PHILADELPHIA — There is a sequence from the second round of last year’s Stanley Cup playoffs that is evidently still stuck in Philadelphia Flyers coach Rick Tocchet’s head.In Game 3, the Flyers and Carolina Hurricanes were tied at 1. The Flyers went on the power play, only to see Carolina’s Jalen Chatfield score a short-handed goal after a Jamie Drysdale misplay. Shorty after that, though, the Hurricanes were tagged with a bench minor — giving the Flyers more than a minute on a two-man advantage, and a golden opportunity to retie the score.It didn’t happen. The Hurricanes went on to a 4-1 win, and completed the series sweep in Game 4.Tocchet, of course, would like to see his young team grow in 2026-27, now that he’s about to begin his second season at the helm. To him, that means taking advantage of those kinds of situations in vital moments.“I want them to handle pressure,” Tocchet said Tuesday, in an exclusive Q&A with The Athletic over lunch in the Rittenhouse Square section of Philadelphia. “And we did nothing on that five-on-three. If we didn’t make the playoffs, they wouldn’t have experienced that. Now, if we get in the same situation, how can we execute that and handle the pressure? That’s how I look at this season.”Which next gen superstars jumped the highest in the NHL player tiers?Here’s the remainder of our conversation, which has been lightly edited for length and clarity.General manager Daniel Briere made some depth moves with the additions of Noel Acciari and Joseph Woll, but his big swing — the Leo Carlsson offer sheet — didn’t connect. How do you view the state of the roster headed into this season, and what gives you hope that the team can keep moving forward?The exciting part for me is it’s pretty well the same group other than a few additions, and we’ve had a whole year to get to know each other. Even the younger guys coming up, we had enough runway to get to know each other with the new coaching staff. That’s a big positive.You’ve spoken a few times about some of those Flyers teams you were on in the 1980s, and how it was a young group that grew together and had some success. How can you use that knowledge and experience to help this group, also very young, take the next step?I told a couple players that (they) remind me (of those teams) when I played. I felt like it didn’t matter who scored the goal. I have that feeling with this team; I see a lot of guys rooting for each other. I’ve been on teams, I’ve coached teams, where guys are worried about only their thing. I don’t see that on this team. I credit the guys that were here before, the middle (aged) guys, like the 25-year-olds. Very selfless group. That’s how I felt back then, when I played. I see a selfless group. I don’t see anybody that plays for themselves (rather) than the team.You mentioned how earlier last season, guys might be a bit nervous to reach out to you or to initiate a conversation, but that got much better by the end of the season. How much of a help will that be going into Year 2?I welcome a guy calling me at 8 o’clock at night if there’s an issue. If a player by the end of the year doesn’t feel comfortable calling me at my house or coming to my office, maybe I’m not doing a good enough job. I pride myself in making those guys understand this is my job — the importance of creating that relationship and being able to make those guys understand.This is what I love about a guy like (Travis Konecny) — I can give him s—, and he doesn’t pout. We might have a bit of an argument, the next day at practice, I’m having a coffee, he’ll make some kind of joke. I love that about these players. They don’t take anything personal. It’s a big part of coaching, having that relationship.