The nicest thing we can say about Hakstol Hockey so far is that at least the Flyers did not show up late to the starting gate the way they had in the two previous seasons. Already they have quality victories against the Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks and the Presidents' Trophy-winning New York Rangers.
That does not mean this first season with Dave Hakstol as head coach is going to end any differently than Craig Berube's only full season as head coach did a year ago. In fact, the two teams are a lot more similar than you might think.