VOORHEES, N.J. — There may be some irony in the fact that on the same day that young Shayne Gostisbehere was a healthy scratch watching from the press box, rookie Travis Konecny was later benched during most of the third period against Winnipeg.
Circumstances were a tad different, but it reinforces Flyers coach Dave Hakstol’s methods of pulling players to allow them to sit, think and watch what’s going on.
Konecny played only 12:02 during the Flyers' 5-2 win over the Jets. He saw just two shifts in the third period because, as Hakstol said, he wasn’t having a good game on the defensive side of the puck. The same could be said for why Ghost didn’t play, at all.
“Sometimes, other guys are ready to go and I’ve been fighting the puck a little bit,” Konecny said Friday. “I’d rather the guys who are going (playing well) be on the ice, anyway. We closed out the third period perfectly and that’s what we’ve been looking to do.
“It’s obviously tough to be the one not playing, but to see the way the guys closed out the third period, it was perfect for us.”
Hakstol moved Dale Weise into Konecny’s spot at left wing on Sean Couturier’s line with Jakub Voracek.
The reason? Hakstol wanted a bigger ice presence against the Jets once 6-foot-5, 225-pound Blake Wheeler was moved onto Mark Scheifele’s unit with Nikolaj Ehlers. Konecny is a generous 5-10 and 184 pounds.
NHL
“I don’t necessarily think he is worried who I match up against,” Konecny said. “I just honestly think it wasn’t my night and I had a couple mistakes out there.”
As for Gostisbehere, Hakstol said his benching was a one-game affair and he’ll return to the lineup Saturday against Tanpa Bay, paired with veteran Michael Del Zotto.
“I went into it with the mindset just one night and that’s still the way I feel today,” Hakstol said.
Ghost said he intends to turn his benching into “a positive.” He paid careful attention to what he was watching on the ice from the press box.
“The game slows down for you a bit up there,” Gostisbehere said. “I'm not always watching the puck up there, I’m watching the guys. It was a good thing.”
What Hakstol wants to see from Ghost is more of a physical presence in one-on-one play. Lately, he’s been checked too easily off pucks. The coaches feel Ghost needs to amp his game up and have more resolve when being challenged.
Gostisbehere’s benching coincided with being named the Philadelphia Sports Writer Association’s Pro Athlete of the Year. That was embarrassing for the 23-year-old defenseman.
“I already knew that was happening before it went public, so it didn’t go into my head, at all,” Gostisbehere said, adding that because of his size, the club wants him to use his speed more on the ice.
“That’s the big thing. Use my abilities. I have to be held accountable for my play, too. I won’t be given anything. I’ve got to put in my work every day.”
Hakstol is hoping both his young players take to heart what transpired on Thursday and predicted they will see things in a better light going forward.
“I don’t think any player likes it,” he said. “Those type of things (benchings) have to be done for the right reasons. With a little bit of thought behind them … when you base them in good, solid thought, usually, it turns out good for the player.
“There’s a communication element to it either before, during and after the fact. And then you move forward. It should be an immediate positive for the player.”
Loose pucks
Weise had a maintenance day off the ice. … Based on practice, the Flyers' two defensive healthy scratches against the Lightning will be Nick Schultz and Andrew MacDonald. … Seamus Essl, a 6-year-old from Thorndale, Pennsylvania, sent Claude Giroux a letter inviting him to skate in the boy’s backyard and promised that his mother would make them both grilled cheese. The Flyers invited Essl to practice on Friday. He also came into the dressing room to meet with Giroux. The two of them shared a grilled cheese sandwich prepared by the Flyers’ chef at Skate Zone.