Veteran Elliott ready to lend young core helping hand
Given the chance to re-sign as a backup goaltender to a kid 13 years his junior, Brian Elliott didn’t hesitate. He had more than a few reasons as to why, but primarily would list his opinion that the Flyers give him the best chance to achieve something new.
“You only get so many kicks at the can here,” the 35-year-old goalie said after a Wednesday practice, “and I feel like this group really has a good shot.”
Elliott stopped enough shots in his time in the crease last season to convince general manager Chuck Fletcher that another one-year free agent deal should be in order. It wasn’t just his play (16-7-4, 2.87 goals-against average, .899 saves percentage), but what his supportive presence meant to 22-year-old starter Carter Hart and the team even when Elliott wasn’t playing.
“I think Hartsy and I are working hard together right now to get into that game frame of mind because we don’t have many opportunities here before we start on the 13th,” said Elliott, who will be entering his 13th NHL season when the Flyers open with the Penguins next Wednesday. “We basically have the same group coming back and I think we all believe in each other, that we can take on these challenges. Our division is going to be really tough. Making it through our division will be really big and we’ve got to start somewhere.”
With the potential return to action of both Nolan Patrick and Oskar Lindblom, and with prospect center Morgan Frost looking to step up permanently to the big club, the Flyers are looking to take the infusion of youth on the forward lines and translate it into more production. It was clear in last summer’s playoffs that their offense was at a loss, even though Hart, Elliott and frequent strong defensive play kept them in the thick of things until the seventh game of the second playoff round, before a series-clinching 4-0 Islanders win.
Claude Giroux, the Flyers’ almost 33-year-old captain, said that series “left a bad taste” in his mouth. It sticks in the craw of other veterans, too.
“You’ve got to look at it this way, we definitely showed some progress from the years before, but unfortunately we couldn’t close the deal in the playoffs,” said Jake Voracek, who at 31 is also starting his 13th NHL season. “Obviously when you get a healthy Oskar and a healthy Nolan and with Phil Myers, Travis Sanheim, TK (Travis Konecny) and (Ivan Provorov), they’re in their primes right now. Obviously that’s going to be helpful for us. I am pretty excited to see them go to work.”
It’s that kind of depth, with veterans like Giroux, Voracek, Sean Couturier and yes, Elliott, mixing with the younger core players, that has stirred the most excitement around what is now officially a three-day-old Flyers training camp.
“That was first priority for us to come back here; we really like being part of this group as a family and being in the area,” Elliott said.
“You really see how passionate the fans are, how close we got in the bubble there in Toronto, one win away from being in the final four there. It gives me motivation.
“We basically have the same group coming back and I think we all believe in each other that we can take on these challenges. Our division is going to be really tough. Making it through our division will be really big and we’ve got to start somewhere. I think we are going to be able to take it game by game, and with the condensed schedule, I think we are going to be able to put bad ones in the past and good ones in your back pocket and get ready for the next one.”
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Take defenseman-turned-checking-line winger Sam Morin and his two knee surgeries, and merge
him with Nolan Patrick and the migraine issues that knocked him out of games since the end of the 2018-19 season. Now wonder what happens when the two accidentally merged on the ice Wednesday.
Thankfully, the collision didn’t seem to cause much concern. At least as far as returning third-line center Patrick was concerned, anyway.
“I was sitting right beside him. He looked fine,” Voracek said of Patrick. “We said some good (things) about it. He’s ready. You can tell he’s ready. It’s a good sign to see him out there.”
Added coach Alain Vigneault: “Wasn’t concerned at all. That’s part of the game. We are going to see that. Everything that I have seen from Nolan so far seems good and he is good to go.”