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Fedotov as an agent of chaos

No matter what, the Ivan Fedotov experience will never cease to entertain. In both good and bad ways, it’s yet another chaotic performance for the Russian goaltender who’s proven very difficult to evaluate thus far. A poor Fedotov turnover on Jack Eichel’s first goal was an unforced error, and Fedotov’s poor rebound control continued to haunt him. Overall, Fedotov stopped 26 of 30 Vegas shots for an .867 on the night, a mark that will need to be better for the Flyers to continue to play Fedotov over Kolosov.

A breakthrough for Morgan Frost

In what’s been yet another trying period of play for Morgan Frost, the young center needed a strong game to break himself out of it and out of the coach’s doghouse (if that’s even truly possible for Frost). To Frost’s credit, he answered the call, earning his second goal of the season on a beautiful deflection in front off a Rasmus Ristolainen shot. Reunited with Matvei Michkov on a line with Owen Tippett, the line was buzzing all night, and Frost played an integral role in facilitating it all. He also later added the lone assist on Michkov’s second period goal, creating the rebound opportunity for Michkov to fire a puck past Samsonov for the 4-2 lead.

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Ristolainen remains a strong presence

Speaking of the Flyers’ first goal of the game, Ristolainen’s assist on Frost’s deflection was one of many nifty plays that Ristolainen made all night. Tonight, Ristolainen played to a 75.0 Corsi For % and a 73.72 Expected Goals For % at 5-on-5, dominant marks for the Finnish defenseman. Paired with rookie Emil Andrae, Ristolainen continued his strong play in the early part of the season that has made him an intangible piece of this Flyers’ defense. The styles of Andrae and Ristolainen are an intriguing duo to mesh together, with Andrae’s offensively active leanings and Risto’s ability to kill plays on the other end. Could be a solid pairing moving forward here, especially if Ristolainen remains on this team past the trade deadline.

Two in a row for Couturier

Off a stretch pass from Travis Konecny, Sean Couturier’s second goal in two games and fifth of the season put the Flyers up two goals early on in this one. The Flyers desperately need one of their centers to get going, and the former Selke winner starting to put together consistent offensive outputs is their most likely chance of obtaining that. The last two games have certainly been a step in the right direction for a center that has remained a pretty good play-driver despite the little impact on the scoresheet thus far.

In a game where the Flyers jumped out to a three goal lead, the Golden Knights stormed back to defeat the Flyers in the skills competition. After a terrible second period in which the Orange and Black were outshot 19-7 and outscored 3-2, the Flyers weren’t able to hold a narrow one-goal lead in the third nor capitalize on their numerous overtime chances to earn the win over Vegas. Jack Eichel’s shootout goal was the difference, as the Flyers have now lost three of their last four.

The Basics

First period: 8:51 – Morgan Frost (Ristolainen, Tippett), 12:07 – Sean Couturier (Konecny)

Second period: 0:28 – Emil Andrae (Hathaway, Laughton), 7:42 – Jack Eichel (Barbashev), 11:32 – Ivan Barbashev (Eichel), 13:18 – Matvei Michkov (Frost), Pavel Dorofeyev (Theodore, Hertl) (PPG)

Third period: 11:55 – Tanner Pearson (Hanifin, Hague)

SOG: 30 (VGK) – 35 (PHI)

Some Takeaways

Michkov, all over the place again

While Jack Eichel was the story for the high-end talent filled Golden Knights, it felt like Matvei Michkov was apparent on every single shift for the Flyers. He only ended up with one point tonight – on a gritty second period goal off a Morgan Frost rebound – but Michkov could have had at least two or three more tonight. Particularly in the final two periods and into overtime, Michkov’s poise and creativity created numerous grade-A chances for his teammates. Namely, a beautiful pass on a late-in-regulation power play cross-ice to Frost should have been the game-winner, with Frost whiffing on a wide-open cage. One of the more consistent efforts for the Calder contender on a shift to shift basis.

High-event hockey

Sure, the Flyers did lose a three-goal lead in this one, but this wasn’t the case where the Flyers turtled and gave the game away. The Knights took it from them, even if the Flyers didn’t help their case at certain points (i.e. Ivan Fedotov turnover on first goal, poor defensive coverage on second goal). This game was purely high-event hockey all around, with teams trading chances throughout the last two periods – and adventurous goaltending from both Fedotov and Samsonov. I’m not sure I can fully fault the Flyers for blowing this one, as frustrating as it is, considering the massive talent gap between the Knights and the Flyers and how it felt like the Knights just wrestled the game away.

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Emil Andrae’s first

At a moment where the Flyers looked in total control of this hockey game, Emil Andrae got his first in the NHL off a rebound opportunity created by Garnet Hathaway. Andrae’s had three assists through his first 12 games in the NHL now, but it had to feel good for the Swede to get on the board himself for the first time in his career. Much deserved for a guy who looks like he’s officially cemented his spot in the Flyers regular lineup.