VOORHEES, N.J. – Travis Sanheim has had enough of this playoff-less hockey.
Sanheim and Travis Konecny have been through the good times and the bad ones – namely a franchise record-tying five seasons out of postseason competition.
With a new coach about to come in this summer and a number of young stars with another year under their belts, the Flyers want to make some noise next season.
Are the Flyers making progress? Despite a last-place Metropolitan Division finish, Sanheim believes the Flyers are ready to take the next step.
“Where we finished this year is a disappointment,” he admitted on Friday’s first day of exit interviews at the Flyers Training Center. “You don’t want to be where we’re at. Your goal going into the season is to make the playoffs.
“I think some of the positives that came out of this season is what is exciting for the future. To be able to take those next steps.”
The Flyers are one of the youngest teams in the NHL and with three No. 1 draft picks, that age number might stay down for a while if and when those drafted players develop.
For reference, look at former No. 1 pick Matvei Michkov and his team-leading 26 goals as a rookie.
“We have a lot of good pieces here,” Sanheim said. “Only going to get better. Whether it’s Matvei or ‘Tys’ (Tyson Foerster) or ‘Catesy’ (Noah Cates) or Bobby (Brink). These guys are all going to be key parts. Just continuing to move us in the right direction.
“The faster we do that, the faster we’re getting help from (GM) Danny (Briere) to continue to build this and take that next step that ultimately we want to be in the playoffs.”
>4 Nations hangover
Both Sanheim and Konecny said the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament in February took something out of them. They both won gold medals with Canada but they came at a price.
“I felt like I had some juice initially,” Sanheim said. “I think the excitement of winning and the tournament itself; but not having the (10-day) break, you saw it around the league, guys (in the tournament) struggled a little bit after. Not surprising. You’re battling against the best in the world and it’s challenging. But other people had to do it.”
>Leading by example
At 28, Sanheim is becoming an “elder statesman” on the Flyers, and that includes a leadership role.
“I think for a little bit now I’ve been involved in that (leadership) group,” he said. “Being one of the older guys on the team, especially on the ‘D’ corps, I kind of have to step up in that regard. Be a good leader on and off the ice.”
>Cates’ big move
Noah Cates overcame getting benched on the first night of the season to set a new career high for goals (16).
Cates was the engine on the Foerster-Brink line, probably the team’s best two-way unit.
“I was confident in what I brought to our line,” he said. “Whatever it was defensively, they helped me out. We played hard for each other every night.”
>Konecny’s honest assessment
Although he set career highs for assists and points, Konecny said there was still room for improvement off this past season.
“I would say there were a lot of ups and downs that I would like to fix,” he said. “My consistency I’ve talked about. Every year I try to improve. But there were times this year when I was inconsistent. Would like to look back at that stuff and improve for next year.”
>Tippett’s take
After seasons of 27 and 28 goals, Owen Tippett’s total fell to just 20 this year. He was moved around on lines a bit but knows that’s not a real excuse.
Tippett had 300-plus shots on goal in 2023-24 but a hundred less this past season. The issue?
“I think it’s just how the games go,” he said. “For a lot of the times you’re put in different situations. But I wasn’t aware of that.”
>Foerster finishes strong
After a second straight slow start this season, Foerster came on strong at the end, at one point scoring five goals in two games. He finished with a career-high 25 goals, one off the team lead.
That should set him up nicely for next season.
“At the start of the season, I struggled again, I’ve got to figure that out,” Foerster said. “I think coming down the stretch I was playing well. I think my linemates (Cates-Brink) really helped me with that.”
>Taking steps
Nick Deslauriers believes the Flyers are headed in the right direction.
“I think we have a good foundation,” he said. “I think last year we proved it. This year didn’t go the way we wanted but I think we took some steps.
“It’s not fun to go through two coaches in one year. But I think we proved in the last nine games that we still have something good here.”
