Jan 23, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Philadelphia Flyers right wing Owen Tippett (74) celebrates his goal with teammates in the first period against the Colorado Avalanche at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
Like the rest of us, the Philadelphia Flyers are stuck inside today.
A Sunday practice was cancelled because of the weather, and Monday's morning skate is already in question based on how this storm plays out.
So, while we're all inside with no new hockey stuff to talk about, I thought I'd offer up some leftovers from the game Friday night - which I didn't write about since I had a wedding this weekend - the week that was, and look ahead to what's coming before the Olympic break.
So, without further ado, grab your hot chocolate - because you aren't going anywhere - and join me for some Sunday hockey thoughts.
There's something to be said for a young player who makes an great first impression, hits a wall, and before he's sent back to the minors for more seasoning, bounces back resiliently and not only continues to make a name for himself but also helps the team win.
That paragraph would describe Denver Barkey's Flyers season thus far to a tee.
Barkey showed he belonged right away with two assists in his NHL debut in Madison Square Garden against the New York Rangers last month.
His first eight games, he had a good bite to the game. He showed how smart a player he is - having a real knack for making small area plays and not trying to go for the home run every time he touched the puck.
But then it looked like all of the sudden, his game dropped. For his next three games he seemed like the skill and talent level he was playing against was exposing his inexperience. The two games against the Tampa Bay Lightning were most glaring. He looked overwhelmed by an uber-talented Lightning squad in the middle of one hell of a heater.
In the second of those Tampa games, Barkey had a hard time seeing the ice. Flyers coach Rick Tocchet was incredibly selective in when he was using Barkey. It was as if he was protecting him and not giving him a regular shift.
The next game, in Buffalo, Barkey was a healthy scratch.
There was some internal conversation at this time if Barkey should be sent back to Lehigh Valley. Maybe it was too much, too soon.
But Tocchet wanted to give him another chance. Wanted to see if sitting out one game and watching from the press box would help.
His first game back, against Pittsburgh, he had a pair of assists. Fast forward a week and he's picking up a goal and an assist in a stunning victory over the Colorado Avalanche.
DENVER BARKEY GOAL IN DENVER ‼️#PHIvsCOL | #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/r2KCZSDaa6
In the 15 games they've been together, Barkey, captain Sean Couturier and winger Owen Tippett are tied for the second-highest expected goals percentage of any line in the NHL with at least 120 minutes played together (69.0%) - just a tenth of a percent off of the Brady Tkachuk-Tim Stutzle-Fabian Zetterlund line in Ottawa.
Barkey has eight points (2 goals, six assists) in his 16 NHL games this season and is again trending in the right direction.
"I think he's meant more for the NHL than the AHL," Oliver Bonk told me recently on an episode of Snow The Goalie. Bonk was Barkey's teammate in junior hockey and also with the Phantoms and maybe knows Barkey better than anyone in the organization. "The way the AHL is played is less possession and less give and go. Maybe guys don't see the play the way he does.
" He has one of those elite minds that when he plays with players like Couturier and Tipper in his first game and he was making plays and continued to make plays. He's unreal. I love watching that guy."
Tocchet has said he doesn't want Barkey living in a hotel for long and living out of a suitcase, so the Flyers may make a decision soon as to whether he needs to become a permanent fixture in the lineup.
I've liked what I've seen. I know sometimes roster decisions are made based on team need and sometimes guys are sent down not because of their play but because it's what make sense for the team at the time, but wherever the Flyers brass is on Barkey today, the kid deserves a shot to be here for the rest of the season.
It's hard to say someone has been "quiet" when he scores a hat trick and has a four-point game against the best team in the NHL on their home ice where they had only lost once in regulation previously, but that Colorado game is what put everyone on notice as to how well Tippett has been playing.
He has always been known as a streaky player - and maybe this is just one of those hot streaks - but with 11 points (7 goals, 4 assists) in his last 13 games, and the aforementioned success of his line with Barkey and Couturier, the Flyers are hopeful that this stretch won't just peter out and go cold for a while, but remain consistent.
Owen Tippett is such an anomaly because there are some nights (like last night) where he looks on par with guys like MacKinnon
And then he’ll go 5 games in a row of looking like Jesse Puljujarvi
pic.twitter.com/fhtTPRAjHi
And that will be determined by Tippett, who has the combination of power and speed to his game that neither of his linemates do, and he is the best finisher on the team currently.
"I think I've been pretty happy with my game the last couple of weeks, just doing all the little things and not really worrying about ... points, or scoring (and) just knowing they're coming," Tippett told Jackie Spiegel of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
He should be, and the Flyers should, too. If there was a guy who could step up his game and keep the Flyers relevant and contending for a playoff spot this season, it was Tippett.
I'm not saying this pridefully, but I'm not sure there's been another person with a platform for opinion in this city who has been harder on Sam Ersson than I have.
Up until this past week, my reasoning has certainly bene justified.
But the Flyers backup may have been a huge contributor in saving the season.
With the team on the brink of a collapse, having lost six straight, getting blown out in several of them, having plummeted in the standing while starting goalie Dan Vladar was out with an injury, and facing a road trip against Vegas (seven straight wins) Utah (7-1-1 in the previous nine) and the Avalanche (best record in hockey), it looked like Armageddon was coming for the Flyers.
But then Ersson played his best game of the season, stopping 24 of the 25 shots by Vegas in a 2-1 win. He also kept the Flyers in a game they could have been blown out of early by the Avalanche stopping 32 of 35 shots en route to a 7-3 victory.
He wasn't the only reason, but was a big part of why the Flyers took home five of a possible six points on a road trip many thought they'd take home zero.
Had not Ersson played well last week, the Flyers brass may have been sitting by their fireplaces today, contemplating punting on a season they wanted so desperately to end with guaranteed playoff games in front of a crowd at the Xfinity Mobile Arena for the first time since 2018.
Instead, if they beat the New York Islanders on Monday night (assuming the game isn't postponed), they will be back in third place in the Metropolitan Division, in a playoff spot, and will have survived their rough losing streak.
There are other players who were responsible for that too, but Ersson, in the middle of his worst season as a professional, stood out more than maybe any other at a time the team needed it the most.
If the last two weeks were the gauntlet in the Flyers schedule, the next six games are like a trampoline.
The question is, do the Flyers know how to bounce on that thing without hurting themselves.
Really, the schedule plays into their favor beyond the Olympic break as well, but a lot can happen between now and then, so we're going to just look at these next six games:
Four of six at home. The games against New York, Columbus, Boston and Washington are four games against teams battling for playoff spots in the East. Los Angeles has a similar record to the Flyers. Ottawa is fading out of the playoff picture (now nine points back).
This is an opportunity for the Flyers.
They have to look at it game-by-game, but we can look at them collectively.
If the Flyers can come away from these six games with at least eight points, they will most likely go into the break in a playoff spot with just 26 games to go.
If Vladar returns to the lineup Monday he's probably starting four of the games (I could see Ersson getting the nod in Columbus in the first of two on back-to-back nights, and against Ottawa.)
Looking at the opponents and where the games fall on the schedule, only the Boston game looks like the odds would be stacked a bit against the Flyers.
This is an opportunity for them to make some hay - to build momentum into the break and be ready to grab a spot coming out of it.
They got through the toughest part of their schedule. There are challenges ahead, but nothing like what they just faced.
These next six games will tell you most of what you need to know about the team for the remainder of the season.
