Philadelphia Flyers win in Vancouver, but future is still uncertain

The Philadelphia Flyers broke out of their slump in Vancouver, earning a 3-2 victory. But does it matter?

The Philadelphia Flyers limped into Rogers Arena in Vancouver, losers of 5 of their previous six games. They had lost their grip on the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference as the surging New York Islanders and Toronto Maple Leafs moved past them. They badly needed a win.

And the Orange and Black delivered. The slumbering offense put three pucks past Canucks goalie Ryan Miller as the defense held on for a 3-2 victory.

But does the triumph mean anything? Does it signify the beginning of a major push toward the playoffs, or is it the mark of a desperate team in the last throes of a moribund campaign?

Sports narratives are often reactive and rarely predictive. We construct them with sand, to be washed away as soon as the new tide of another game washes onto shore. Nonetheless, we should know enough about the Flyers from watching their core players perform together for the past few years to know exactly where this organization is headed.

And it’s not to the Stanley Cup Finals.

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A victory against a Vancouver Canucks squad that is as inconsistent as the Flyers should not be cause for much rejoicing. Of course, we should take comfort in the fact that Shayne Gostisbehere rediscovered his offensive groove. Ghost assisted on all three of the Flyers’ tallies and played a solid defensive game as well. We should also acknowledge that Claude Giroux looked a bit more like the dynamic player he is capable of being. Though he was held off the score sheet once again, Giroux registered five shots on goal and generated a quality scoring chance at the end of the contest that would have put the game away. From a team perspective, the Philadelphia Flyers looked much more dangerous in the offensive end. They also took full advantage of the Canucks’ sloppiness, capitalizing on blocked shots and turnovers to start odd-man rushes.

However, the Flyers seem incapable of stringing together multiple strong performances. They can’t win on the road and don’t make up for their aversion to travel with a dominant record on home ice. They give up too many goals (179 at last count, which puts them near the bottom in the NHL) and don’t score enough to make up the difference. The Flyers have been anemic in even strength play. Their power play is too streaky to be relied on as a consistent source of offensive production.

The Flyers team as presently constructed has not demonstrated an ability to beat elite squads like the Capitals and Penguins with any kind of consistency. Even if they were able to sneak into the playoffs and knock off the top-seeded Eastern Conference team, it would be difficult to foresee the Flyers advancing past a second-tier club like the the Rangers or Blue Jackets.

So, what should GM Ron Hextall do? Flyers beat writer Sam Carchidi suggested in a column this week that Hextall should look to be a seller at the trade deadline. Even if one does not agree with Carchidi’s position, the Flyers do have a glut of defensemen that a contending team might covet to shore up its blue line. There is no need for Mark Streit to remain in Philadelphia past the deadline, for example. While it might seem a bit extreme to dangle players like Jakub Voracek and Brayden Schenn in trade discussions, Hextall should not rule out any scenario that makes the Flyers a better organization in two to three years. At that point, their young defensemen should be ready to contribute at the NHL level and the team should be ready to shed the mediocrity that has engulfed the franchise for the past five years.

Flyers fans trapped in a Snyder-era “win-now” mindset would likely resist moving any of the organization’s star players. To be clear, the Flyers should not eagerly seek to part with any of their core players. The point of the trade deadline from a front office’s perspective is to capitalize on the desperation of another team, not to broadcast your own or shackle yourself to the unreasonable expectations of a frustrated fan base.

Next: Philadelphia Flyers: 'Down on the Farm' Report

Ultimately, Hextall cannot abandon the long view to which he has bravely adhered during his tenure as general manager of the Philadelphia Flyers. This organization’s success is rooted in the future, not the present. There is not a player available at the trade deadline that can alter this trajectory.

A meaningless win against the struggling Vancouver Canucks should not change the equation, either.

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