Highlights Beyond Highlights- March 23 & 24

The Flyers played well enough overall to have taken all four points out of this weekend. Sometimes the bounces don’t go your way, and that summarizes Sunday’s contest. But if the Flyers play even most of their remaining schedule the way they did these two games, making the playoffs will be a lock.

We’ll start with a Saturday shift from Garnet Hathaway, who’s first able to put himself in position to receive this needle-threading pass up the boards. He chips it in deep and while Boston is able to clear the zone quickly, Hathaway single-handedly makes sure they pay a price to do so. Hathaway’s pressure on the second hit actually forces a turnover, but the Flyers were ready to change so there was no offensive attack at this particular point. But this kind of play can generate scoring chances when not in a change.

As dangerous as Owen Tippett is offensively because of his speed, it helps him be pretty effective defensively as well.  In this clip, Tippett is able to close on Trent Frederic and make a perfect stick check at the right time to scrub out the scoring opportunity.  The clip ends with a closer look at the play.

Here’s an example of Joel Farabee’s playmaking vision as he comes down the left wing on this breakout.  First there’s the steal to generate the rush in the first place.  As he enters the zone, he has several options. Boston is wise to the two most obvious ones, either a feed to space in front of Bobby Brink or a pass to Scott Laughton.  Instead, Farabee picks up that Ronnie Attard is joining the rush, and he threads a perfect pass to Attard that catches Boston off guard.

In his short time with the Flyers, one of the things that has stood out about Erik Johnson is his somewhat remarkable skill at playing the game on his stomach.  All defensemen lay out from time to time to try to block a pass, but generally once they do so they are unable to be much more than a barrier. Johnson, however, not only knows exactly when to go down, but he can make other plays while he’s down there. Here’s an example, as he lays out to block a pass but is still able to spring the puck ahead after he’s blocked it.  That leads to Scott Laughton’s breakaway.

Adam Ginning has impressed in his short time with the big club, especially in the contests where he’s been paired with Attard.  He has a little mishap here, but it’s the recovery that’s impressive.  Mistakes will happen and one did here, but Ginning was able to get back into the play and prevent a centering pass to the worst guy on the Bruins to be wide open in front of the net, one David Pastrnak.

And finally from Sunday’s contest, a nod to Cam York for making a play similar to one by Johnson a couple games ago that was featured here.  York recognizes that Felix Sandstrom is in a bad spot here and dives to cover the left post on the wraparound attempt.  Additionally, he’s able to do it without taking a penalty for closing his hand on the puck, or worse, doing that in the crease – which would have meant a penalty shot.