1 Step Forward, 1 Step Back For Flyers Ahead Of Trade Deadline

A Schedule Loss?

It’s easy to see why a third-period collapse could have happened on Sunday. Just take a look at the schedule page.

The game against Buffalo was the Flyers’ fifth in the last seven days, and sixth in nine. That’s tough for any team.

Asked after the game if it was fatigue or mental lapses that hurt his team on Sunday, coach Alain Vigneault said, “I think a combination of both.

“We made some mistakes that we just gave them goals. Three of them. That faceoff goal and obviously the third and fourth goal. Things that you can’t do in this league and things that we did tonight with some of our most experienced players.”

Joel Farabee, who scored his club-leading 15th goal of the year on Sunday, would not accept the excuse.

“I think we came out with a really good start to the third,” he said. “We had some good energy, we were making plays. Some bounces didn’t go our way tonight.”

Farabee is also aware that it’s hard to make up ground in the standings when a team is playing .500 hockey.

“Overall, we’d like to string some wins together and get on a little heater, but sometimes it just doesn’t go that way,” he said. “I think the biggest thing for us is how we respond in our next game.”

Which players will be on the roster when that happens?

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Deadline Drama?

At this point, it seems wildly unlikely that Fletcher is going to pay a high price for a rental player. Impending unrestricted free agents David Savard and Nick Foligno have now both generated first-round draft picks for the Columbus Blue Jackets — although those could be some very late first-rounders if Toronto or Tampa Bay have playoff success, and significant salary retention is also baked into those price tags.

Fletcher likely wouldn’t hesitate to pull the trigger if he can deal a pending free agent like Erik Gustafsson or Michael Raffl. But two pretty significant questions still loom before Monday’s deadline at 3 p.m. ET.

1. Will the club come to terms on an extension with impending UFA Scott Laughton to keep him in the fold? If not, will he be dealt?
2. Can Fletcher make a hockey trade that would shake up his team’s chemistry for the better, possibly helping to ignite a strong finish and push for that elusive playoff positioning?

No matter how many people say a quiet deadline is expected, you never know what might happen. And even small trades can sometimes end up having big impacts.

That’s what keeps the fans paying attention.