I agree that Morin played well and added a physical element. But what did that really change? Not much. Goal scoring is not the teams issue although the PP could be better and a goal scorer could help there. By far the biggest issue is the team defense and attention to detail. Fix that and this is a good team.
- MJL

Morin s presence obviously didn’t change anything but he didn’t look bad out there. I’d certainly be ok with him getting more starts over gus. As you say, The issue is attention to defensive detail. We have zero right now and it’s destroyed all confidence.

They will be a better team if they fix their defense, but the PP is what elevates a team to contender status, and the Flyers need more shoot first forwards on the PP. That is why BTW I believe Fletcher should be looking for another top 6 winger.
- jd250

Team defense is infinitely more important and it's not close. That's what elevates every team. There is no such thing as a good team that does not defend and check well. You can have a bad PP and still be a very good team if you play well defensively. If you have a great PP and don't play well defensively. You won't be a very good team. What the Flyers need more to their top 6 is a scoring winger who plays physically with a shoot first mentality. Doesn't have to be a sniper. They have a mix of too many playmakers and not enough shooters.

Morin s presence obviously didn’t change anything but he didn’t look bad out there. I’d certainly be ok with him getting more starts over gus. As you say, The issue is attention to defensive detail. We have zero right now and it’s destroyed all confidence.
- Hextall271

For a guy who was switched to forward and then back and hasn't played much. He looked really good relatively speaking.

For a guy who was switched to forward and then back and hasn't played much. He looked really good relatively speaking.
- MJL

To me, I leave him For a bit and see What he can do. If by some miracle we start to recover and play respectably, If he can defend well, and provide some sandpaper that will help us imo. Av must be losing his mind with the poor defensive game. This team is night and day from last years playoffs. We couldn’t score last year but the d and g were solid. We talk abo it niskanen, but remember , we also lost grant,
Thompson and pitlick and the younger players haven’t stepped up their d game to replace what this guys brought.

Carter Hart played well last night, I mean what do you want him to do about any of those goals. Maybe the 3rd goal I would have liked him to be bigger in the net and be able to stop that deflection, but other than that, it was a freak'n shooting gallery against him last night! I think if the Flyers actually cared about playing defense instead of felling sorry for themselves that they gave up a goal, Hart would be fine.
- jd250

I agree last night was not on Carter. But some of those goals are saves he would have made easily last year. ON the two on one he was slow to get over and once again he was beaten glove side. One of his strengths as a goalie last season was his ability to go from one side to the other smoothly and with seemingly little effort.

This season that seems to be the book on him. All these issues can be fixed. But like Jonesy and Jackson said last night, sometimes you need your goalie to make a save that saves the team from itself. We arent getting them nearly enough. Mistakes aren't being erased, they are being accentuated.

Hart is not an NHL caliber goalie at the moment. If he can be sent back to the AHL (not sure if he is waiver exempt) then he should be on that bus today. The NHL is not where he should be playing to get his confidence or whatever back. The look o this kids face wild. He looks scared to death.

This is just not a good team in any way. Don't see that changing. Talented players don't make a team good.

For a guy who was switched to forward and then back and hasn't played much. He looked really good relatively speaking.
- MJL

He skates really well for a big guy.

I agree last night was not on Carter. But some of those goals are saves he would have made easily last year. ON the two on one he was slow to get over and once again he was beaten glove side. One of his strengths as a goalie last season was his ability to go from one side to the other smoothly and with seemingly little effort.

This season that seems to be the book on him. All these issues can be fixed. But like Jonesy and Jackson said last night, sometimes you need your goalie to make a save that saves the team from itself. We arent getting them nearly enough. Mistakes aren't being erased, they are being accentuated.
- MBFlyerfan

The goalie is supposed to make all the saves he should and some he shouldn't. Neither is happening right now. This isn't all on the bad d or team D. Hart needs to be accountable as well.

Team defense is infinitely more important and it's not close. That's what elevates every team. There is no such thing as a good team that does not defend and check well. You can have a bad PP and still be a very good team if you play well defensively. If you have a great PP and don't play well defensively. You won't be a very good team. What the Flyers need more to their top 6 is a scoring winger who plays physically with a shoot first mentality. Doesn't have to be a sniper. They have a mix of too many playmakers and not enough shooters.
- MJL

I didn't say it was one or the other, I said it was both! Solid team defense gets you into the tournament. Timely PP goals get you into the final 4 of the tournament. Both are needed to be successful. And yes, as I have posted several times since the beginning of the season, this team has too many pass-first players and not enough shooters.

You can count me in on the Carter Hart wagon that says that he simply needs to be better. Is the goalie coach screwing with his head(changing his style) or is it just him screwing with his own head? I'm tired of hearing this hung out to dry crap. Every friggin mistake is ending up in the back of their net. So we're back to the goaltending that they've been getting for centuries! Seems like that anyway. He just looks small and back in his crease. I didn't see this ever happening to a goalie of his caliber, but here we are.

You can count me in on the Carter Hart wagon that says that he simply needs to be better. Is the goalie coach screwing with his head(changing his style) or is it just him screwing with his own head? I'm tired of hearing this hung out to dry crap. Every friggin mistake is ending up in the back of their net. So we're back to the goaltending that they've been getting for centuries! Seems like that anyway. He just looks small and back in his crease. I didn't see this ever happening to a goalie of his caliber, but here we are.
- Phillywhiteout

Maybe not to this level but this happens to pretty much every young goalie at one time or another.

The disarray I am watching seems to be the result of a team that do not trust their goalie. Players are trying to do too much and are disregarding the system. They are so disjointed it is impossible to tell what system is being used.

Unfortunately, lack of trust in the goaltender cannot be allowed to continue. Once this sets-in it can haunt a team for a decade. The Islanders, Maple Leafs and Sabres suffered through this for years, and now it is beginning to cripple the Flyers.

Ron Hextall knew this occur. To avoid it he planned to continue Hart's development. Consider what this team might be if Hart had the confidence and the team likewise trusted him. It is unfortunate they fired Hextall instead of letting him finish the final year or two of the rebuild.

The disarray I am watching seems to be the result of a team that do not trust their goalie. Players are trying to do too much and are disregarding the system. They are so disjointed it is impossible to tell what system is being used.

Unfortunately, lack of trust in the goaltender cannot be allowed to continue. Once this sets-in it can haunt a team for a decade. The Islanders, Maple Leafs and Sabres suffered through this for years, and now it is beginning to cripple the Flyers.

Ron Hextall knew this occur. To avoid it he planned to continue Hart's development. Consider what this team might be if Hart had the confidence and the team likewise trusted him. It is unfortunate they fired Hextall instead of letting him finish the final year or two of the rebuild.
- Jackie Daytona

In my opinion, the team's play in front of the goaltenders is what caused the issue with the goaltending. So I'm not sure how the team's poor defensive play, lack of structure and lack of attention to detail can be attributed to not trusting the goaltender.

https://twitter.com/charl...5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=


This team lost its identity when Ronald took over. He ripped their soul out.

Maybe not to this level but this happens to pretty much every young goalie at one time or another.
- MJL

I get that, but not to this degree like you said. I mean, he looks scared to death out there. And that interview a couple weeks ago was downright scary after one of the games. He looked like a little kid that was totally overwhelmed. Gotta love the people that say this is cause he was brought up too soon though. Were these same people saying that back in August when he was stealing games against the Habs in the playoffs?

You can count me in on the Carter Hart wagon that says that he simply needs to be better. Is the goalie coach screwing with his head(changing his style) or is it just him screwing with his own head? I'm tired of hearing this hung out to dry crap. Every friggin mistake is ending up in the back of their net. So we're back to the goaltending that they've been getting for centuries! Seems like that anyway. He just looks small and back in his crease. I didn't see this ever happening to a goalie of his caliber, but here we are.
- Phillywhiteout

These days I coach soccer, and specifically work with the Defense and Goalies. One of the things I constantly harp on with the goalies is to look big in the net, to be aggressive on your angles and never go down, but stay upright, balanced with your hands out so you can block as much area as you can. I think when I watch Carter last night 4 out of the 5 goals I don't think he could have done much about. But that 3rd PP goal was one where he was back in his crease and it looked like he planned on cradling the puck in his mid section but the puck was labeled for the near post an then got deflected. So in that instant I would have like to see Carter out at the top of his crease standing up and looking bigger versus crunched down and being small.

The disarray I am watching seems to be the result of a team that do not trust their goalie. Players are trying
to do too much and are disregarding the system. They are so disjointed it is impossible to tell what system is being used.

Unfortunately, lack of trust in the goaltender cannot be allowed to continue. Once this sets-in it can haunt a team for a decade. The Islanders, Maple Leafs and Sabres suffered through this for years, and now it is beginning to cripple the Flyers.

Ron Hextall knew this occur. To avoid it he planned to continue Hart's development. Consider what this team might be if Hart had the confidence and the team likewise trusted him. It is unfortunate they fired Hextall instead of letting him finish the final year or two of the rebuild.
- Jackie Daytona

This, and a team that has completely tuned out their coach(es).

I get that, but not to this degree like you said. I mean, he looks scared to death out there. And that interview a couple weeks ago was downright scary after one of the games. He looked like a little kid that was totally overwhelmed. Gotta love the people that say this is cause he was brought up too soon though. Were these same people saying that back in August when he was stealing games against the Habs in the playoffs?

- Phillywhiteout

I found that post-game interview with Hart a few weeks back to be very telling. I felt bad for the kid, as it seemed like he might cry at any moment due to how disappointed you could tell he was in his performance. All of the struggles don't lie at his feet alone (team defense has been abysmal), however he needs to be significantly better. He isn't even making routine saves and certainly not any moment changing saves. I will tell you from experience that it is extremely deflating to a team and players when a goalie lets in stoppable shots. You can play great defense and limit mistakes, but all it takes is one unscreened slapshot from the blueline to go in and you're losing the game.

I agree last night was not on Carter. But some of those goals are saves he would have made easily last year. ON the two on one he was slow to get over and once again he was beaten glove side. One of his strengths as a goalie last season was his ability to go from one side to the other smoothly and with seemingly little effort.

This season that seems to be the book on him. All these issues can be fixed. But like Jonesy and Jackson said last night, sometimes you need your goalie to make a save that saves the team from itself. We arent getting them nearly enough. Mistakes aren't being erased, they are being accentuated.
- MBFlyerfan

But Jonesy also said last night that none of the goals Hart gave up were his fault and I agree with him for the most part, like I said I think that 3rd goal is one where I would have liked Hart to get a piece of.

Its more about Hart trusting the defense versus the defense trusting Hart or Elliott. For example consider the 2nd Rangers goal last night. Another poor line change by the Flyers caused a 2 on 1 break with Provorov back. Provorov was playing the pass but was not square to the attacking players and was way too far over towards the player without the puck. Hart is ready to take the puck carrier in this case, but look what happens next. The puck is passed to the player that Provorov was cheating to cover and still the pass got through for an easy one timer. If I were Hart my stick would have been flying at Provorov's head after that play. I mean he plays the pass so poorly that the Ranger player can 1 time it?? Its plays like that cause Hart and Elliott to not trust their defense, and for good reason.

In my opinion, the team's play in front of the goaltenders is what caused the issue with the goaltending. So I'm not sure how the team's poor defensive play, lack of structure and lack of attention to detail can be attributed to not trusting the goaltender.
- MJL

As discussed before, the whole thing is symbiotic. Better D play breeds trust both ways.

I don’t have the answer on hart. I can’t expect that the limited practice time since the covid outbreak has helped him. His confidence is shot, but he’ll bounce back.

He’s not mentally strong right now. Numerous bad decisions that normally he wouldn’t make imo.

On the pp goal where he dropped his stick. When the other team has possession on the pp in your zone, you don’t try to Retrieve it. Locate the puck and do your best without the stick. He looked down, picked it up then lost track of the puck. Trying to find it, he looks the wrong side, puck comes over and one timer into the net. You can’t play it that way. Fundamentals he would know, but lack of confidence leads to bad decisions.

And no new post yet from Bill. I’m sure he’s grinding his teeth as he writes.

These days I coach soccer, and specifically work with the Defense and Goalies. One of the things I constantly harp on with the goalies is to look big in the net, to be aggressive on your angles and never go down, but stay upright, balanced with your hands out so you can block as much area as you can. I think when I watch Carter last night 4 out of the 5 goals I don't think he could have done much about. But that 3rd PP goal was one where he was back in his crease and it looked like he planned on cradling the puck in his mid section but the puck was labeled for the near post an then got deflected. So in that instant I would have like to see Carter out at the top of his crease standing up and looking bigger versus crunched down and being small.
- jd250

He was too far back there. A sign of a lack of confidence. If you think a tip is coming the idea is to get as close to the player tipping as possible. There, maybe he wasn’t anticipating a tip which is fine but regardless, he has to be out further I’d say. Right now it looks like he’s playing back to defend against the pass, but then he’s getting beat straight up on the shot. Focus on making that first save. If the d don’t help and it’s a tap in that’s not on the tender. What a dumpster fire

And no new post yet from Bill. I’m sure he’s grinding his teeth as he writes.
- BroadSTmayhem

Haha he’s probably as disgusted as we are. Can’t say anything nice don’t say anything

The disarray I am watching seems to be the result of a team that do not trust their goalie. Players are trying to do too much and are disregarding the system. They are so disjointed it is impossible to tell what system is being used.

Unfortunately, lack of trust in the goaltender cannot be allowed to continue. Once this sets-in it can haunt a team for a decade. The Islanders, Maple Leafs and Sabres suffered through this for years, and now it is beginning to cripple the Flyers.

Ron Hextall knew this occur. To avoid it he planned to continue Hart's development. Consider what this team might be if Hart had the confidence and the team likewise trusted him. It is unfortunate they fired Hextall instead of letting him finish the final year or two of the rebuild.
- Jackie Daytona

I want to preface what I am about to say with this, I am not in here to troll.

I find this comment interesting because it is the same thing we were all saying at the beginning of the season in the Rangers blog. Trying to figure out if the goaltending woes were forcing the team to abandon the "system" and play completely disjointed, or if the system was to blame. The Rangers looked like this for at least a month when play started. A few bad goals would completely deflate the team, nuking both the goalie's and teams' confidence.

It's hard to tell exactly what is wrong when players that were absolutely lighting it up last season, were completely non existent at first too (Zibanejad, DeAngelo, Shestyorkin etc.).

Many of us wanted to fire the coaching staff and ship Zibanejad off or at least not pay him for his next contract. It's crazy what a little time (and some winning) can do. The Rangers still have a nearly impossible climb out of the hole they dug. The Flyers might flip a switch on Saturday and hand out a beat down of their own.

So how many suckers wasted your time watching?
- SMS4016

Me. I've watched every game this season. It's what fans do.