Who Will Face Tortorella's Wrath Next?

The Flyers traded Robert Hagg, their first round pick in 2021 (14th overall - Isak Rosen), and a second round pick in 2023 for Ristolainen, in a deal that added a towering 6'4", 220lbs, right handed D to the Flyers lineup. In his first full year with the Flyers, Ristolainen played in 66 games, scored 2 goals, added 14 assists, racked up 38 minutes in penalties, and was a respectable -9 (on a poor Flyers team that had a goal differential of -103).

Nobody will ever be able to argue Ristolainen's compete level and willingness to engage in the physical aspect of the game. Ristolainen will consistently be amongst the Flyers statistical leaders in hits, blocked shots, and penalty minutes and will always be an intimidating factor for the Orange and Black; protecting his goalies, having his teammates backs, and playing a hard nosed style that a lot of opponents do not want to engage in.

Fletcher saw enough in Ristolainen that he inked him to a five year, $25.5 million dollar contract, with an annual cap hit of $5.1 million.

The contract was debated heavily within the Flyers fan base, but considering the salary cap is expected to increase considerably over the next four years (reportedly to exceed $10 million over the span) it is a reasonable deal. Considering the cap increase, Ristolainen's contract isn't bad for a 28 year old, number 3/4 D, who plays the style he does. Ristolainen is a warrior on the ice with the ability to kill penalties and chip in offensively. He makes plenty of opposition forwards tentative in the corners and along the wall.

The biggest issue with Ristolainen is his first touch out of the zone. Too often, Ristolainen's instinct is to flip the puck out of the zone or dump it off the glass, which creates a 50/50 puck battle at best, but typically results in a direct turnover.

After the Flyers loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs, John Tortorella stated in his press conference, "somehow we've got to instil some confidence in our players to not be afraid to make mistakes and make plays," and the player I thought of immediately was Ristolainen. HIs instinct to unload the puck without trying to find a clean look needs to be broken down and altered, which is difficult and will require time. That is the type of thing I believe Tortorella is referring to, when he makes a statement like that.

Players have to be willing and able to take a fraction of a second and see if there is a better option available to exit the zone and to relieve pressure in the defensive zone. Whether that be skating the puck out of trouble, holding it for a split second to allow a player to free themselves up for a pass, or making short touch passes to escape pressure and exit the zone; something other than the predictable norm. Rimming the puck around the boards and allowing the D to pinch down on the winger, or flipping the puck into he neutral zone and allowing the opposition the ability to make an easy regroup and reentry into the zone, is not a successful formula in todays game. You have to be willing to make a play in order to give your forwards a better opportunity to transition to offences and that means taking minor, calculated risks.

Suggesting Ristolainen is the only guilty party of orchestrating poor zone exits is not the case, as we tend to make a lot of soft reversals and weak rims, instead of our D skating or stick handling out of trouble, or past one defender. Ristolainen just seems to be the most prevalent Flyers defenseman to opt for the safest, easiest way out of the zone, which comes with a higher turnover rate and results in more time spent in ones own zone.

As Tortorella is seemingly going through the lineup and sitting players for various reasons (Hayes, Konecny, Frost, MacEwen, Braun, etc), Ristolainen may be the next Philadelphia Flyers player to be on the list to sit for his decision making on the ice. Ristolainen may get a longer leash than others, because of his tenacity and aggressive style, but he needs to start putting his forwards in more advantageous scenarios exiting the zone and using his vision and skill set more than his instinct to simply relieve pressure.