The end result was a loss, and one that might come back to haunt them in the next 11 days. But despite losing to Detroit 4-2 Thursday night at home, the Flyers can take solace in the fact that their two recent additions to the roster have shown something the rest of the roster have had ample problems with all year: getting shots on goal.
After the game Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet said he was extremely impressed with the amount of activity the Flyers had offensively, but was still irritated by the number of missed shots on net (20). He lauded both Martone and Foerster for being able to not just contribute on the scoreboard, but having the knack of getting shots on net, not just towards the goaltender. Martone had a quarter of the team’s 36 shots (nine) while Foerster had four of his own.
“Yeah, he just gets the puck on net, I mean Gibson made some really good saves,” Tocchet said of Martone, who registered his first National Hockey League point on Philadelphia’s second goal. “He puts one on the net again and we score. So that’s something we really got to work on, this team, we got to hit the net. It’s really frustrating.”
As for Foerster, Tocchet said he looked very good in his first game back after four months. He was also glad to see that sniper mentality from the winger, something the Flyers sorely lacked the last roughly 50 games since Foerster’s shoulder injury, surgery, and rehab. “I mean look at the shot, in the slot, boom,” the coach said. “That’s what he can do. Martone, Foerster, they’ve got that quick shot. It’s dangerous, the goalie doesn’t get set up and they hit the net.”
The Flyers have turned a corner, possibly too late, when it comes to shots on goal. After scrounging to eke 20 a game during some stretches earlier this season, Philadelphia has had 25 or more shots in six of the last seven games, including 42 against Chicago and 30 against Dallas prior to Thursday’s contest. But it’s something that Foerster and Martone should have no issue resolving, if not in the next seven games certainly when the 2026-27 season rolls around.
Konecny and Martone finding some synergy
Winger Travis Konecny and Porter Martone now have six whole periods together under their belts this season. Yet, despite the brevity of time, both appear to have found some chemistry this week. Almost a rather head-turning amount.
“Yeah I played with him at Worlds, and you wouldn’t have known he was a junior kid that was playing for the first time with professionals,” Konecny said after the game. “He kind of knows his role, he knows what he’s good at and he sticks to it. He’s in good areas and he’s only going to get better. It’s really encouraging and it’s important to have him for this little stretch here. He’s a key piece right now.
“Just the way he plays, he’s not a risky player,” Konecny added later. “He reminds me of Foery, honestly. The way he just plays north, he gets in on the forecheck hard, he’s a big body around the front of the net. He gets in good shooting areas and finds ways to get shots off. So I’m not shocked.”
“I feel like we’re really starting to read off each other and things are kind of clicking, you saw some chances there in the third,” Martone said of Konecny also after the game. “He fed me there for a little breakaway. Chemistry doesn’t happen overnight. It’s going to come. It’s going to take some time. And that’s something that is going to keep on getting better.
“I think he kind of just brings everyone into the fight on this team. He’s got high energy, high skill, and he’s not scared of anyone. That’s something I can look up to, he kind of plays that gritty game, and someone that just brings this team into the fight every night.”
Konecny also wasn’t surprised by the game Foerster had in his return. “I’m not shocked,” he said. “It’s too bad we couldn’t win for him. But I mean what a lift for the team. It’s frustrating again that we lost tonight but it’s still encouraging that you go to the rink tomorrow and you have Foery around the locker room, it’s still a big lift, big boost. He’s just a pure goal scorer. I’m not shocked, we were all joking just before the game about him scoring. He’s going to have some good looks. It’s just too bad we couldn’t be celebrating with him.”
Martone not happy with loss, but finding his way
Porter Martone had one of the more impressive home debuts from a Flyers rookie in recent memory. But he knows that kind of effort is going to be needed over the next seven games for Philadelphia to have any chance of finding their way into playoff hockey.
“I liked the response from our group, just continuing to keep on going and no quit,” he said. “I think that’s something in this room that they’re preaching for the rest of the season.”
On a line with Christian Dvorak and Konecny, Martone created a slew of chances, all of them in the areas you would love to see every line come up with. Of his nine shots, only one was from beyond the faceoff circles in the offensive zone. And perhaps more importantly, he was on target far more often than not. See below for the proof. No shots were blocked, and only two missed the mark. On top of that, he had an expected goals for percentage of 88.39 and was 76.47 per cent for Corsi For percentage. Stunning numbers in his second NHL game!
“Yeah I feel like I could’ve scored a couple,” he said. “You know, I think I’m building chemistry with TK and Dvo, and one is going to find the back of the net soon enough.”
The rookie also said he felt comfortable in the third period against Washington and carried that well into Thursday’s game against the Red Wings. “I think I kind of found my game and continued to keep on playing,” Martone said. “I just did the things that make me successful. I was trying to come in here and give a jolt to this group and help them try to win games. It’s unfortunate we haven’t got one yet but it’s a big response for us tomorrow.”
It was quite apparent both Martone and Foerster were the two players dragging the Flyers into the fight. And despite the outcome, it’s crucial that both keep playing as well as they did last night. Tonight’s game against the Islanders might be a far bigger test being a back-to-back situation. This will mark Martone’s first back-to-back game in his career and might feel a bit more drained as the game goes on. Meanwhile it’ll also be Foerster’s first back-to-back in some time. The adrenaline was a plus for Foerster last night, but he might also have some weary legs in the later stages against New York.
It wasn’t the two points they so desperately craved, but seeing Martone and Foerster in the lineup certainly bodes well for the Flyers.