Raffl recovered after shot to foot
PHILADELPHIA >> No matter how bad he looked in Chicago after absorbing the effects of a shot to the foot near the end of the game, Michael Raffl wasn’t about to let it get him down. Especially after showing in recent games that he’s still capable of moving his career in an upwardly mobile direction.
Raffl, the former 20-goal scorer who the past two seasons has toiled relatively anonymously on Flyers checking lines, came into a game Saturday night against the Columbus Blue Jackets showing some real offensive spark. That included a game in which he scored a goal, was temporarily credited with another and assisted on yet another goal in a win last Monday over the Vegas
Golden Knights.
But in Chicago Thursday, Raffl took a Slater Koekkoek shot off the foot in the closing minute and had to be helped from the ice.
“Yeah, it was big stinger,” Raffl said Saturday. “I definitely felt that one.”
He also felt a rush of concern at first, wondering if the pain was due to a fracture. Not so, Raffl was to learn later.
“In the first moment I was (worried), but it was better than I thought, thank God,” Raffl said. “And thank God I didn’t have to battle through (then), because the game was over anyway.
“But no, I’m good . ... It looked worse than it was.”
So Raffl was able to suit up Saturday night against the Blue Jackets, who came in on a 4-0-2 run and one of five Metropolitan Division teams ahead of the Flyers. As for Raffl, he’s been good in a similar role to what he played last season, when he scored just six goals and 18 points in 67 games. Along the way he’s becoming more of a skilled defensive forward and penalty killer.
“Raffi’s played some good hockey for us so far; he’s playing 10-11 minutes per game,” head coach Alain Vigneault said. “They’re important minutes and he’s playing well.
“Obviously he’s one of our experienced players. My understanding was that throughout the last couple of years he’s had different roles on the team. After training camp the way we envisioned using him was on a third or fourth line, whatever you want to call it. We wanted him there and we wanted him on the PK. So far that’s how we’ve used him and that’s what he’s done for us.”
Whatever he’s asked to do, Raffl will do without hesitation. Even if it involves him putting unpadded limbs in front of speeding pucks.
“I just try to block shots,” said Raffl, who nonetheless would help cap off the Flyers’
7-4 win over the Blue Jackets with an empty net goal. “Sometimes it hits you in a nice spot, sometimes it gets you a little bit worse. That’s the game we play, you know?”
“That’s the role he has,” added Vigneault. “It might expand, it might change. But that’s an important role when you’re playing 5-on-5 and you’re killing penalties. That’s as important as playing the power play and playing 5-on-5 on (a scoring) line.”
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Scott Laughton had
NOTES >> a finger broken when a dumpin pass by Columbus somehow found its target on Laughton’s right hand. He’s expected to miss four weeks . ... Brian Elliott started his third straight game in net Saturday night, which says something about the way he played his previous two games (both wins), but also makes one wonder if Carter Hart should be considered the club’s No. 1 goalie. Either way, Vigneault wasn’t going there. He said simply that with two games in two days – the Flyers are on Long Island Sunday night to take on the streaking Islanders – he’d need both goalies this weekend . ... In five games, Hart is 2-2-1 with a 2.59 goals-against and only .890 saves percentage . ... After taking on the Islanders, who are on a six-game winning streak, the Flyers head to Pittsburgh Tuesday for some fun with the Pens.