It was just over 20 months ago when the Flyers, in the midst of a road trip through Florida, found their game at Tampa Bay postponed.
Home they came, chatting about their coronavirus cancelation, certainly unaware of the scope of the impact that it would have on the world in the coming months and now years.
“We haven’t played Tampa since the bubble,” Flyers coach Alain Vigneault said Wednesday, with a reference to how the NHL would finish that season which was suddenly stopped in March of 2020. “We only had that one game in there (in a round-robin tourney before the playoffs after the season resumed later in 2020); our season two years ago was stopped when we were supposed to play Tampa. They’ve won two Stanley Cups since then. They’re the best; they’re the benchmark. And we’re going to get a chance to measure ourselves against the benchmark in the NHL.”
It might be a bit overdue but indeed the Flyers finally get to play the Lightning again Thursday night at Wells Fargo Center. Not much has changed about this opponent – it was good in 2020 and it’s good now.
“The best team, the (two-time) Stanley Cup defending champs,” Vigneault said. “I’m expecting our group to be real excited about that, having that opportunity to play against the best, putting your game against theirs.”
Not that anyone is describing them any differently than the best, etc., but the Lightning are only third in the Atlantic Division right now, at 8-3-3. Their 19 points trail state-mate Florida by six, though Tampa has two games in hand.
Like the Lightning, the Flyers have only played 14 games, and at 8-4-2 favorably compare with 18 points. But they would like to be in a bit of a better position with this long awaited Tampa showdown looming.
Once again, Ryan Ellis is out injured, having appeared in only four games this season. That’s at least contributing to the Flyers’ scoring problems these days, as they haven’t scored more than two goals in six games and their power play has tumbled to only several spots above the basement with a slide of three power play goals in their last 34 chances.
“When you lose that caliber of a player it’s a big loss,” fellow Flyers defender Rasmus Ristolainen said of Ellis. “Like I said before we have a pretty deep lineup. Anyone can step in and it helps when Carter (Hart) makes those saves.”
Hart has indeed been making saves. He is 5-3-2 with a 2.19 goals-against average and .935 saves percentage through 10 appearances. Hart will be in goal against the Lightning.
While Hart and backup Martin Jones has been holding them in a lot of games, Vigneault said his team is putting in a lot of work on the power play. He sees power plays as going “in waves.
“It’s a matter of execution,” Vigneault said. “In some games, we’ve gotten away from our principles.”
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NOTES >> Forward Patrick Brown is believed to have suffered a dislocated thumb and the team is awaiting MRI results. Vigneault said he expects Brown to be “week to week.” … Recent scratchee Oskar Lindblom will get back into the lineup with Brown out.
