Highlights Beyond Highlights- Oct. 28 vs. Anaheim

Owen Tippett fed Cam Atkinson for a goal in a late-developing 2-on-1 situation, but it wasn’t any ordinary feed.  Tippett was on the off-wing as a righty coming down the left side, and he’d opened up as if he was going to either shoot or try to push through a forehand pass.  Instead, he pulled the puck to his backhand to beat the Anaheim defender and deftly saucered it over to Atkinson, who tipped home the setup. It was a creative play that may have been snuffed out if Tippett had tried to play an ordinary pass coming down that left side.

Todd Fedoruk may have coined a new phrase on the radio broadcast today – “Was that Sean Walker?”  A line of apparel may be in order.  The latest highlight for the unassuming defenseman was a beautiful feed across the grain through a box of four Ducks right onto the tape of Travis Konecny, who fired it off the back bar so hard it was out before a lot of people knew it was in.  It was a passing lane that didn’t even develop until Walker gained the zone.  Walker came to the Flyers from Los Angeles in the overarching deal that sent Ivan Provorov to Columbus, and it was mainly a salary dump for LA.  But the Flyers are more than happy with what they’re getting for their money, as Walker already has two shorthanded goals and two assists for four points in eight games while eating up 20:24 of ice time. His presence is that much more vital with Rasmus Ristolainen and Marc Staal out of the lineup due to injury.

Anytime you see 21 and 11 on the ice at the same time for the Flyers, you have an opportunity to see something special.  Scott Laughton and Travis Konecny have been the engine behind the Flyers’ success on the penalty kill this year, but they also forecheck at 5-on-5, and they had a pretty one today with a little less than nine minutes left in the first period. The two tried to break out but lost possession and Anaheim’s defensemen collected in their own zone.  But Konecny and Laughton continued to apply the pressure, as Laughton took the F1 role and went after the puck carrier. Konecny didn’t actually touch the puck on this sequence, but his presence as F2 caused the Anaheim defenseman to second-guess an outlet pass.  Laughton’s pressure finally caused Anaheim’s D to play a 10-foot pass into the slot, and Laughton quickly changed course and got to the second Anaheim defender. He deflected that attempted pass and was able to get the loose puck to Tyson Foerster, resulting in a high quality scoring chance.  It’s a line that is only going to get better as the season goes on.