Hextall: Flyers need more hunger around net
The fading Flyers have three more games before their league-mandated bye week, and they want to go into their break feeling good about themselves.
The fading Flyers have three more games before their league-mandated bye week, and they want to go into their break feeling good about themselves.
Right now, their confidence is sinking.
Losers of nine of their last 11 (2-6-3), the Flyers will host Vancouver on Thursday before playing afternoon games in Boston on Saturday and in Washington on Sunday.
"It's important for us to dig in and play our game," slumping center Claude Giroux said Wednesday after practice in Voorhees. "It would be great to go into the break with three wins, and we're capable of it."
Not if their offense doesn't wake up.
The Flyers have scored just 19 goals in their last 11 games. They dropped a 4-1 decision Tuesday in Buffalo.
General manager Ron Hextall said the Flyers need to play with more hunger around the net.
"To me, we made it easy on their goalie," Hextall said of Tuesday's loss. "We all know where most goals are scored - and they're in tight. And we need to do a better job as a group getting there."
After the next three games, the Flyers will be off the ice for four days and won't play again until Jan. 21 against New Jersey. The bye week was created after negotiations by the players association.
"I'm not a big fan of the bye week," Hextall said. "I think it's ridiculous. It's the most asinine thing I've ever seen."
The Flyers recently had four days off for the holiday break and most will be off during the all-star break later this month.
"We want to make sure we're going in confident after the break," said rookie winger Travis Konecny, whose team spent part of Wednesday's practice working on defensive coverage when the opponent was on a rush. "If we can get the last games here to go positive for us and finish on a positive note, and then get some solid rest time - and come off that rest with good confidence - it would be awesome for us."
"Ultimately, it's not about feeling good or not," coach Dave Hakstol said. "It's about making that push to gain points. As I said three or four weeks ago, it's going to be a dogfight. Let's get in that dogfight and let's get after it in the next three games."
The Flyers' scoring drought has caused Hakstol to make several line changes. More are coming Thursday. At Wednesday's practice, he had Konecny, who has been at left wing, playing his natural spot on the right side on a unit with Giroux and Michael Raffl.
In another change, Matt Read, who has been on Giroux's unit during the last three games, was on a line with Sean Couturier and Jake Voracek at practice. Read and Nick Cousins alternated at left wing.
Giroux, who was dominating during the Flyers' 10-game winning streak, has one goal in the last 14 games, and he is minus-11 in the last 12 games.
"It's a team thing," Giroux said. "When the team goes well, it's easier to get your points and get your pluses. It's team effort. . . . Individually, we all have to be better to make sure we're a better team."
Giroux "is not playing the way he can play," Hextall said. "He needs to be better . . . but we have a lot of guys who need to play better."
The Flyers have dropped seven of their last eight games.
"You can't accept losing, and however Hak delivers that message" will hopefully turn things around, Hextall said. "There's different ways for coaches to deliver messages."
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