Sources told Anthony Di Marco the Flyers' veterans are the biggest problem, and Travis Konecny is among those named.
The report lands one day after the Matvei Michkov bench clash with Nick Seeler in Monday's 3-1 win in Vancouver. That moment is background now. The bigger question is who the people inside the room think is actually failing.
Di Marco noted that his sources said "the play of (Porter) Martone and (Matvei) Michkov isn't the problem."
The sources didn't stop there. They explicitly called out forwards Konecny, Sean Couturier and Trevor Zegras, along with defensemen Travis Sanheim and Cam York, for not pulling their weight. This is a sourced report, not something confirmed on the record, and it should be read that way.
Some of the numbers back the complaint. Zegras has 14 points but sits at -8. York has one point in 12 games and a -10 rating, which is ugly for a 25-year-old defenseman who was a first-round pick.
Couturier has 7 points in 20 games. Konecny has 6 points in 10 games and a -4, and Sanheim has 8 points with a -5.
But the picture isn't one-sided. Konecny scored the power-play game-winner in Vancouver, and Sanheim added the empty-netter while logging 25:04 of ice time.
Is this a veteran leadership problem for the Flyers?
Partly, yes. The Flyers are 5-10-5, 27th in the NHL, with a goal differential of -21. They are 2-6-2 on the road, and a team with that many veterans on big deals shouldn't be sliding like this.
The sources also hand the kids a pass that the numbers don't fully earn. Michkov has 10 goals but a -11 rating, and Martone is at -5 with 20 penalty minutes. Protecting the young players while the veterans take the blame is a tidy story, though not a complete one.
A post from PHLY_Flyers put the mood in one line: "How mentally weak is this team?" That came after a win that, per the post, "felt like a loss." Beat writers have been split on the Michkov and Seeler clash, and the culture questions aren't going away.
Rick Tocchet's group gets no soft landing. The Flyers visit Edmonton on Wednesday, and the Oilers are 13-3-3 and second in the NHL. If the veterans named in this report don't show up, the story only gets louder.
Quick hits
ANAHEIM DUCKSTroy Terry skated on a line at practice Tuesday, and beat writer Derek Lee says he could play Wednesday against Nashville. Good news for a lineup that could use him.
WASHINGTON CAPITALSGeorge Richards reports Tom Wilson is in the lineup tonight against the Senators in Ottawa. That's the news Caps fans wanted this afternoon.
SAN JOSE SHARKSNHL Player Safety fined Mason Marchment $5,000, the maximum under the CBA, for roughing Islanders rookie Victor Eklund. The cap on the fine is the story here.
VANCOUVER CANUCKSThomas Drance reports Vittorio Mancini was missing from the Canucks' rushes at Tuesday's practice at Rogers Arena. Worth watching with this team still searching for answers.
WINNIPEG JETSChris Johnston relays that Connor Hellebuyck says things that happened to his family in Winnipeg "crossed the line." It puts a very different face on the trade request.
This article was written with the help of artificial intelligence, based on public reports and official sources.
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