Even year magic: Philadelphia Flyers look to make the playoffs in 2022
Philadelphia (BVM) — The definition of mediocre is, ‘of only moderate quality; not very good.’ That is a perfect definition of the Philadelphia Flyers.’
The NHL season is set to start this month and although the Flyers are coming off a 25-23-8 2021 campaign there is hope of a playoff run this year based on recent history.
Every year since 2012, the Flyers have qualified for the playoffs in an even calendar year (2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020). They hold the record for the most non-consecutive playoff/non-playoff appearances in history. No team in any of the four major sports has had this amount of inconsistency. However, due to an uncharacteristic off-season that was full of changes, the Flyers may be poised to make some strides this upcoming year.
The Flyers will be without some familiar faces out there on the ice this year. In July, fan favorite, forward Jacob Voracek was dealt to Columbus in exchange for 5-foot-8 sniper, Cam Atkinson. A shifty, but slightly older, forward, Atkinson still knows how to find the back of the net at will.
The addition will hopefully fix one of the glaring problems that has faced the Flyers for years now is goal scoring. They have not had a 35-plus goal scorer since Scott Hartnell did it in 2011.
If not Atkinson, it may be last year’s breakout star Joel Farabee; who led the Flyers in scoring in just his second year with the team. Farabee is an example of one of the positives about this Philadelphia team, their youth. Guys such as Morgan Frost, Nicolas Aube-Kubel, and Wade Allison could all have breakout seasons and could solidify themselves as solid players in this league.
Along with their youth comes the veterans needed for any playoff team. The orange and black are led by ninth year captain Claude Giroux who, on a contract year, is heading into his 14th season with the Flyers. Look for G to be extra poised this upcoming season, because it could be his last.
One of the reasons the Flyers were so abysmally bad last season was their defense and goaltending. Third year goaltender Carter Hart struggled between the pipes due to a lackluster defense and general manager Chuck Fletcher definitely took note of that. Wanting to protect his franchise guy in the net, Fletcher went out and brought in a couple of stud defenseman to help out Hart back there in the crease.
The Flyers shipped off Shayne Ghostisbhere, Phillipe Myers, Robert Hagg, and Nolan Patrick for Golden Knights, Ryan Ellis and Buffalo Sabers, Rasmus Ristolainen. The defense for the former ‘Broad Street Bullies’ has done a complete reversal and it should be vastly improved for this upcoming season.
While the Flyers do look much better on paper this season, only time will tell if all the new pieces gel together on the ice.
However, one thing working against them is the fact that they play in one of the hardest divisions in the NHL. The Penguins, Capitals, Rangers, Islanders, Devils, Bluejackets and Hurricanes are all capable of winning the division and making the playoffs. The Flyers will have to hope their offseason changes work and that their even year streak continues into 2022.
