Flyers takeaways: Jamie Drysdale impresses, but turnovers prove costly in loss to Red Wings

DETROIT ― Flyers coach John Tortorella didn’t think his team played well on Wednesday night against the Detroit Red Wings.

Although the Flyers battled back in the third period to tie things up before falling, 6-4, he felt they “didn’t spend enough time in the offensive zone,” and he didn’t think his team “defended well to get the puck back.”

» READ MORE: Flyers keep it close against the Red Wings, but drop second straight game, 6-4

The Flyers lost their second straight game, but get right back to it against the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday (7:30 p.m., ESPN+, Hulu).

Before the puck drops, here’s a look at what went right — which they’ll surely want to see more of against L.A. — and what went wrong against the Red Wings.

Tortorella said there weren’t many bright spots, but it’s hard not to note the game Drysdale brought to Detroit.

The blueliner moved his feet well at both ends of the rink and played the second-most minutes among Flyers skaters (22 minutes, 9 seconds) behind Travis Sanheim (24:17). It represented the most he’s played in the five games since returning from injury (he played 22:03 against Minnesota), and the majority of his minutes came in the third period, where he skated a team-high 11:01 — after skating less than 6 minutes in each of the first two frames.

Tortorella wants Drysdale to be a rover in the mold of two players he’s coached, Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Zach Werenski and former NHLer Dan Boyle. Drysdale has that ability to be a defenseman who drives play with his legs, and he felt like he was doing it more against the Red Wings.

“I just tried to get up,” Drysdale said. “I mentioned a few times before, just kind of get up as much as I can, every play I can, whether I get the puck or not, or make the play or do anything.

“It’s just getting up, and the more you get up, the more you’re in a position to check properly, check forward, be more aggressive before they get anything going. So I’m trying to do that, can still be better at it, but it’s a work in progress.”

Drysdale had a miscue in the first period when he went to play the body instead of the puck at the point, leading to a Detroit two-on-one. The Red Wings didn’t connect on their passes, however. In the second period, he “surfed,” or pressured toward the middle of the offensive zone — think a pinch but off the wall — but it allowed the Red Wings to transition the other way. His defensive partner, Nick Seeler, broke it up, but the speedy Drysdale also got back to help.

The blueliner was on the ice for two goals — he got the secondary assist on Owen Tippett’s goal, which tied the game, 4-4 — and two goals against, including the game-winner by Patrick Kane when he had just come off the bench. Drysdale finished with three shot attempts.

“I think I try and create as much as I can, and I do that the most when my feet are moving,” he said. “I was playing pretty tentative at the start of the year. I think that my game’s coming along. It’s nowhere near where I think it should be. I got to get more shots here, got to create more.

“[I] feel like sometimes I’m skating, but sometimes a little bit aimlessly, so just being more effective and efficient. So, yeah, it’s a learning process.”

An old issue reared its ugly head as the Flyers mustered just 19 shots on goal, with four coming in the first period and five in the second. It’s the sixth time they had a shot total in the teens and the first time since Nov. 20, a 4-1 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. In the 11 games in between, they averaged 29.9 shots, tied for the sixth-most in the NHL.

It’s an interesting stat, considering that the Flyers did have long stretches of offensive-zone pressure where they kept the Red Wings pinned, especially with Noah Cates’ line on the ice. The team played well along the boards, which opened things up and led to multiple Flyers goals.

“I thought once we were in the O-zone we had some momentum,” forward Sean Couturier said. “We had some extended O-zone time. Just maybe try to find the net a little more, bring pucks more to the net.”

Cates’ goal in the second period to tie the game, 2-2 — which went in off his body — came after hard work along the boards. The center put pressure on Detroit defenseman Justin Holl, and winger Tyson Foerster moved the puck up to Seeler at the point for a shot. Seeler’s shot hit Foerster, who then had his shot go in off Cates.

Ryan Poehling’s goal, a redirect backdoor off a Couturier turn-and-shoot, came after Poehling and Garnet Hathaway worked along the boards behind the Red Wings net.

“I think it just goes to show that when we’re all moving our feet and supporting each other, we’re going to hang on to pucks, and we’re going to get more zone time,” said Tippett, who scored his sixth goal in the past eight games. “I think early on in the year, that’s what was missing, and as of late, we’ve been doing that better. We’ve been having more success with it.”

The Red Wings scored six goals. One was an empty-netter. Another was on a nice redirect by J.T. Compher on a power play, and the game-winner came on a Flyers’ line change. A fourth goal, the third goal by the Red Wings, came off an offensive-zone faceoff.

And then there are the other two goals. One gave Detroit a 2-1 lead, and the other made it 4-2. Both came off turnovers.

Cam York tried to hit his partner Sanheim at Detroit’s blue line, but Kane intercepted it, and the Red Wings got a three-on-one. Kane sent a saucer pass to Alex DeBrincat for the one-timer past goalie Sam Ersson. York played one more shift and then did not see the ice for the rest of the game.

The other odd-man goal came off the stick of Joe Veleno. The Flyers had some good pressure but were stuck on the left side. Scott Laughton tried to pass the puck to Rasmus Ristolainen along the blue line, but the pass was intercepted. The Red Wings broke out three across before Laughton got back for the trailer man, but it was too late as Veleno had a give-and-go with Christian Fischer for the goal.

» READ MORE: Ivan Fedotov is staying ‘patient’ despite being the odd man out in the Flyers’ goalie rotation