UPDATE: Hurricanes Frustrated as they are zoned with tough opponents in Playoff.
The Philadelphia Flyers face the New York Islanders on Monday, April 1 in a game that is a mini-playoff game. Both teams are fighting for playoff spots in the Eastern Conference and a loss for either will put them behind the proverbial eight ball. The Islanders have only won two of their last 10 games and the Flyers have only won three of their last 10 which is one way of saying that one of these teams might make the playoffs but only by stumbling in.
The question is which team would put up a better fight if they ended up making the playoffs? It’s unlikely the Flyers or the Islanders will make a deep playoff run but they could steal a playoff series and upset a Cup contender in the first round. The Boston Bruins, Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers, and New York Rangers could all face either Metropolitan Division team and the two teams have their positives and negatives.
Flyers Play up to Their Competition
Credit head coach John Tortorella, who was hired last offseason, for having this team not only ahead of schedule but prepared to play on a nightly basis. The Flyers weren’t expected to compete this season as they were still in the early phases of a rebuild yet they’ve outplayed most of the teams on their schedule.
The result is a team that has been in a playoff position all season and even as they are sliding in the standings, they’re still clinging to a wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. On offense, they generate effective shots on the net and when they generate scoring chances consistently, they can run up the score on any team. Their defense meanwhile is what has carried them all season. The unit is a younger one than in previous seasons with Cam York and Yegor Zamula, both of whom are 23 years old, taking on big roles while veterans Travis Sanheim and Nick Seeler remain anchors of the defense.
The Flyers have not only played up to their competition, they’ve played well against teams they will likely face in a playoff series. They took two of three against the Panthers and went 1-2-1 against the Hurricanes. While they lost all three games in the season series to the Rangers, they lost them by a combined four goals. The Flyers would be a team that could sneak into the playoffs and in the first round make every game a grind, one where juggernauts would have to fight for their victories.
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