After hitting a new low, the Flyers rediscover their identity before returning home

EDMONTON, Alberta — Beating the Edmonton Oilers a second time, this time while on their home ice, was always going to be a tall task for the Flyers, who walked away with a 2-1 shootout win 12 days earlier. While Tuesday ended in a 4-2 loss, the Flyers left Canada with something even more important than a second straight win — their identity and pride.

A week ago, the team set off for the West Coast, determined to rebound from a low-energy 4-3 home loss to the Seattle Kraken on Feb. 12. Instead, the Flyers fell to the Kraken again in a 6-2 loss that was even more embarrassing than the first one. They couldn’t blame fatigue or a lack of practice. The players were quick to call it the worst game of the year while coach John Tortorella refused to provide any explanations after the game.

» READ MORE: Flyers blow a late lead and fall to the Edmonton Oilers, 4-2

For a team that went through a 10-game losing streak earlier this season, calling it the worst of the worst was a strong statement. But even during that skid, the Flyers showed resilience and played with heart. Those traits were absent in Seattle.

“The guys in here said all the right things and we go out there and do the same thing,” winger Travis Konecny said after the game.

Tortorella said it was something they had to try to catch and correct right away before things spiraled and got out of hand.

However, the response to the corrections doesn’t always come right away, defenseman Travis Sanheim said. It still hadn’t kicked in during the Flyers’ first period against the Vancouver Canucks, the weakest opponent of the four-game trip. The same sloppiness was evident. The Flyers eventually tightened it up and pulled within a goal, but they still lost, 6-2.

“We were more aggressive,” said de facto captain Scott Laughton. “But you don’t get the result.”

However, it set the foundation for the pivotal moment of the trip — Monday’s game against the Calgary Flames. It was the front end of a back-to-back against a talented but inconsistent team. The Flyers found their game again, checking hard and playing tough, and it carried them to a 4-3 win. They also showed that trademark resilience, digging deep to find a game-winning goal from Wade Allison after surrendering a two-goal lead early in the third period.

Then they did it again. With tired legs and minus injured leading scorer Konecny (upper body), the Flyers fell to Connor McDavid and the rested Oilers on Tuesday, but they stuck to their game and stayed competitively until the final few minutes. The Flyers held a 2-1 lead with just over 13 minutes remaining but started to run out of gas in what was their fourth game in six nights. They held the high-flying Oilers to 10 shots on goal through two periods and blocked 17 shots for the game. Ultimately, penalties were their downfall. The Oilers have the best power play in the league at 31.7%, and their two goals with the man advantage Tuesday offset the Flyers’ solid five-on-five play.

» READ MORE: Flyers blow a late lead and fall to the Edmonton Oilers, 4-2

It didn’t offset Tortorella’s pride in his team’s response though. He’s often said he isn’t focused on wins and losses but rather the effort and performance. Whether that’s true or not, in a season that’s pretty much already determined (the Flyers are eight points out of a wild card with just 23 games to go), the moral victory will help strengthen the locker room in the long run, according to Tortorella’s philosophy.

Early in the season, the coach was clear that experiencing and overcoming struggles is just as important as enjoying success when it comes to building a “standard.” Over the final two games of the trip, the Flyers again showed their resilience.

Through the season, Tortorella has never had a problem with the team’s effort — until the Seattle games. But the way the team rebounded, and on the road no less, showed that the listlessness the Kraken took advantage of was an anomaly rather than a deep character flaw or discouraging trend.

» READ MORE: The numbers behind rookie goalie Sam Ersson’s hot start with the Flyers

“I think we’ve built since Seattle,” Tortorella said. “Since that Seattle game, we’ve just kept on playing and playing the right way. ... I think the group, through this trip — and it’s been a long trip — has handled itself well.”

The loss to the Oilers on Tuesday night perfectly summed up what the Flyers are. They’re a team that’s lacking in skill and star power, but they have remained competitive against better teams through their hard work and effort. That’s this team’s recipe for success and the margin for error is thin.

“I hope as we go through, they can lean on some of these things when we have some struggles,” Tortorella said. “So just keep on plugging away here.”