The Philadelphia Flyers are just one win away from clinching the final playoff spot in the East. The situation solidified over the weekend, you no longer need a paper and pencil to figure out the possibilities. The Flyers have two games left on the regular season schedule. They need just two points to clinch a post-season spot. It’s just that simple.
Many teams either clinched or have been eliminated since Saturday afternoon. The Flyers currently sit in 3rd place in the Metropolitan Division and holding onto that spot is their only path to the playoffs. The East Coast wildcard slots have been clinched by the Boston Bruins and Ottawa Senators.
The only two teams that still remain in contention with the Flyers (94 pts) are the Washington Capitals (93 pts) and the Columbus Blue Jackets (92 pts). Both of those teams have just one game remaining, it just so happens they play each other in that mutual final match on Tuesday night.
The Flyers have two games remaining on their schedule and could clinch a playoff berth with a win tonight against the Hurricanes tonight in Philly.
Flyers vs Hurricanes
The Carolina Hurricanes (110 pts) have already decisively clinched 1st place in the Metropolitan Division. They are 12 points ahead of the 2nd place Pittsburgh Penguins (98 pts). They will be the #1 seed in the East. The Buffalo Sabres (106 pts) have two games remaining but would still lose the tie breaker.
Carolina has been a power-house all season long under veteran head coach and former Flyers Rod Brind’Amour. Rod has been Carolina’s bench boss since 2018 and has taken his team to the post-season for the past seven years.
He won the Jack Adams Award as coach of the year for the 2020-21 season. Brind’Amour is the franchise’s winningest coach. He worked just as hard when he played center for the Flyers over the course of nine seasons from 1991 to 2000.
Who to watch
It’s too early to know if the Hurricanes will be sitting key players now that their season’s goals have been achieved, but if any of these guys are on the ice keep your eye on them.
Sebastian Aho has 27 goals and 53 assists for 80 points. Right winger Andrei Svechnikov has 31 goals and 39 assists. Center Seth Jarvis leads the team in goals with 32. Team captain Jordan Staal at age 37 has 20 goals on the season. Perhaps we’ll see former Flyers Nicolas Deslauriers.
On defense is former Flyers Shayne Gostisbehere who has 13 goals, 37 assists, and is a +11. Defenseman Alexander Nikishin leads the team with a +17. To give you an idea of what kind of squad this is they don’t have any players on their regular roster with a minus rating.
Not so fun fact: The Flyers have not beat the Hurricanes since November of 2023.
Flyers One Win Away
The Flyers are just two points away from clinching their first trip to the playoffs since 2020. If they do not pull that off tonight they will get a second chance against the Montreal Canadiens at home on Tuesday night.
The Flyers don’t need two wins, they need two points. It would be kind of anticlimactic but they could hang onto 3rd place with two overtime losses. One point would be enough to eliminate the Columbus Blue Jackets.
The Flyers are coming off a monster win in Winnipeg on Saturday night where they demolished the Jets 7-1. Sean Couturier had 2 goals and an assist. Noah Cates had a goal and 2 assists. Matvei Michkov (1g-1a) and Rasmus Ristolainen (2a) each recorded multiple point games.
Porter Martone scored the 1st goal against the Jets. He now has 7 points in 7 games with the Flyers. At just 19 years of age he has fit into this line-up like a seasoned pro.
Light the Lamp
Travis Konecny, Trevor Zegras, and Owen Tippett are still your top three points leaders. Tippett leads the team in goals with 28 but he’s scored just one since March 28th when he recorded a hattrick against the Red Wings, so he’s due.
Noah Cates is you plus/minus leader with a +25. Among defensemen it’s Emil Andrae with a +15.
Too early to say who will be in the net for the Flyers tonight. If you are willing to turn a blind eye the Detroit game Dan Vladar has allowed just 4 goals in his last four starts. Samuel has won 4 out of his last five. The goaltending has been solid down the stretch. Capping off the season with a back-to-back we may see both goaltenders this week. Too soon to say.
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