VOORHEES, N.J. – Finishing on a high note is about all the Flyers have to play for as the final five games of the season come off the schedule.
Captain Sean Couturier got straight to that very point after Tuesday’s practice at the Flyers Training Center.
“I think we want to build for the future here,” said Couturier. “We have five games to make sure we have good habits in place, play the right way and grow as a team.”
After Wednesday night’s game at the New York Rangers, the Flyers return home on Saturday to play the New York Islanders, visit Ottawa a day after, then play the last two games — first on Tuesday against Ottawa and then head to Buffalo for the season finale on Thursday, April 17.
“It would be nice to go into the summer feeling somewhat good about ourselves and bring it into next year,” said Couturier, mindful that the Flyers are 3-1 since Brad Shaw took over coaching duties from John Tortorella. “I think that’s kind of the motivation we have right now.”
One thing the Flyers have been working on is more and better offensive production.
“The last few games we’ve been trying more offensive plays. . .sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t,” Couturier said. “I think it’s kind of knowing when to push for offense and when just to chip it in and make the next play.”
A few players have made their marks on offense this season. For instance, both Ryan Poehling and Noah Cates have set new career highs for goals. Travis Konecny has established career bests for assists (50) and points (74).
Clearly, it wasn’t enough to change the outcome of the season and prevent a fifth straight year out of the playoffs.
“The situation we’re in, it’s not fun, it’s not where we want to be,” Couturier said. “We’re all disappinted with the way the season went.
“But we still have to play for something, find the motivation,” Couturier said. “Play for one another. Stick together. That’s the key thing. Not getting on our own page and falling off the rails. It will make us better in the long run.”
Konecny has been in the league nine years and this might be his best, even though he will fall short of setting a career high for goals (he has 24 and his best is 33).
He’s an alternate captain so part of that role is to make sure the young players on the team learn how to stay the course and take a serious approach to each game, regardless of the circumstances.
“I think everyone’s been self-evaluating and I think that’s the best thing about this team,” Konecny said. “Some of the older guys might have conversations. A lot of the young guys do it on their own. Off the ice, a lot of those guys lead the way in that category, they do a lot of the right things.”
Interim head coach Brad Shaw has seen some positives in his four games behind the bench but he’s also noticed some things which have room for improvement. It would be nice to knock off a team like the Rangers but Shaw would rather focus on what his team can do better, regardless of the foe.
“I didn’t really particularly like a lot of our attack game in Montreal (on Saturday night),” Shaw said. “It’s still 1-0 us after 40 minutes. We probably can play with better support. I think that might have alleviated some of the non-puck plays we made.
“I’d rather focus on us at this point.”
>Pelletier contributing
It wasn’t the best of starts when Jakob Pelletier came over from the Flames in the Morgan Frost-Joel Farabee trade but he’s starting to fit in now. He made a sharp play the other night on a goal by Poehling and that bodes well, according to Shaw.
“I think he’s much more comfortable,” Shaw said. “When you get a couple points, it helps you settle down a bit. It makes you feel like you fit in. I don’t think anybody gets more excited when somebody scores a goal than him.
“When he’s on the bench and somebody scores, he’s almost as excited as the guy who puts it in the net. He’s got an infectious kind of energy. Easy guy to cheer for.”
