Finally, special teams coming around for Flyers

VOORHEES — Jake Voracek is a realist. He doesn’t beat around the bush. He speaks from the heart.

Last year’s leading scorer has one tally on the season so perhaps his frustrations from that make him even more brutally honest when he speaks.

In the next breath after he said the Flyers may have been “scared to win” Monday night, he also said that even-strength scoring is still a disappointment. Special teams, however, are starting to look how the Flyers envisioned them to.

The biggest example against the Carolina Hurricanes Monday may have been Claude Giroux’s shorthanded goal, the Flyers’ first on the season.

“(Sean Couturier) did a good play,” Giroux said. “I don’t think he was trying to give me a rebound, but I’ll take it. We were aggressive (Monday). We did a good job.”

It was the highlight of what has started to become an impressive streak. The Flyers have killed 13 straight penalties across the last four games. At one point in the early going, the Flyers’ penalty killing was in the basement of the NHL. Heading into Tuesday’s action it was ranked 18th.

“I’ve always said it’s the little things,” coach Dave Hakstol said. “We went a few games in a row there where every game we’d make a tactical or critical error and it would end up in the back of our net. Right now, those errors are certainly fewer and further between. When we do make an error, we’re making a save. That has a way of loosening up your penalty kill.”

Michal Neuvirth wasn’t tested all that much against the ‘Canes Monday, though. He only had to make four stops on five power plays for Carolina. He has allowed only five goals this season on 61 shots against while the Flyers have been shorthanded for a .918 save percentage. Steve Mason, on the other hand, only recently brought his shorthanded save percentage above .700.

These days, the penalty kill is gaining steam.

“I think right now what you’re seeing is that our penalty kill is a little looser in terms of looking for areas to pressure and getting puck pressure both up ice and in our zone,” Hakstol said. “That helps you kill the seconds on a penalty kill and they were great (Monday) night.”

So was the power play. The other two Flyers goals came on the man advantage, which is also slowly climbing the ranks out of the basement. Of the last five games in which the Flyers have had any goals at all (they ended a scoreless drought of more than two hours Monday), they’ve had power-play goals in four of them.

“I think it’s been pretty good the past couple games,” Brayden Schenn said, “and in Ottawa we had a lot of chances but the pucks just weren’t bouncing our way. When it comes to our power play take a lot of pride in it and being good at it. Obviously we have a lot of meetings, and we try to find ways to get better. We’ll continue to try to do that.”

Getting used to Barclays

Wednesday marks the Flyers’ first regular-season game at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, an arena made for basketball that has some challenges for hockey.

Fans in the corner, for instance, can’t see the whole rink. Players who have played there say that it’s unusually dark and, particularly for goalies, the black seats blend in with the black puck.

“I haven’t talked to any other goaltenders, but I’ve read some articles about it,” said Mason, who is expected to start. “It isn’t a standard hockey rink. It’s built for basketball, but at the morning skate I’ll try to get my bearings and figure out the sightlines because it’s going to be a little bit of a different visual impact. Most arenas these days are, for the most part, cookie cutter.”

Loose pucks

Sam Gagner, who was cut near his left eye Monday, will be re-evaluated Wednesday. Meantime, the Flyers recalled Colin McDonald from the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. The captain of the AHL affiliate, McDonald has two points in four games for Lehigh Valley after returning from an injury opening night. … Ryan White skated with the Flyers Tuesday, but isn’t ready to return from his “upper-body injury” that is believed to be related to his shoulder. He said he is not cleared for contact yet, but “been getting better daily.” … According to Forbes’ 2015 valuations, the Flyers are still the seventh-most valuable franchise in the NHL, although they improved six percent to $660 million.

Dave Isaac; (856) 486-2479;disaac@gannettnj.com.