Flyers mixing up their power-play blue-line units as York looks to make an impact

Cam York returned from his stint with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms with more assertiveness in his game, especially on the power play.

Flyers interim coach Mike Yeo was impressed. Before York returned to the AHL for the All-Star break, he had started shooting the puck more, and Yeo was glad he kept that mentality after 13 games away.

With York at the point, the struggling power play scored against the Florida Panthers and had another good chance against the Carolina Hurricanes. It’s an example of how York’s assertiveness could help turn the tide for the power play.

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“I think we’ve all watched power plays, dangerous power plays, and just how important of a weapon taking one-time shots is,” Yeo said, as the Flyers prepared to host the Montreal Canadiens on Sunday night.

But to add York to the power play, someone had to come off the unit. Defenseman Ivan Provorov, who has played point on both the first and second unit, got knocked off. That doesn’t mean he’s off the unit for good, though.

“I think it’s got to be real fluid,” Yeo said. “Obviously when things aren’t going well, we have to be open to making changes.”

Considering Provorov responded with a really strong game against the Hurricanes, Yeo said they’re still keeping him in the back of their minds.

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“We’ll be looking to make changes if things aren’t getting done,” Yeo said. “We got one two games ago and we didn’t get one last game. It’s not like we’re going to change every power play, but at the same time, we have to provide results.”

The last game against Montreal lingers sourly in the Flyers’ minds. In front of a deejay and a drum line and a bunch of empty seats, the Flyers’ three-game win streak was snapped in a 4-3 shootout loss.

Yeo said he will be stirring up those bad memories, as well as the reminder that the Flyers have lost two straight games and will be playing in front of a home crowd.

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While the Canadiens (15-35-8) have a worse record than the Flyers, they’re 7-2-1 in their last 10 games with wins over the Calgary Flames (No. 1 in the Pacific), the St. Louis Blues (No. 2 in the Western), and the Toronto Maple Leafs (No. 3 in the Atlantic).

The Canadiens have been carried by a high-scoring offense that scored an average of 3.7 goals over the last 10 games. Yeo recalled they like to throw pucks at the net, and he said he’s recently been impressed with their forecheck.

Scott Laughton (concussion) made it safely home with the team. Yeo doesn’t have a timeline but said Laughton was feeling better when he talked to him Saturday. ... The lines shifted yet again, this time significantly. Morgan Frost will play on the wing with Claude Giroux and Travis Konecny. Joel Farabee will return to the line with Cam Atkinson and Derick Brassard. Gerry Mayhew will move back to the third line, alongside Kevin Hayes and James van Riemsdyk. Oskar Lindblom will play on the fourth line with Zack MacEwen and Patrick Brown.