The Philadelphia Flyers held practice after their 5-2 win over the Penguins, extending their series lead to 3-0. Goaltender Dan Vladar, along with Owen Tippett and Cam York, had a maintenance day but is reportedly feeling better.
Key points
Flyers won 5-2 against the Penguins
Series lead extended to 3-0
Dan Vladar had a maintenance day
Owen Tippett and Cam York also missed practice
Vladar is feeling better according to coach Tocchet
Philadelphia FlyersPittsburgh PenguinsDan VladarOwen Tippett
VOORHEES, NJ â Following their 5-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday, extending the series lead to 3-0, the Philadelphia Flyers held practice at the Flyers Training Center.
As for attendance, everyone was accounted for, including the vast amount of black aces, except for Dan Vladar, Owen Tippett, and Cam York.
Getting ahead of it now, head coach Rick Tocchet said it was a maintenance day for all three players. Tocchet recognized Vladarâs injury and said the Flyersâ top goaltender is feeling better as of Thursday, a positive sign.
Again, Tocchet was calling it a maintenance day for Vladar, not out with injury.
Itâs no secret that York and Tippett are battling through some bumps and bruises as well. Tippettâs non-game ice time has been very limited, being absent from practices and skates, keeping him as fresh as possible for games. York has been available for everything so far this series, so Thursday was really his first âday offâ.
It seems pretty clear that Bump was once again the placeholder for Owen Tippett, as was Emil Andrae for Cam York. With Vladar absent, Aleksei Kolosov took his spot with the NHL club.
For the most part, the black aces had migrated over to the other sheet for practice when power play stuff was run, which could be why Barkey, presumably, was the Tippett stand-in on the power play.
Barkey and Michkov got in extra work after practice
After the NHL group had come off the ice, there were two notable players yet to enter the locker room: Denver Barkey and Matvei Michkov.
Barkey was still on the main sheet when the media group left the locker room to head back up to the press conference room to speak with Tocchet. I did not see Michkovâs gear in the room, nor was he on the sheet with Barkey. So, before Tocchet spoke, I ran over to the other sheet to see Michkov getting some small-area work in with the black aces.
Typically, this is not the sort of thing you bat an eye at. However, recent events may say otherwise. In Game 2, Barker had 6:46 minutes during the game, and Michkov had 8:08. During Game 2, Michkov had 9:32, and Barkey had 8:53. After his 3rd period roughing penalty, which resulted in a Penguinsâ goal, I did not see Michkov again.
That could have been the shortened bench trying to preserve the lead. Minutes were certainly limited with the penalty kill being active a lot as well.
To me, the two getting extra work likely stems from their limited ice time. However, Tocchet did have some interesting things to say after practice.
Do you fix it if it ainât broke?
After practice, Tocchet was asked about shortening the bench and how itâs limiting the ice time for some. The premise of the question was, things are going well, so do you leave things alone and keep going as is, or is it time to shake things up? Here is what Tocchet had to say.
âWell, no, I think every game is different.You try to reset, but there are certain times when you needto see action; you need to go with your gut. When youâre up 2-0, at that time, I felt nine forwards [were good], and I picked the best nine forwards to lock the game down.â
Tocchet went on to say that these are the things you do in the playoffs. âItâs different in February, but you know, this is playoff time.â
The Flyers coach specifically mentioned Trevor Zegras, whose minutes were cut back because of those shut-down minutes, and said he had conversations with him and that heâs not upset by the situation.
He then mentioned that anyoneâs number could be called in these situations.
âYour number might be called at any time, and even as a player thatâs not played, you might go in the lineup and be a contributor,and all of a sudden, stay in the lineup⊠When you reset, you have to see improvement.â
For what itâs worth, I donât think players like Michkov and Barkey would have participated in line rushes if Tocchet was considering taking them out of the lineup. Nor do I think Alex Bump would have spent as much time with the other group on Thursday. Especially if he were being heavily considered for Saturday.
However, it does create some interesting food for thought as the playoff run continues.
