SEATTLE ― Mike Gartner once said, “Goals for me are a little like bananas; they come in bunches.”
Considering that the pure goal scorer finished his Hall of Fame career with 708, that’s a lot of potassium.
It summarizes Owen Tippett’s start to the year. And yes, he has heard the quote.
“I don’t know if it’s anything in particular or it’s just nice to see one go in and it gives you the confidence going forward,” he said. “But definitely, I definitely feel that way at times.”
In the first 36 games of the season, the forward has 11 goals and 22 points. Five of those goals came in the first seven games of the season, and two have come in the last three games — which means 26 games in the middle saw him find the back of the net just four times.
Flyers coach Rick Tocchet recently said Tippett is chasing consistency and wants to see him stack games. But it’s not just goal scoring, it’s about playing well overall. Essentially, he wants to see him lay a strong foundation — brick by brick.
“Yeah, for me, it’s just the details,” Tocchet said at Climate Pledge Arena on Sunday. I think he’s been starting to play real well. [Denver] Barkey has helped him, and [Sean Couturier], and I think the line’s been pretty good for us.
“I think Tipp, there’s the little things for him, he can stay detailed, he looks really good out there, especially off the neutral zone or off the rush — that’s what his talent is. But I still think there’s stuff around the net, in the slot … that he’s getting better at, and we’re going to keep working with him when it comes to those things.”
It’s been only three games, but the line of Tippett, Barkey, and Couturier has been off to a hot start.
Among Flyers lines that have played at least 20 minutes together this season, Money Puck has the trio No. 2 in expected goals percentage (73.3%). They are tied for eighth in expected goals (2.2) and have the fourth-best expected goals against (0.8).
According to Natural Stat Trick, when they are on the ice at five-on-five, the Flyers have 61.29% of the shot attempts, including 10 high-danger chances to just four against. They have outshot opponents across their almost 28 minutes together, 19-8, have had 17 scoring chances to nine against, and have two goals to one allowed.
Both of the goals were scored by Tippett.
“We try to talk a lot, as much as possible,” Couturier said. “Me being in the middle, try to control the play as much as I can and let him use his feet wide when he can. And then offensively, I think it’s just about finding the support areas and the open areas to create some chances, some opportunities.
“Lately, with Denver joining our line, it’s been clicking. He’s a smart little player who makes a lot of good little plays. So, yeah, just trying to build, and I think we have a lot of potential as a line to grow, and it’s fun to be a part of.”
The trio is having fun, and Tippett has been excelling lately. He scored a highlight-reel goal against the Vancouver Canucks, whom the Flyers play in British Columbia on Tuesday. And while Tippett is dazzling to watch when he can get into open ice, Tocchet says the next step for the 6-foot-1, 210-pound winger is to bury pucks around the net.
But it all comes down to consistency.
“I think, obviously, there’s a little bit of a kind of dip there, I think halfway through the first half,” he said. “I guess, but I’m feeling better about it now.”
“I think just doing everything I can to be ready,” he added when asked what he’s doing to try and be more consistent. “Obviously, body first, and making sure the mindset stays the same each and every game, no matter kind of what happens game to game or even within a game.”
Considering that Tippett has four goals in nine career games against the Seattle Kraken, whom the Flyers play on Sunday (8 p.m., NBCSP), it’s not a bad place to keep stacking.
“He’s a hot streak type of guy. He’s got a [heck] of a shot,” Tocchet said. “Sometimes I’d like to see him kind of just hit the net a little bit more, because he’s got a [heck] of a shot. You don’t have to be so fine sometimes.”
“A lot of goal scorers, they can hit the little orange in the net type of thing. But sometimes you just got to shoot it like it’s a basketball and the goals will go in.”
Breakaways
The Flyers will sport the same lineup that they’ve been using for the last few games. It means Barkey and defenseman Travis Sanheim, who each left the last game in Chicago before the holiday break early, are good to go. … Dan Vladař will get the start in goal against the Kraken. The Czech netminder is 7-1-1 with a 2.05 goals-against average and .905 save percentage against the team from the Pacific Northwest.
