{"numbering":"asc","slides":[{"index":1,"title":"Dissecting the turnaround","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/philadelphia/2020/02/28/usa_claude_giroux_jakub_voracek.jpg","caption":"

The Flyers are 63 games into the 2019-20 season and only one victory away from matching last season's win total of 37.

During 2018-19, a tumultuous year resulted in organizational change and 82 points, the Flyers' fewest over a full season since 2006-07.

Impressively, the Flyers have jumped right back into contention this season. At 36-20-7, they entered Thursday as a top-eight team in the league.

How have they turned things around so quickly? NBC Sports Philadelphia talked to a number of Flyers about the biggest differences from last season to this season.

(USA Today Images)

"},{"index":3,"title":"Jakub Voracek, Part I","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/philadelphia/2020/02/28/ap_jakub_voracek_0.jpg","caption":"

Jakub Voracek, like most of the Flyers, was not aware of the team being one win from tying its 2018-19 total. Understandably, that's not on anyone's mind.

"Are we?" Voracek said. "Really?"

The Flyers have grasped head coach Alain Vigneault's hard-on-the-attack, possession-based system, especially during the third period. The Flyers boast 79 goals and a plus-23 goal differential during the final stanza, by far their best period.

Vigneault instituted high-paced, tempo-driven practices from Day 1 of training camp — and they've paid off.

“I think the way we skate. I think we’re skating really good and that’s why we’re winning a lot of games because we outskate the other teams," Voracek said Thursday. "The starts are so-so, the first periods are so-so, the other teams have a lot of energy, but the second and third periods, I think we’ve been really strong all season long.

"That’s really important for us, when it’s going down to the wire, we can be confident about winning the game.”

(AP Images)

"},{"index":5,"title":"Jakub Voracek, Part II","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/philadelphia/2020/02/28/ap_jakub_voracek_matt_niskanen.jpg","caption":"

Jakub Voracek has been with the Flyers since 2011-12.

With the club's growing youthfulness and the offseason additions of Kevin Hayes, Matt Niskanen, Justin Braun and Tyler Pitlick, Voracek believes this is one of the deepest Flyers teams since his first couple of years.

The Flyers are a top-10 goal-scoring club (3.25 per game) and lead the NHL with 3.60 markers per game since Jan. 8. They've won 17 games in which Voracek has gone scoreless and 15 when Claude Giroux has gone scoreless. In 2018-19, the Flyers were an identical 10-19-2 when Voracek went scoreless and 10-19-2 when Giroux went scoreless.

Even crazier, the Flyers were 5-20-3 last season when Sean Couturier went scoreless.

"I think you can tell that’s another reason why we’re winning games," Voracek said of the team's improved depth. "So many times me, G or Coots didn’t have any points, and we find a way to score four, five goals. Let’s be honest, it didn’t happen very often in the past. We are extremely deep. It feels like every time when somebody is off scoring-wise, somebody else is picking it up. That’s what the good teams do and we do it well.”

(AP Images)

"},{"index":7,"title":"Jakub Voracek, Part III","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/philadelphia/2020/02/28/usa_alain_vigneault_mike_yeo.jpg","caption":"

Jakub Voracek knew of Alain Vigneault's track record before the head coach's arrival to Philadelphia last April.

“A coach with a lot of experience," Voracek said. "Spent a long time in Vancouver, that was one of the best teams back in the day. He was in New York, made it to the Cup Final, conference final. A lot of experience with how to be successful in the playoffs. That’s what we’re going to need down the wire — experienced coaching."

The Flyers also hired assistant coaches Michel Therrien and Mike Yeo, who have a combined 1,296 games of NHL head coaching experience.

"I think everybody is happy about that," Voracek said of the experienced leaders. "All of the coaching staff, all of the guys."

Voracek was nice enough to discuss the coaches.

"I’m not a big fan of talking about coaches because most of the times, I can’t really say what I feel because you don’t want to hurt them because you don’t want to get benched," Voracek said with a smile. "Then you don’t want to try to be a smartass, so you play a lot of minutes. No, like I said, it has been good. You can tell by a team’s points, how a team plays. Long way to go still, though.”

(USA Today Images)

"},{"index":9,"title":"Michael Raffl","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/philadelphia/2020/02/28/usa_michel_therrien_alain_vigneault_michael_raffl_claude_giroux.jpg","caption":"

When Michael Raffl was told Thursday about the team being one win shy of matching last season's total, James van Riemsdyk jumped in to help.

“You’re going to have to spell it out, this guy has a tough time with math," van Riemsdyk joked about Raffl.

“That’s a good thing," van Riemsdyk assured his teammate.

“It’s not a bad thing, I guess," Raffl said with a smile. “Last year was not our brightest. I’m still trying to forget about that.”

Raffl noted the additions made in the offseason, from the roster to Alain Vigneault and the rest of the coaching staff.

"Goaltending, defense, everything," he said. "I think overall we’re just a better team than we were last year.

“Experience helps. A.V. has proven to be a winner. You’ve got to have trust in your coach, for sure. There have been some changes on the power play and PK. Everywhere, I think we look like a different team. That also has to do with the players you’re working with.”

(USA Today Images)

"},{"index":11,"title":"James van Riemsdyk, Part I","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/philadelphia/2020/02/28/usa_james_van_riemsdyk.jpg","caption":"

James van Riemsdyk is in his 11th NHL season. He has scored 30-plus goals twice and has 59 career playoff games on his résumé.

The 30-year-old is a true professional in his preparation and approach. He has appreciated Alain Vigneault's meticulousness in those areas.

"One thing I’ve liked about him is he’s very progressive in the sense of he’s very deliberate with our practices and how long we practice and when to push us and when to give us days off," van Riemsdyk said Thursday. "This is as fresh as I’ve felt at this point of the season probably in a few years, which is nice. That’s a tribute to him and being smart about some of the stuff that they’re trying to do with the performance sports science stuff. That’s been a good thing."

In 2018-19, van Riemsdyk rejoined the Flyers' core after signing a five-year, $35 million deal during the offseason. The first season of his reunion did not go as planned from a win-loss standpoint.

"Ultimately, last year, when we have a year where we underachieve, I think we were all going to be coming in this year with kind of that chip on your shoulder, with something to prove," van Riemsdyk said. "I think as a coach, you love that because you get guys’ attention right away. The experience of A.V. and the staff has been a good thing. They’ve pushed some of the right buttons this year for us and as players, a lot of us have had bounce-back years.

"It feels like we have more depth this year, too, which makes it harder to play against us. … Somebody’s going to get a good matchup pretty much out there.”

(USA Today Images)

"},{"index":13,"title":"James van Riemsdyk, Part II","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/philadelphia/2020/02/28/usa_jakub_voracek_james_van_riemsdyk_claude_giroux_matt_niskanen.jpg","caption":"

The Flyers went 10-2-4 with an NHL-best 24 points in November. Over their previous five Novembers, the Flyers were a combined 23-29-14.

This season, the Flyers had their most points (35) entering December since the 1995-96 club, which had 36.

“We got off to a much better start, so that certainly helps," James van Riemsdyk said. "We have younger guys pushing in the lineup. It’s hard to be a deep team if you don’t have young guys contributing and playing big roles. I think we definitely have that, you see some guys stepping up into bigger roles and stuff like that, so that has been huge for us, too.”

(USA Today Images)

"},{"index":15,"title":"Ivan Provorov, Part I","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/philadelphia/2020/02/28/usa_ivan_provorov.jpg","caption":"

Ivan Provorov has served as one of the biggest components to the Flyers' resurgence.

The 23-year-old defenseman already owns more goals (11) and assists (20) than he had last season through 82 games (seven goals, 19 assists).

He leads all NHL defensemen with seven power play goals and is the anchor on the Flyers' blue line.

Provorov highlighted the changes to the team's structure and strategy.

“I think it’s a lot of things," he said Thursday. "Full new coaching staff, some new additions in the offseason and kind of a different system that allows us to play to our strengths, allows us to play more aggressive hockey, which helps us get the puck back faster and play on offense more.”

(USA Today Images)

"},{"index":17,"title":"Ivan Provorov, Part II","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/philadelphia/2020/02/28/usa_ivan_provorov_sean_couturier.jpg","caption":"

In 2018-19, the Flyers yielded the NHL's third-most goals per game at 3.41 and finished with a minus-37 goal differential.

In 2019-20, the Flyers are allowing 2.86 goals per game and have a plus-25 goal differential.

How has Alain Vigneault's system played a role in shoring up the Flyers' goal prevention issues?

“Changed the neutral zone, the way we forecheck. Now we defend as a five-man unit," Ivan Provorov said. "I think previous years, it wasn’t like that the whole time. Right now, we’re defending as a unit of five, we attack as a unit of five and we play aggressive. We control the play most of the time compared to last year or previous years where we kind of sat back and were on our heels a little bit too much.”

Provorov has enjoyed playing for Vigneault.

“Great coach, tons of experience, knows how to win," he said. "He took two teams to the Final, so he definitely knows what he’s doing. Overall, a great coach that knows how to get the best out of his players.”

(USA Today Images)

"},{"index":19,"title":"Scott Laughton","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/philadelphia/2020/02/28/usa_scott_laughton.jpg","caption":"

Scott Laughton has become an underrated glue guy to the 2019-20 Flyers.

He was also one of the bright spots to the dark 2018-19 season.

The 25-year-old mentioned the importance of new faces helping provide a much-needed clean slate.

"I think the new additions we added at the start of the year really brought a presence to our team," Laughton said Thursday. "With the new coaching staff and everything, I think it was just a fresh start for a lot of guys — just kind of a reset for this organization. I think it was good for us to continue to push throughout after the start we had and all the travel, but I think it comes down to how consistent we played.”

Laughton has thrived in an Alain Vigneault type of system, which is predicated on effort, forechecking and puck possession.

“It has been really good," Laughton said of Vigneault's impact. "I think a couple of the biggest things are accountability. Right from the get-go, you see he was holding the top guys accountable, and that trickles down to the guys later on in the lineup. I think that kind of started it. Even the experience, [Mike Yeo] has done a really good job on the PK and [Michel Therrien] with the forwards and the power play. Everyone has come together for one goal and bought in.”

(USA Today Images)

"},{"index":21,"title":"Brian Elliott, Part I","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/philadelphia/2020/02/28/usa_claude_giroux_brian_elliott_0.jpg","caption":"

Brian Elliott grinned when he was informed about this season's win total compared to 2018-19.

“First things first, no, I wasn’t aware of that," he said Thursday. "That’s not on your radar, that’s kind of in the past.”

At 34 years old, Elliott has seen a lot of hockey. The veteran goalie has played for five different teams, has 40 career shutouts and 45 games of playoff experience.

Elliott said a lot of ingredients have gone into the Flyers' 2019-20 improvements.

“I think we’ve been able to gel a little quicker," he said. "You see good lines forming, you see good chemistry. Along with that, you see a lot of guys supporting each other out on the ice — not waiting for something to happen and more making stuff happen. I think those little details in the game make a big difference.

"I think guys reading off each other better, we’re blocking a lot of shots in the defensive zone. That’s been a key difference where we’re willing to pay the price on those that can sift through and have a seeing-eye shot or you block it and go the other way and get a scoring chance yourself.

"Those things added up all together, you can’t really break it down to one thing. It’s just getting better in a lot of areas.”

(USA Today Images)

"},{"index":23,"title":"Brian Elliott, Part II","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/philadelphia/2020/02/28/usa_kevin_hayes_brian_elliott.jpg","caption":"

As a goalie, Brian Elliott has a keen eye for defensive strengths.

The Flyers are surrendering the NHL's fewest shots per game at 28.6. The goaltenders have helped the skaters in front and the skaters have helped the goalies behind them.

“It’s a part of every winning system that I’ve played on, you have to defend well," Elliott said. "Teams are so good offensively nowadays that if you give them their chances, more than likely they’re going to come away with some goals. When you defend well, you’re managing the puck well and you’re coming back in good structure, you’re going back the other way on offense.

"Sometimes that can be overlooked. From a goalie’s perspective, it’s the most important part of the game. When you really put an emphasis on it and hold guys accountable to it and guys are doing that to each other, then that’s when you start flipping it into the positive direction.”

What Elliott has learned about Alain Vigneault is that the head coach exudes confidence, which has rubbed off on the roster.

“I didn’t really know too much about him, I know he coached some really good teams, a lot of Presidents’ Trophy teams and won a lot of hockey games," Elliott said. "When you have that reputation and pedigree, a lot of guys put their trust in what he’s saying. If we do our job, we’re going to come away with a lot of wins.

"That trust in our coaching staff, with our guys executing on that, those directions, the trust goes both ways and when you have that, things start to roll. You can start rolling four lines and all sets of D and even both goalies.”

(USA Today Images)

"},{"index":25,"title":"Alain Vigneault","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/philadelphia/2020/02/28/usa_alain_vigneault_flyers.jpg","caption":"

Alain Vigneault has a history of winning in Year 1 on the job.

At his previous three stops (Canadiens, Canucks, Rangers), each of his first seasons resulted in playoff bids and at least one series win.

While Flyers players have learned about the qualities behind that track record, Vigneault has learned about his players, as well.

So far, the combination has a good thing brewing in Philadelphia.

“Coming in, I didn’t know a lot about the group and the individuals," Vigneault said Thursday. "I do say, and I’ve said this quite a few times, this group, they want to win. The veteran players want to prove they can help a team win and the younger guys coming in are coming into their own, they’re improving, they want to improve, they’re coachable.

"We’re just trying to work real hard in a real tough league. Everybody is looking at the standings and the parity on both sides, our conference and the Western Conference, it’s so competitive, you’ve got be on top of your game every night and that’s what we try and do.”

(USA Today Images)

"}]}

An inside look at how Flyers have built 2019-20 turnaround season