Flyers center Ryan Poehling is betting on himself and his ‘tremendous speed’

Ryan Poehling bets on himself.

First, when he joined the Flyers last summer as a free agent, signing a one-year deal worth $1.4 million.

And then the 25-year-old center upped the stakes by signing a two-year, $3.8 million extension right before the All-Star break.

“I’ve always wanted to find a home,” Poehling said. “I mean, it’s my fifth year playing in the NHL, bouncing around from team to team.”

Poehling had previous stops with the Montreal Canadiens and the Pittsburgh Penguins. His most recent signing impressed Flyers general manager Danny Brière and coach John Tortorella.

Some of Poehling’s peers, including 24-year-old Owen Tippett (eight years, $49.6 million) and 23-year-old Joel Farabee (Year 2 of a six-year, $30 million deal) already are locked up for the long term.

But Poehling’s commitment to a contract on the shorter side shows an inner confidence, leaving the door open for a bigger deal down the road.

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“It’s a relatively short term for where he is in his career,” Brière said in January. “So we really liked that he’s betting on himself. You can see the character, that he believes in himself, and I think that goes a long way.”

On Thursday night, in his second game since the signing became official, Poehling celebrated with a goal and an assist in the Flyers’ 4-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets at the Wells Fargo Center, ending a five-game personal pointless streak.

“The biggest thing for me,” Tortorella said, “is he could skate, so that opens up more doors for him in today’s game. I trusted him right away because I think he can think the game. ... He’s got tremendous speed.”

That “tremendous speed” was directly responsible for two Flyers goals on Thursday night. Poehling has fit right into the Flyers’ system, which generates a significant amount of its offense off the rush.

Just under four minutes into the first period, Poehling broke away on a two-on-one with linemate Tyson Foerster. Poehling sped past Jets defenseman Neal Pionk but had a difficult angle to the net. Poehling found Foerster backdoor, and the winger tapped it in for his 10th of the year.

“When we’re just chipping pucks and supporting one another, that’s when you play Flyers hockey,” Poehling said. “And we play so fast. It’s hard for teams to keep up with us, and you see that.

“I think the more of that we do, the more success we see.”

Poehling’s second-period goal was more of that, and it put the Jets in a four-goal hole.

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A miscommunication between two Jets defensemen on a Winnipeg power play left the puck sitting on the Flyers’ blue line. Poehling raced after it, zipping down the ice with Garnet Hathaway streaking alongside.

Poehling said his first instinct was to pass, as he had on his earlier rush with Foerster. But, he said, during a film session earlier in the day, the team discussed reducing lateral passes on the penalty kill. So instead, he fired the puck on net, using Winnipeg defenseman Josh Morrissey as a screen to beat goaltender Laurent Brossoit.

According to NHL Edge data, Poehling has recorded 118 skating bursts that reached 20 mph. The average NHL forward has only 49 bursts at that speed, putting Poehling in the 92nd percentile leaguewide.

Another positive of Poehling’s play on Thursday was that the Flyers’ “power kill” got going again. The offense the Flyers have generated while shorthanded has been a major highlight of the season, especially considering their lack of production on the power play.

Although the penalty kill is still second in the league with an 85.7% success rate, the Flyers hadn’t struck shorthanded since Jan. 6, via a Travis Konecny marker against the Calgary Flames.

On Thursday, it was Poehling’s speed that got things back on track and put them in a tie for first in the league with 11 shorthanded goals.

“I’ve just relied on hard work and my faith to just kind of lead me to where I’m supposed to be, and I think Philly’s that place,” Poehling said. “I mean, I’ve been so blessed and had such a great time here, and it’s just trust in the process.”