After some time to digest...
Ersson was really solid. His puck tracking is so much better than when he started playing regularly in the NHL. He has the tools to be a legit number one.
Luchanko looked more settled than Michkov in their respective first games, but I don't see Luchanko sticking around this year. Not a fan of Cates at centre, but give him a shot with Brink and Farabee and see how it goes.
Michkov had several small high IQ plays scattered throughout the night, but was really fighting the puck.
Brink's confidence remains at an all time high. He made some questionable puck decisions, but he's actually thinking about making plays and controlling the pace of the game, where he has been a bit of a passenger in his NHL career to this point.
Couts and Laughton looked cooked. I hope Couts slowly warms up... no hope of a Laughton improvement. Fourth line was fine overall, though.
Frost struggled without Michkov. Asinine to separate them after the preseason they had together. Both played better when reunited. Tippett had a bad night, no matter who he was playing with.
Foerster is a joy to watch live. Incredibly intelligent player. Happy to see him score.
Sanheim/York were solid. Risto had a fee bad moments but I found myself cursing him less that Drysdale and Zamula. Drysdale needs a lot of work. Zamula is so close to being a good defenseman, but carries rookie-like inconsistencies. I give credit to Johnson, who filled in well enough on his off side.
PK looked decent enough. Felt less confident when Risto and Johnson were out together.
PP had its ups and downs. Frost really needs to start winning PP faceoffs. Don't think he won one until the third period. 2nd unit looked better than the first, probably because Michkov lacked confidence.
Overall, pretty ugly hockey game. Vancouver was really unimpressive and neither team took advantage of the other's sub-par defense core.
Felt like fewer Flyers fans there than normal, but had a good group in my section.
