Fan Files: Winning cures all

Hello again, Flyers Fans. It's time to welcome you all back to our dip into Fan Files, where we turn to one of our three fan correspondents and have them give the state of the Flyers from the fan's perspective.

This week, Jaclyn Mason returns with her thoughts on a very different month of Flyers hockey.

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I had the thankless task of putting together the first Fan Files column about a month ago, when there was nothing good to say about the Flyers. All I could do was preach optimism and keep my fingers crossed.

Much has changed since then, with the team on a four-game winning streak and finally showing signs of life.

What, exactly, accounts for the difference? Wayne Simmonds indicated that the guys are sticking up for one another. The beats have written endlessly about the energy Shayne Gostisbehere brings to the ice. Or maybe Dave Hakstol is finding his stride.

From a fan’s perspective though, the Flyers, even when winning, can be maddening. Currently, they are worst in the league in goal scoring and team shooting percentage, but 13th in penalty kill, having killed off 24 straight penalties before allowing a game-tying power play goal in the final minute of regulation on Friday. 

Goaltending is the least of the Flyers problems for once. Four of 11 wins this season for the Flyers are shutouts but, despite that, they are posting a dismal -18 goal differential.

The numbers tell one tale, but the story is constantly changing. As long as the Flyers keep putting up wins, statistics will cease being the story.

And that’s what keeps fans interested — the knowledge that fortunes in hockey turn on a dime.

The Flyers are on the right track. Here’s hoping they keep grinding and give us all a reason to prove those who predicted another season of missing the playoffs wrong.

Jaclyn Mason is a contributing writer for Flyerdelphia. Follow her on Twitter @meetmebhndnet.