Dvorak takes ownership of ‘mistake’ on Flyers’ bad sequence in loss originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

VOORHEES, N.J. — Rick Tocchet cited effort as an issue on the first goal the Flyers allowed in an ugly 4-0 loss Monday night to the Islanders.

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It was a shorthanded goal, which had different layers of responsibility on the Flyers’ end.

Samuel Ersson played a dumped-in puck to the corner, where New York jumped on it. Jean-Gabriel Pageau was left wide open for a shot after Jamie Drysdale and Bobby Brink both converged on Casey Cizikas, who had the puck.

Christian Dvorak, believing the Flyers would have possession, was too far up the ice and not in defensive position. Just like that, the Flyers were handed a first-period deficit on their power play.

“We didn’t even have the puck and then we had two guys go to the same guy and then one guy doesn’t backcheck,” Tocchet said Monday night. … “Who knows if we’re 0-0 after the first, but it seemed like when they scored, some guys accepted it.”

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Dvorak was accountable Tuesday after practice.

“I definitely could have backchecked and been there to help the guys,” the 10-year veteran said. “That was a mistake on my part; definitely should have been back there.”

Tocchet has a good read on Dvorak. He coached him with the Coyotes for four seasons, including Dvorak’s career year in 2019-20. When the Flyers signed Dvorak to a five-year contract extension about three weeks ago, Tocchet called him a “culture guy.”

So Dvorak knows that Tocchet expects him to understand the mistake.

“It’s my fault,” Dvorak said. “I’ve got to take responsibility and not let it happen again.”

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With 32 points (12 goals, 20 assists) in 50 games, Dvorak should blow past his career high of 38. He’s on pace for 50-plus points and the Flyers have really liked his well-roundedness down the middle of the ice.

Monday night was a rare performance from Dvorak. His minus-3 rating was his worst mark of the season.

“Dvo has obviously had a really good year for us,” Tocchet said Tuesday. “I think he’s putting pressure on himself. The one thing about his game that has been a little inconsistent is I think he’s trying to go for offense and that’s not who he is. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a time and place for it.”

Tocchet mentioned how cheating for offense can cause other details to slip.

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“You’re looking, ‘Oh, I hope our player’s going to get the puck and I’m going the other way,’” the head coach said. “No, just come back and then if we do get it, just re-attack. That’s not just him though; I think that has been a little bit in a bunch of guys’ games. We just can’t play that way. We can’t outscore mistakes, we don’t have that type of team. We’ve just got to buy in, and when we buy in, we’re a good team, we are.”