PHILADELPHIA– Like with any professional sports team, it’s always more fun to be the hunter than the hunted when playoff spots are at stake.
The Flyers, who began Tuesday play four points out of postseason consideration, certainly looked calm and relaxed in a recent three-game sweep of California teams, even if two of them went past regulation time.
Look at it this way: About two weeks ago, Philadelphia was nine points back and hockey followers pretty much wrote them out of the chase for the Stanley Cup.
Then a 5-0-1 streak put them right back in it.
What’s been the key to this resurgence?
“I think there are pressure moments in games,” coach Rick Tocchet said after the morning skate at the Flyers Training Center in Voorhees, N.J. “You try to deal with the moment of the pressure.
“And I think we’ve dealt with it pretty good, knowing time and score, knowing when to go and when not to go. I think we did a nice job. We have to stay out of the penalty box but game management is getting better.”
There are times when the Flyers execute like the 1987 Edmonton Oilers and others where they look like a nervous high school team.
“We’re still looking for execution but we’re getting better at it,” Tocchet said. “There has to be execution all over the ice.”
The coach liked the way the Flyers finished up the San Jose game on Thursday, protecting a 2-1 lead into the final minutes when a pair of empty-net goals put the game out of reach.
“(Noah) Cates’ line, they were going,” Tocchet said. “They were forechecking, not backing off. We got to get in that mode. Listen, you want to be calculated but you don’t want to back up. You want to play the game the right way.”
That’s a case of staying cool under pressure. Travis Konecny says that’s the best way to play. It leads to more minutes of mistake-free hockey.
“We’re in a fun spot, we’re playing high-pressure games,” he said. “There’s a good chance that if we keep playing the way we do, we can actually get in (to the playoffs). At this point we know that the teams ahead of us have the pressure.
“So just keep putting it on them. Just enjoy the games.”
>Power play regaining power?
The Flyers’ power play finally broke through the other night. The team can certainly use a reversal of fortune in this important aspect of the game.
“It’s going to be a huge part for our push here toward the playoffs,” Carl Grundstrom said. “So hopefully we can keep scoring goals. Those are going to be really important coming down the stretch here.”
>Praise for Bowness
Much of the credit for the Columbus Blue Jackets’ turnaround has been given to coach Rick Bowness. Tocchet once played for Bowness and had nothing but good things to say about him.
“He’s a guy you want to play for because he simplifies the game,” Tocchet said. “He lets you be who you are. If you are a goalscorer, be that. But there are certain rules that he has.
“There is a tough side to him. But there’s also that father figure, really nice guy. But he can get in your face, too. You can tell that they love playing for him. Great coach, get guy, one of my favorites.”
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