Hakstol labors in effort to motivate Flyers
VOORHEES, N.J. >> Dave Hakstol watched the Flyers’ 4-0 loss to the Colorado Avalanche Tuesday once, live, from behind the bench. That was enough. He didn’t need a post-game film review to decide what to do next.
So he showed up at the Skate Zone Wednesday morning, was heard shouting during a practice where sticks were slammed on the ice, then ordered a full-contact workout without regard to possible injuries … feelings included.
“It was about ‘compete,’” the head coach said after the relatively short but unusually physical practice. “And that’s the basis of this game. I don’t think we were happy with our ‘compete’ level last night. So, we’re going to compete. So we came out and worked at it today in practice.”
A day after the Avalanche scored at least a goal in every period and outshot the Flyers, 40-25, Hakstol clearly was disturbed. The Flyers had lost seven of their last eight, two in overtime, falling to 5-7-3 overall and disappointing the crowd in their first Wells Fargo Center appearance since Oct. 29.
His decision to order drills which included, among other things, the Flyers banging each other into corners and shoving for position in front of the net, was not unprecedented at the NHL level, but it was notable, particularly with the Flyers scheduled to host the Washington Capitals Thursday night at 7.
Nor did Hakstol apologize for or try to soften the image of the day-after agenda.
“We didn’t play hard enough last night,” he said. “That was a hole in our game. So we are going to come out and work at it today, regardless of when we play.”
With the second fewest goals scored in the league at 27, better only than Anaheim’s 25, the Flyers were not inclined to protest Hakstol’s decision. Though at least two veterans, Mark Streit and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, who has been battling lower-body issues, exited early, the consensus in the room was that the Flyers had that practice-day challenge coming.
“It’s kind of like training camp revisited, but I think it’s something we need,” Wayne Simmonds said. “I think getting into battles like that will make us more competitive.”
That, the Flyers showed against each other. But what about against the Capitals?
“If you can go out there and have a mean streak against your teammates,” Simmonds said, “I don’t see why you can’t have it against the other team.”
There is history
of
the Flyers using mean-streak hockey to win Stanley Cups. The game is different, but the message, Hakstol seemed to be saying Wednesday, is the same.
“I think today we showed that we want to battle,” Radko Gudas said. “We battled each other. So I don’t see any reason not to do it in the games. If you want to win games in this league, you have to compete. So we have to make sure we are setting the tone high and that we are winning those battles.”
Typically, Hakstol watches the film of a game shortly after it is played. He did not do that Tuesday night, though he did say he would get around to it sometime after practice.
He chose a battle Wednesday. By Thursday night, Flyers fans should know if it was one that he’d won.
“It was a work day,” Hakstol said. “We had a hard work day and guys went out and competed hard. ... There was nothing over the line out there. Guys went out and played hard and practiced hard. And that’s what we asked them to do.”