VOORHEES, NJ – All signs of Saturday’s morning skating have indicated that the Flyers’ leading scorer and goal scorer 2019-20 for tonight’s game against the Islanders ended up at Wells Fargo Center.
Travis Konecny was not in practice on one of the powerplays, as he stayed on the sidelines and then skated with the other scratches (Robert Hagg, Nate Prosser and Brian Elliott) after the morning session.
Samuel Morin, the club’s 13th forward who has yet to appear in a game this season, has led the team’s positions. Usually, when a player is ahead, there is some significance to it. Teammates also regularly tap on their sticks or cheer during such a moment, depending on the reason, but it was quite quiet and muffled Saturday, given the circumstances that Konecny apparently was not in the series.
Head coach Alain Vigneault confirmed at 16:45 ET in his availability in the media that Konecny would be scratched tonight.
“I believe TK is one of our top three forwards, a tremendous potential, to do things well like go to the net, stop and score some big goals for us,” Vigneault said. “But I also believe that our 5-on-5 game is not where it should be at the moment. I have been talking to the players for some time about it, areas in which I believe we should be better, areas in which we’ve been good in the past. TK is not going to play tonight. His 5-on-5 match needs to be better in the areas he’s aware of; I had a good conversation with him this morning and expect him to next time he is in the series again, he will play the right way. ”
Konecny did not shoot the goal cage and had two presents from the Flyers’ 3-1 victory over the Devils in 17:33 minutes. He played only 4:20 in the third period and played about 30 seconds in the last five minutes of the game. After the game, Vigneault was left unhappy by the performances of his two front lines in the first two periods.
Getting Morin a match in a rugby set is one thing, but doing so at the expense of Konecny’s place in the series says something. This is the Flyers’ first game against the team they eliminated in a second round Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2020.
This is a hard message that sent nine games of the Vigneault game into the 2020-’21 season. Konecny was an All-Star last season and led the Flyers in 66 goals (24) and points (61). The 23-year-old wing has five goals, three assists and a plus-5 point through the first eight games of this season.
“There’s a bigger game, there’s a 200 foot game you have to play,” Vigneault said. “Tonight he’s going to get a chance to recover and I’m sure the next time he’s going to be in the series, he’s going to be really good for us.”
The message is not only sent to Konecny, but also to the entire list of Flyers. Despite their 5-2-1 result, the Flyers were eliminated in seven of their eight games, with five of them with double-digit limits. Last season, the Flyers allowed the NHL’s fewest shots per game.
‘I have addressed this to the group a few times – not a few times, actually after every game – about our need to play better 5-on-5. We have to do the right things, to play the right way, “said Vigneault.” My intention, and I came here to Philly to win a Stanley Cup, and to win a Stanley Cup, there is a certain way you have to play. I’m talking especially now with the forward group. I think our D is trying really hard to play the right way. We will not be perfect, we will not be perfect in defense and “up front, but there’s a certain way you have to play, certain decisions you have to make with and without the puck. That’s what I have to do here and that’s what I’ll get out of this group.
Philippe Myers will return from a broken rib on Saturday night. He drove past Travis Sanheim and is good to go. Carter Hart will start in the net, while Brian Elliott is expected to play the second game of the rugby game on Sunday.
More: Morin is going to face the player he studied ‘a lot’ during his position change
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