Breaking down each forward line following the Flyers’ roster shake-up

The Flyers, for the third consecutive game, were well outshot by their opponent in a 3-2 overtime loss to Carolina Saturday.

Against the Hurricanes, it’s slightly less of a red flag, because the Canes’ system means they take tons of low-percentage shots. But the Flyers are still winless, and coach Rick Tocchet called out the team’s lack of compete and execution.

“Developing your game doesn’t start in September and end in June; it’s through the summer,” Tocchet said. “Hopefully we had some guys working on their game because the execution is really bad.”

» READ MORE: Flyers earn a point, but still seek first win of the season following an overtime loss to the Carolina Hurricanes

Tocchet switched up the lines again Saturday in an effort to generate more offense and be cleaner with the puck. So, here’s how it went for each forward line:

Carolina is a top-speed team, and these three had wheels to match. Moving Carl Grundström, usually more of a fourth-line grinder type, up to play with two of the Flyers’ highest-skill players may have seemed like a weird move at first, but Grundström is fast. Through the first two games, he hit the highest top speed of any Flyers player with a 21.82-mph burst in the opener vs. Pittsburgh.

In the first period, Trevor Zegras and Owen Tippett had the Flyers’ most dangerous offensive possession, ultimately scoring the first goal on a rebound after multiple high-danger chances. Their speed helped them enter the zone cleanly.

“[Zegras] was skating tonight,” Tocchet said. “I think Grundy helped him with the forecheck, and I thought Tipp was skating. I think that line was one of our better lines.”

But after the first period, they leveled off. The line was out-chanced nine to 17 in the game. That said, that nine was better than any other Flyers forward line.

These three dominated the Flyers’ preseason game against the Bruins’ B-lineup.

In the second, Travis Konecny sprung a wide-open Matvei Michkov with an aggressive forecheck followed by a nice cross-ice pass to give the Flyers a 2-1 lead. It was a glimmer of exactly how the Flyers won games last year, beating teams by winning battles and doing the hard work along the boards.

Konecny said postgame that their chemistry has taken a step forward this year.

“It’s easier with his English, the communication’s a lot better,” Konecny said. “When you’re talking to him about certain things, the hockey terms, he understands them all, and you can tell he’s putting his body on the line, blocking shots. He’s really trying to make an impact in other ways.”

Getting Porter Martone back on track is critical to the success of this Flyers season. Martone was removed from the top power-play unit, replaced by Konecny. Neither unit had much success, with the first unit giving up multiple shorthanded opportunities.

“I don’t think [the power play] is an issue, honestly,” Konecny said. “We had so many good looks tonight. One’s going to go in. I don’t think it’s an issue. I’m more just mad at myself for the last minute and a half where I made a mistake.”

» READ MORE: Rick Tocchet switches up Flyers’ lines again ahead of visit from defending Stanley Cup champs

Zegras, who fanned on a one-timer that could have ended the game in overtime, reinforced that he didn’t think the overall structure of the power play was an issue, just that they weren’t executing.

Martone’s line was low-event in even strength, generating a team-low three chances with also a team-low eight against. The preseason Calder Trophy candidate is scoreless through three games, after starting his NHL career last year with nine points and 10 games. There’s still plenty of time, but the Flyers still haven’t found the right mix to get him activated.

With Grundström up on the Zegras line, rookie Alex Bump moved down to the fourth line. Bump was benched for the majority of the third period in New Jersey on Thursday.

Even toward the end of last year as Bump made his NHL debut, he found himself in and out of the lineup due to the glut of wingers at the team’s disposal. He has the potential to be a weapon on the power play with his hard shot, but the power play continues to be a weak point as the Flyers struggle to even get set up on offense.

Still, Bump was a natural fit alongside Sean Couturier and Noel Acciari and brought that extra toughness and physicality to his game on Saturday. If Grundström becomes a longer-term experiment on Zegras’ line, he might find himself here more often.