In this edition of our 2023-24 Philadelphia Flyers player grading series, we take a look at 31-year-old center Sean Couturier. The new captain of the team had an up-and-down campaign, but it was mostly filled with positive moments. What grade does he deserve?
Couturier’s Return from Injury
Before his 2023-24 campaign, Couturier’s last NHL contest was on Dec. 18, 2021. He dealt with an accumulation of injuries, disrupting his prime. From that point until the end of 2022-23, the Flyers had an atrocious 44-72-19 record (65 points per 82 games). The team lost their identity once he left.
The reason for that is because, at his best, Couturier was a consistent Selke Trophy candidate and nearly a point-per-game player from 2017-18 through 2020-21 (252 points in 276 games). Losing almost two calendar years of hockey, over 82 percent of his age-29 and age-30 campaigns were spent off the ice.
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Being gone for so long, it’s not exactly fair to expect Couturier to see a return to form. At times, however, he was a legitimately good top-six center. He didn’t quite live up to his $7.75 million contract that lasts through the 2029-30 season, but he did his best. He finished with 11 goals and 27 assists for 38 points in 74 contests.
Couturier’s individual offense was a bit of an issue, shooting at a 5.7 percent rate and losing the goal-scoring touch he had in his prime. While it might be true that he has lost a little bit of what has made him great, his lack of scoring can be partially blamed on bad luck. His shooting percentage is simply not a sustainable mark – he shouldn’t have a full-season number like that for a while.
In addition to Couturier’s shooting troubles, he wasn’t exactly an elite playmaker, either. Most of his offensive game aside from his elite forechecking was just not at a top-six level. These were some of the concerns around his game when he first entered the NHL.
Getting to where Couturier excelled, he had great on-ice numbers. With a 52.2 expected goals percentage (xGF%), he finished the regular season 60th out of 182 forwards with at least 1,000 minutes of even-strength ice time in the stat. Whether or not he was an excellent contributor of individual offense is irrelevant – the Flyers had more scoring chances with him than without. Philadelphia is pretty weak down the middle, but he was one of the solutions to this dilemma.
Also, 22-year-old Tyson Foerster played his best when he was centered by Couturier on the first line. He didn’t exactly score the most goals, but with a 57 xGF% as a duo with a 363-minute sample size, their chemistry was undeniable. For a long time, their ability to hold onto the puck and not give up many chances did the Flyers well. When they were together, the Flyers were unsurprisingly playing their best hockey.
Couturier’s Post-Captaincy Struggles
After Couturier was named the 20th captain in the Flyers’ history on Feb. 14, things took a turn for him. In the following 24 contests, he had just five assists and a mediocre xGF% of 49. In that time, he was a healthy scratch on multiple occasions by head coach John Tortorella.
In reality, Couturier really wasn’t all that bad. For one, he didn’t get a chance to bounce back. Out of 15 Flyer forwards during that time, he was 10th in average ice time with a very low 13:49 mark. He was stapled to the fourth line, so naturally, the offense was never going to come. He had quite good results there at times, helping ease 24-year-old Olle Lycksell into an NHL role. Aside from that, though, the whole drama surrounding Couturier was just not worth it. He, objectively, should have gotten a chance to redeem himself.
Whether Couturier’s struggles were his fault or not, having a high-end first-line workload up until February after suffering multiple injuries was never going to end well. The regression was noticeable, and some of that probably had to do with his body giving out. Tortorella asked a lot out of him, and he couldn’t handle that for seven months in a row.
Couturier’s Final Grade
Ultimately, Couturier had a good season. It wasn’t his best, but he helped the Flyers win and that’s all that matters. For this, he deserves a B-grade.
Couturier’s 2024-25 campaign should be another step in the right direction for him. While he is unquestionably aging, he should have what it takes to be a solid player through most of his 30s. Having a full season under his belt after his injuries should help his growth.