Justin Braun
Even-keeled Flyers goalie Carter Hart downplayed the comparisons and significance of facing his boyhood idol in his first playoff series. But even he couldn’t hide the significance of meeting at center ice to shake hands with Canadiens’ veteran Carey Price after winning the series.
The opportunity was there for the Flyers to take a 2-0 series lead after having what many viewed was only a B-minus, C-game from the Flyers. There were some who viewed Game 1 as a missed opportunity for the Canadiens, while others saw it as a game where the Canadiens showed they could hang around in this series. Man, did they prove that in Game 2.
622 days ago, the Flyers were a team in complete disarray. They needed a change and fired the GM. They followed by replacing the GM, firing the head coach and powering through with an interim coach and a rookie goalie in net. Now, they have claimed the top seed in the Eastern Conference for the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
For Saturday’s Round Robin finale against the Tampa Bay Lightning, a battle that will be for the top seed in the Eastern Conference, both teams will be missing a key part of their offense. Jake Voracek will not be available for the Flyers. Steven Stamkos will be out for the Lightning.
When training camp started a couple weeks ago and the Flyers started to work back to where they were before the pause, the pairings remained the same and they have been unchanged since then. Alain Vigneault said he doesn’t plan to change them anytime soon.
In total, 17 forwards of 18 in camp and 10 defensemen of 12 in camp made the roster. All four goalies from camp made the trip. Here is the Flyers final roster for Phase 4.
On the final day of practice in Voorhees, the Flyers had the full roster on the ice. Sean Couturier returned after the birth of his daughter and Carter Hart was back with the full team for practice after skating by himself after Thursday’s scrimmage.
Moments before the team took the ice for the scrimmage on Saturday, GM Chuck Fletcher announced that Jake Voracek was “unable to participate.” According to the NHL’s protocol, that is the only update teams are able to give on absent players. So there is no knowledge if Voracek’s absence is injury-related, illness-related or simply a maintenance issue.
For the entire season, Ivan Provorov and Matt Niskanen have been united together. Assistant coach Mike Yeo, who runs the defense, said that they have been the quickest to get up to speed.
From the beginning, Alain Vigneault brought in an authority and leadership that was lacking in the Flyers locker room. That leadership and guidance has given Vigneault a strong case for a Jack Adams Award nomination.
