Philly Sports Post - Home of the PSP Podcast

"We won yesterday. If we win today, that's two-in-a-row. If we win tomorrow, that's called a winning streak; it has happened before." -Lou Brown, Major League, 1989.

The Flyers have started their march towards the NHL playoffs. With only three weeks left in the regular season, every game is meaningful. So why has the Flyers play been so inconsistent? They haven't been able to string together any wins and their play has been up-and-down. The Flyers need to settle down, build some momentum and start making some noise as they prepare for the playoffs. Can they do it?


Is there anything better to watch then playoff hockey? I mean anything that you can watch with the curtains open, the lights on, when people are home? No, I didn’t think so. Playoff hockey is one of the most entertaining times of the year in all sports. For as long and tedious as the NHL regular season can become, once the playoffs role around and the intensity of the games pick up, the NHL becomes Must See TV.

With 12 games to play, the Flyers are essentially playing playoff hockey with each drop of the puck. The Flyers remain the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference following their win over the Sabres, but only remain five points over 8th seeded Montreal and six points above the 9th seeded Panthers. Every game means something as they strive to make their playoff run. It’s now time for the true players on this team to step up and make some noise.

The Flyers will need Mike Richards and Jeff Carter at the top of their games. They need Daniel Briere to start playing like the star they hoped he would be when they signed him two years ago. Martin Biron needs to play like the quasi-number one goalie he can be and stop giving up weak goals. But most importantly, the Flyers must string a few wins together, start playing consistent hockey and build some momentum as they race towards Lord Stanley’s playoffs.

The Flyers have only won three games in a row once in the past three months. They put together three in a row in mid-February. Other than that “winning streak”, the Flyers have traded wins and loses and are 5-5 in March. This type of inconsistent play is not the type of play that a team can build on entering the playoffs. The Flyers need to stay in the 4th seed and do not want to lose home ice advantage in the playoffs. The streaking Penguins have climbed into the fifth spot and the last thing the Flyers need to do is slip behind their cross-state rivals and open the playoffs in the Steel City. The Flyers cannot have games like they did against the Sabres Friday night. The Sabres are not a playoff team and the Flyers should not place themselves into situations in which they are forced to come from behind to beat sub-par teams.

The Flyers fate lies in their own hands. They have more games in hand then any of the other playoff teams. Several of those games are against other playoff teams including the Penguins, the Rangers (2) and the Devils. They also play the Panthers twice. The Flyers season is going to be what they make of it. If they can grab the opportunity that has been presented to them, we may get to see another exciting run through the playoffs. But if they let these games slip away and they can’t muster any consistency then it may be an early spring for the Fly-Guys.