Christian Dvorak’s return to his old stomping grounds in Montreal on Tuesday night comes at a timely juncture in the season.
With the Flyers’ Tyson Foerster sidelined by injury, other forwards have to pick up the slack, starting with Tuesday’s visit to the Bell Centre to take on the Canadiens.
Dvorak, a center and occasional winger, spent four seasons with the Canadiens, consistently improving as a two-way player. Signing with the Flyers as a free agent for one year and $5.4 million, the 29-year-old has found early chemistry on a line with Trevor Zegras.
Dvorak is also one of the reasons why the Flyers’ penalty kill has been so effective. The Flyers have killed a league-high 38 power plays, and their 90.5 percent success rate has moved up as high as second in the NHL.
“He decided to come here because he saw an opportunity,” coach Rick Tocchet said of Dvorak after the morning skate at the Bell. “He’s played well for us this year. He’s a smart guy, he’s good defensively but he’s also a jack of all trades. Our penalty kill has been good this year and he’s been one of the leaders.”
With Foerster out for at least a couple of games, Tocchet has moved Dvorak into the middle of the power-play unit, which has moved up to 20th in the NHL at an 18.9 percent scoring rate.
“He’s really jelled with certain guys,” Tocchet said. “He’s helped out Zegras. When he played with (Matvei) Michkov, he talked to him on the bench, educated him on certain things. He’s taken a leadership role here.”
If Dvorak keeps playing this steady brand of hockey, the Flyers might consider a contract extension at some point.
As for the game against the Canadiens, Dvorak said it felt nice to be back at a familiar place.
“It’s a lot of fun,” he said. “You know four years here, had a great time. Great place to play, great city. It will be a lot of fun competing against friends.”
Dvorak and the rest of the Flyers wanted to see a bounce-back effort after home losses to Toronto and Calgary over the weekend.
“It wasn’t the weekend we wanted,” the Illinois native said. “We just have to bounce back and be a hungry team. Play simple, win our battles.”
Adjusting lines
With Foerster off the Noah Cates line, Tocchet is looking to put some different lines together and maybe find some new chemistry.
“He (Foerster) is a top PK guy, he’s got a great shot,” Tocchet said.
Prior to the game, Tocceht gave the impression he would keep Dvorak and Zegras together. Owen Tippett was likely to fill the third spot on that unit.
‘Sour taste’
No one really saw the two efforts over the weekend coming. On Saturday, Toronto entered the game winless (0-3-0) on the road, then claimed a 5-2 win over the Flyers. Sunday, Calgary showed up with a 1-6-1 mark as a visiting team and skated away with a 2-1 win.
“These last two games left kind of a sour taste,” Tocchet said. “That’s going to happen during the year. You always want the team to respond.”
Stronger presence down low
The coaching staff has emphasized getting bodies closer to the net. That alignment not only puts traffic in front of the goalie but sets up shooters better for rebounds.
“I don’t think it’s guys not wanting to go to the net,” Tocchet said. “One guy with the one-timer, one guy wants to play to the side of the net. It’s little things like that when you add it up all the time.
“If you don’t get inside, it’s an easy night for the other team. You have to make teams make decisions. If you’re playing outside, it’s a pretty easy way of defending.”
