Philadelphia Flyers’ Dan Vladař helps team reach new heights – Hockey Writer – Philadelphia Flyers
The Philadelphia Flyers enter the 2025-26 season with an open mind when it comes to goaltending. After a strong preseason, their opener will be Dan Vladař, who was selected as a free agent on July 1. But in Game 2, they turned over to Samuel Ersson, who has appeared in 100 games since the 2023-24 season.
The Flyers repeated the same process over the next two games, but now, they appear to have their goalie settled on. Vladař has surprised the team and is expected to make his third consecutive start. He is helping the Orange and Black reach new heights.
Analysis of Vladař’s performance so far
The Flyers had the worst save percentage among 21 teams last seasonYingshi Century, according to QuantHockey. Despite having excellent defensive metrics, they weren’t much better in 2023-24 and narrowly missed the playoffs. With an almost completely different coaching staff and Vlada commanding the crease, things have changed dramatically.
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A more stable defensive scheme and Vlada’s outstanding performance allowed the team to win the game. He has allowed two goals or fewer in each of four games. He was particularly impressive against the Florida Panthers, stopping 56 of 60 shots he attempted over two games (93.33%).
“Reliable” is the best word to describe Vladař’s performance this season. When the Flyers needed a save, he made it. Mistakes were kept to a minimum and occasionally, he made a game-changing decision. This is in direct contrast to the team’s goaltenders from the previous two seasons – they no way Got big savings. It seemed like every puck that had a chance to go in did so.
Again, this can be partly blamed on the Flyers’ system. Under new head coach Rick Tocchet, the defense appears to be more proactive and less worried about blocking every piece of rubber that comes their way. Vladař’s confidence and new defensive energy led the Orange and Black to victory over a quality opponent.
Flyers’ Jock Sanheim pairing has taken a step forward
After Ivan Provorov was traded in the 2023 offseason, linebackers Cam York and Travis Sanheim were elevated to a full-time top pairing. Their first two seasons together didn’t go well due to the aforementioned deficiencies in goaltending and overall defensive structure.
York and Sanheim have a goal-scoring rate of 41.30% in 5-on-5 games in 2023-24. Among the 58 pairings with at least 500 minutes of ice time, that was the second-worst in the sample, trailing only Kyle Burroughs and Mario Ferraro of the San Jose Sharks. The Flyers duo has a reasonable expected goals rate of 49.81%, but an on-ice save percentage of just 0.885, putting them in trouble.
Last season, it was the same story. Their 42.67% goals-against rate ranks them sixth-worst in 62 games, despite a high expected goals rate of 53.40%. Goaltending is once again the main culprit: 0.883 on-ice save percentage.
This time, they soared. Their 66.67% goals against rate and 63.88% expected goals rate are both excellent results, making them one of the most effective defensive tandems in the NHL. But with an on-ice save percentage of 0.923, is that sustainable?
Is the Flyers’ play style sustainable?
Among pairings with 45 or more minutes of ice time this season, the .923 total is actually right around average – 52ND percentile. Previously, York and Sanheim were dealing with historically unreliable numbers between pipelines. Now, average seems to be elite.
There’s no doubt the new coaching staff has allowed York and Sanheim to play better hockey for their goaltenders, but it also puts Vlada’s performance into context. His key guys are playing some of the best hockey of their lives.
However, we have been paying attention team % savings that are sustainable (17th in all cases in the NHL). Vladař’s personal save percentage is 0.929, but that’s not the case. Winnipeg Jets netminder Connor Hellebuyck made a splash last June with Worse Numbers for reference. The 28-year-old has kept his spot with the Flyers in every game, but that won’t continue.
Elson’s own situation, on the other hand, is somewhat unsustainable. With a save percentage of .849, he will regress upward. Maybe he can start stealing some games, too.
Ultimately, the Flyers didn’t need Vlada for the Vezina Cup. They just need him and Elson to keep their relationship tight – so far, so good. If this continues, presumably under “Das Vlada,” making the playoffs for the first time in five seasons isn’t such a lofty goal.
Statistics provided by Natural Stat Trick
