecutive games before the tournament, Ersson managed to get to or over that measuring stick just five times the rest of the season, including in his last two games in April. The rest of the games were just, well, poor. Most starts ended up with him roughly stopping four out of five shots. Sometimes it was even less than that, including being pulled early after giving up three on five shots to Calgary on March 4. Whatever it was, Ersson’s 4 Nations Face-Off one-off was possibly his highlight in 2024-25. He certainly didn’t have many (if any) with the Flyers.

So, with news last week that Ersson wouldn’t be on the Swedish roster when the upcoming Winter Olympics take place in Milano/Cortina, it might be disappointing to Ersson. But it could end up being the catalyst for a better second half for the goaltender who is now essentially the back up. Don’t let Travis Konecny or any of the Flyer players tell you otherwise. Dan Vladar is Philadelphia’s go-to goaltender in key games. Ersson is also important but no longer the guy.

What the time off should do​

Last season, Ersson didn’t really have a mid-season break like most of the National Hockey League collective. Whether it was interviews, practices, games or just other off-ice requirements for the tournament, Ersson was busy. He had no real huge amount of down time despite just playing the one game against the United States. Now, with about three weeks off (20 days actually) from Philadelphia’s Feb. 5 game against Ottawa and their next contest Feb. 25 against Washington, Ersson should be able to have time to rest and, perhaps more importantly, clear his head. He’s not been terrible like he was a good chunk of last season. But he’s had multiple games this year where that one extra save at a key time in regulation wasn’t there. Through 15 appearances prior to Tuesday’s game against Anaheim, Ersson has four games where that magic number for capable NHL goaltending (.900 save percentage) has been matched or surpassed, the last being just before Christmas where the Flyers beat Chicago 3-1. The fact he has helped the team earn points in two-thirds of his 15 starts (6-5-4) despite an .868 save percentage is rather remarkable.

Another aspect to the conversation is there’s a decent chance Dan Vladar is going to end up as part of Team Czechia’s Olympic roster. So, in short, Vladar isn’t going to get that rest or downtime, which could be pivotal down the stretch when the games seem to matter a bit more and the playoff race tightens. Having Ersson rested at least gives Philadelphia one goaltender who should have something left in the tank in late March and through April. That becomes even more important given Vladar has 24 starts this year compared to 30 in Calgary all of last year. Nobody is saying Vladar can’t play 45 to 47 games this season. There’s just no concrete evidence to support that. If the Flyers have to go all in with Ersson starting the majority of games the rest of the way due to a Vladar injury, it’s a safe bet they’re probably screwed. But putting that aside, knowing he’ll have three weeks to refocus should be a plus for Ersson and the team.

At this rate, one would expect Ersson to be used around the same amount the second half of the season as he was the first half. Unless he gets on an incredible roll (or Vladar gets hurt), it’s a safe bet that Ersson will be used more in relief, especially during back-to-back games or in situations where Vladar is going to need the rest. And with every game important in such a condensed schedule, Ersson is going to have to hit that .900 mark more often than not for Philadelphia to keep its current playoff seeding.

Snub a plus?​

With Team Sweden going a different direction without Ersson, it might putting a chip on his shoulder also. Ersson doesn’t seem to be the sort to ruffle feathers or rock the boat, particularly given a national team in international competition. So he will say the right things regarding not making the club. But he’s probably got a bit more oomph or motivation to prove them wrong the rest of the season. And that notion could be a huge boost for Philadelphia. A player with an axe to grind or to simply prove their worth, especially in a crucial position like goal, could pay dividends down the stretch. Ideally the saves he makes in the shootouts continue. Yet, if he makes more saves in the first 60 minutes, it’ll be great for the Flyers, especially when they still only have 14 regulation wins.

Ersson has the 45th best record, the 45th best goals-against average, and the 59th best save percentage in the league. Those are rather low numbers even for a backup goaltender. If he can stack some games together where he rivals Vladar’s output and play, it’ll be the best of both worlds for Philadelphia. Being rejected from your national team just a year after playing for them at the same level should be rubbing Ersson the wrong way. Here’s hoping that rejection stokes a fire inside him that sees his play and overall numbers improve.

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/p...g-swedens-olympic-roster-is-great-for-flyers/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Flyers officially sign Christian Dvorak to 5-year contract

The Philadelphia Flyers have decided to keep Christian Dvorak around for the long term and not have this just be a one-and-done experiment after signing him last summer.

Announced by the team, just hours after it was rumored to be happening through multiple sources, the Flyers have signed Dvorak to a five-year, $25.75-million contract extension that starts next season. That comes in at a $5.15-million AAV through the 2031-32 season.

DONE DEAL FOR DVO.

We have agreed to terms with forward Christian Dvorak on a five-year contract extension worth an average annual value of $5.15M. https://t.co/0jLng32Pec

— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) January 6, 2026​

According to The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz, Dvorak will have a full no-trade clause for the first two years, that then goes down to a limited no-trade clause for years three and four, and then it’s complete free rein for the final year of his contract, with no trade protection whatsoever.

“We’re very happy to have Christian be a part of the Philadelphia Flyers for the foreseeable future,” said Flyers general manager Danny Briere via the team’s press release. “He has played a pivotal role in our team’s success this season and proven to be a reliable, two-way center that can be trusted in all situations. More importantly, he plays a big role in our locker room and has fit in seamlessly to our group and what we are building.”

Dvorak signed a one-year, $5.4-million contract with the Flyers on July 1 last summer, as an immediate addition down the middle. Philadelphia needed someone to play center and it snatched the player that would agree to signing just a one-year deal that has at least some capability of being more than a bottom-line forward. It was seen as a high cap hit because of the single year, and now Dvorak is getting an extension very close to that number.

Why? Almost immediately, head coach Rick Tocchet linked Dvorak next to fellow newcomer Trevor Zegras and since the former Anaheim Duck has elevated into being this team’s top forward, the veteran free agent acquisition was brought along to the top forward line. Dvorak has now scored nine goals and 25 points through 39 games — well on his way to breaking his 38-point career high he made in the 2019-20 season.

Flyers commit future to keep some security around​

The Flyers will be heavily criticized for this. It is a taste of what Flyers fans have been used to for years before this management group was put in place — committing multiple years to keep some mid-level player around for a lot longer than anyone expected because they are terrified of the risk. The risk that comes with this team going into next season without someone who is capable of being a middle-six center when they don’t really have a center prospect banging on the door.

And that being said, Jett Luchanko is the obvious answer for someone who wants to think Dvorak is blocking a prospect. There is an argument there but the most likely situation is that Luchanko will start his first couple of months next season down in the AHL with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms no matter what; and the decision will go from there.

Jack Nesbitt, Heikki Ruohonen, Cole Knuble — the other Flyers prospects that play down the middle are multiple years away. That’s the Flyers thinking. It’s all about trying to keep the current level of competition and not sinking down to the bottom of the standings, and having Dvorak around after finding some chemistry with one of their best forwards, keeps the status quo.

Is it smart? Is it forward-thinking? We’re not sure. There is a risk of this not panning out and Dvorak reverts to his fourth-line self as soon as next season and the Flyers suddenly have a very expensive bottom-six center that they just signed for several years.

Let’s just see how it all goes from here but it’s not looking like a deal that fans will be happy with in a couple years.

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/post/flyers-officially-sign-christian-dvorak-to-5-year-contract/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Flyers vs. Ducks: How to watch, lineups, and gamethread

After a trip out West to wrap up the old year and welcome the new one, the Flyers are finally back on home ice to kick off a four-game homestand with a matchup against their budding rivals in the Anaheim Ducks.

Puck drop: 7:00 p.m.
How to watch/listen:
: NBCSP
: 97.5 The Fanatic

Pregame reading​

• This game is winding up to be another potential big revenge game, and we’re not the only ones rooting for Trevor Zegras to make some noise in it. [BSH]
• Oh also, some news! In case you somehow missed it, Christian Dvorak has himself a contract extension. [BSH]
• This makes for another center locked up with some term, so what does this mean for Jett Luchanko’s standing and track to the NHL? [BSH]

Pregame watching​

By the numbers​

Philadelphia Flyers – 21-12-7 (4th in Metro)

Goals: Trevor Zegras (15)
Assists: Trevor Zegras (24)
Points: Trevor Zegras (39)

Anaheim Ducks – 21-18-3 (3rd in Pacific)

Goals: Cutter Gauther (19)
Assists: Troy Terry (27)
Points: Leo Carlsson (42)

Projected lineups​

Philadelphia Flyers

Trevor Zegras — Christian Dvorak — Travis Konecny
Denver Barkey — Sean Couturier — Owen Tippett
Matvei Michkov* — Noah Cates — Bobby Brink
Carl Grundstrom — Rodrigo Abols — Garnet Hathaway

Cam York — Travis Sanheim
Emil Andrae — Jamie Drysdale
Nick Seeler — Rasmus Ristolainen

Dan Vladar
(Sam Ersson)

Anaheim Ducks

Chris Kreider — Leo Carlsson — Troy Terry
Cutter Gauthier — Mason McTavish — Beckett Sennecke
Nikita Nesterenko* — Mikael Granlund — Ryan Strome
Ross Johnston — Ryan Poehling — Alex Killorn

Jackson LaCombe — Jacob Trouba
Olen Zellweger — Radko Gudas
Pavel Mintyukov — Ian Moore

Lukas Dostal
(Ville Husso)

Storylines to watch​

Michkov’s status a question mark

The Flyers will be largely rolling with the same lineup as they did in their last game against the Oilers, but with one notable exception, at least potentially. As it stands, Matvei Michkov is a game-time decision for tonight’s game, after missing yesterday’s practice as he’s dealing with some swelling after taking a shot off the foot in Saturday’s game. If he’s good to go, he’ll slide back into that same spot on the third line alongside Cates and Brink, but if this is lingering on him a little more and they decide he’d be best served by another day off to rest it, based on the arrangements from practice yesterday, Nikita Grebenkin will come into the lineup in his place. The good news is that, either way, it doesn’t seem to be a serious situation that he’s dealing with, so it’s just the short-term management that we’ll have to keep an eye on.

Keeping the scoring balanced

There was a lot that was working for the Flyers last time out in Edmonton, but one of the biggest pieces which helped drive them to that win is the balanced scoring they were able to bring, the fact that they had three lines going while the Oilers spent the most of their energy trying to contain the top line proved to be too much for them. And the Flyers have the chance to do the same to the Ducks, who have also struggled defensively at times this season (they’re sitting with a -10 goal differential on the season), so long as they can overcome their own tendency to backslide after a good performance. But the opportunity is certainly there for them.

Getting the rest advantage again

Also of note in this one is that this will be something of a mismatch as far as rest is concerned. After wrapping up their road trip over the weekend, the Flyers were able to enjoy a day off on Sunday and a regular practice day yesterday, easing back into it ahead of a long homestand. On the flip side, the Ducks played last night in DC — and were beaten 7-4 by the Capitals — and will be having to find a way to respond both physically and emotionally quickly for this one. There’s an advantage to be found here, if the Flyers are able to make a statement early, but particularly continue to pour on chances as the game goes on and the Ducks’ energy begins to wear down. They’ve found some success recently in this type of setting — as recently as their game in Vancouver — but it will be up to them to keep that ball rolling.

Revenge, again?

Lest we forget, this is almost certainly going to be one of the more meaningful games on the calendar for the Flyers. It will feature Jamie Drysdale facing off against his old team, and now Trevor Zegras doing the same for the first time, and of course, Cutter Gauthier coming back to town to face off against the team he didn’t want to play for. Last year’s installment of the matchup here in Philly certainly turned into a spirited game, and we’d expect nothing less in the rematch, and it will sure make for appointment viewing.

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/post/flyers-vs-ducks-how-to-watch-lineups-and-gamethread/

 

[Philadelphia Flyers]

Trevor Zegras torches Ducks in revenge game as Flyers dominate

Everything was set up perfectly and Trevor Zegras took full advantage. As his former team, the Anaheim Ducks, made their way to Philadelphia to face the Flyers, multiple things were in place for the star forward to get some revenge against the team that gave up on him before he even reached his prime.

The Ducks were heavily limping as they entered the doors of the Xfinity Mobile Arena. Before Tuesday night, they lost their last six straight games and last earned a win all the way back on December 20 against the Columbus Blue Jackets; and even before that they lost four of the previous five games making it a total of two wins since December 9. After starting the season as the new and hot team, the Ducks were tumbling down and proving to be a completely fake team that was riding some percentages to undeserved wins.

So, it was the perfect time for a former player to kick them directly in the head while they’re down. Add the fact that Cutter Gauthier is coming back to Philadelphia with his tail between his legs and ready to face a crowd that have never felt such hatred for an opposing player in a very long time, and Zegras’s ability to come up big in the important games in his first season in the Orange and Black — it was guaranteed to at least be a good one.

Zegras takes advantage of perfect opportunity and gets revenge​

Sure, Gauthier opened the scoring and we had a slight panic, but Zegras quickly calmed out nerves with an absolute rocket of a one-timer off a nice little passing play through linemate Christian Dvorak.

TREVOR ZEGRAS IS HAVING FUN!!

He's got one against his former team! pic.twitter.com/MfMjw76S8C

— NHL (@NHL) January 7, 2026​

Right back in it, Zegras tried to connect with Travis Konecny as the puck was fumbled on the zone entry but thankfully, Christian Dvorak was right there to pick up the loose pieces, weave his way through a couple of Ducks defenders and find his star winger awaiting at the side of the net for a picture-perfect one-timer opportunity. And considering just how often we’ve seen Zegras rocket a shot high up past the opposing netminder this season, it was bound to happen once again.

Later in the first period, as the Flyers were on the power play, Zegras set up in the same area on the ice and was ready to rifle home a chance set up by another favorite teammate of his.

SAME SPOT. SAME GOAL. SAME TREVOR ZEGRAS!!

He's on hatty watch! pic.twitter.com/7LuqjzpdOM

— NHL (@NHL) January 7, 2026​

Owen Tippett had control of the puck along the boards, laid it off for a streaking Cam York, helped along by Sean Couturier, and the defenseman faked a little bit of a shot while in motion to fake out some Anaheim penalty killers. But instead, York quickly sent it to Zegras who, once again, one-timed it into the back of the net with almost every single Ducks defender baffled as to how he got over there so silently and unnoticed.

Zegras finished the game with those two goals as his only earned points to make it a total of 17 tallies and 41 points in 41 games this season. He also managed to attempt a total of seven shots on Tuesday night, with three of them hitting the net.

While the two first-period goals was certainly nice to accomplish against his former team, it was his impression of how much passion the fans in attendance were showing that really made him blown away.

“It’s incredible, I’ve never seen anything like it. I’ve never felt anything like it. The fans are nuts. The boos were awesome, the cheers were even better,” Zegras said during the first intermission.

That’s what the building sounds like when there is finally a game worth getting up for in it. Zegras also continued to show appreciation for the fans and gave one of the best post-game interview clips we’ve seen in a while.

Officially Philly. pic.twitter.com/M566sJelHs

— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) January 7, 2026​

After the Flyers secured the 5-2 win over the Ducks, Zegras was asked how it feels to score two goals against the team that gave up on you. And all he could say, is that it was “f–king amazing”. God, we cannot get enough of him and will never praise the Flyers enough for them bringing him in.

Flyers push through Ducks rather easily for 5-2 win​

While Zegras shone bright and was truly the best player on the ice for what he was able to do in the first period, the Flyers as a whole truly took full control of the game.

Sure, maybe it was because they were technically handed eight power-play opportunities and spent a total of 17:04 on the man advantage, compared to the 4:53 the Ducks were able to get. But, because they are the Flyers, they scored just one power-play goal during Tuesday night’s game, and in the small amount of time they had, Anaheim managed to score two.

The Flyers finished the game with a dominant 39-18 advantage in shots on goal and in all situations, registered a total of 51 unblocked shot attempts compared to the Ducks’ 34. And even if we want to dive deeper, according to Natural Stat Trick, the Flyers managed to earn 4.59 expected goals, while the Ducks got just 1.92. It was an overwhelming amount of offense coming off the Flyers’ sticks and from just all the high-danger areas on the ice.

Maybe it was getting up for Zegras to have this revenge game hit so hard for him, or maybe it was trying to prevent Cutter Gauthier from really dominating enough to walk away with a win; but whatever their motivation was, it was more than enough for them to earn the full two points on Tuesday night.

It’s just nice to see a player leave a bad situation and turn into the player he’s always meant to be. It’s even better when it benefits your team.

Source

Source: https://www.broadstreethockey.com/p...hes-ducks-in-revenge-game-as-flyers-dominate/