- Rick Tocchet says his Flyers defensemen are “too horny” on the rush
- He blamed early entries into the play, four or five times against Seattle
- Read below for the full quote, the video and where the winless Flyers stand
Rick Tocchet has a theory on what’s wrong with the Flyers, and nobody saw this one coming.
Philadelphia’s head coach says his defensemen are “too horny.”
Tocchet was asked about Trevor Zegras’ reference to “scooter skating,” a term for a defenseman holding back on a rush and then accelerating at the right moment to create space. Tocchet explained that good teams time the fourth man into the play. The Flyers, in his view, haven’t.
“I can say it, they’re too horny, right?” Tocchet said. “They get up in the play, and they get too… so you have to just slow your skating down. The delay comes and then you scoot your skating, so you time it right, and then you get your shot. We were getting in too close.”
Take a look at the full answer, which Vani Hanamirian posted on X:
Tocchet said the problem showed up four or five times in the 3-2 shootout loss to Seattle. His defensemen arrived on top of the opposing D instead of finding open ice, and the shots got blocked.
An extra two seconds of patience, he said, turns those into Grade A chances. The Flyers worked on the timing the next day.
Zegras tied that Seattle game in the third period, and Tocchet’s own job status has been a topic all week, with Elliotte Friedman doubting he gets fired.
The timing fix didn’t show up on the scoreboard. Detroit beat Philadelphia 2-1 on Thursday, and the Flyers’ franchise-record ninth straight loss left them 0-6-3 with 11 goals in nine games.
