The Flyers struggled to out-work Henrik Lundqvist and the Rangers defense in Wednesday's 3-1 loss to New York. (Photo Courtesy of ESPN.com)
When Monday's result played out how it did, the Flyers seemed to push it aside. It was certainly understandable. The team had just won five straight games.
One game lost didn't seem to hurt too much, not in terms of morale and fight. After all the Flyers had also tied the game on Monday with two third-period goals. If not for one of the NHL's best goalies, perhaps that result is also different.
Wednesday's result was the same for the Flyers. The performance was not. The Flyers 3-1 loss to the New York Rangers is the first shadow of doubt on a team that has great potential but lacks in many areas.
More than anything, the Flyers had a chance to deliver a resounding response to the loss on Monday. They talked a big game. They played small.
From the start, it appeared the Flyers were slow, tired and disinterested. For a game at Madison Square Garden in the heat of a playoff race, how do you not get up and play with energy?
"Teams are going to battle hard and we need to battle harder," head coach Craig Berube said. "We need everybody going, doing the right things out there. Tonight we didn’t have it. We didn’t have our best players playing tonight."
The energy was noticeably absent. So was the discipline, not to stay out of the penalty box – the Flyers took just three penalties all game – but to make smart and decisive plays with the puck.
There were turnovers aplenty, especially by defenseman. Forwards didn't forecheck and lost puck battles. The hard work that was very evident against Pittsburgh, Chicago and St. Louis was gone.
Instead of roaring back with energetic play, the Flyers whimpered at the hands of Henrik Lundqvist and the Rangers.
The scary part to this is simple: if the Flyers and Rangers were to meet in the playoffs, as they very well could, one team looked more prepared than the other for a playoff series and battle of wills. It wasn't the Orange and Black.
This was the pre-deadline, pre-Olympics, pre-Berube team that didn't understand a defensive system, taking away opportunities and creating your own. This was a team that when faced with adversity, put its tail between its legs.
"We got away from what was making us successful," Steve Mason said. "You look at the intensity that we brought in games against Pittsburgh, and I just feel that it wasn’t there tonight. These are huge games for us, and for us to not come out with our best effort, we need better."
There is no denying Lundqvist was good. However, to open this successful month of March, the Flyers decisively beat this Rangers team, 4-2.
So what changed? Perhaps the attitude.
"We're still fine here. We still control our own destiny," Wayne Simmonds said. "We've got 10 games left. We've just got to take care of our own business and see where it takes us."
Whatever the reason, the Flyers have to deal with the bitter taste that is talking a big game and getting out-worked in all aspects. The next step is coming back again. Tired or not, the playoff push is upon the Flyers and positioning is altered by one win or one loss.
Kevin Durso is the lead beat writer for Flyerdelphia. Follow him on twitter @KDursoPhilsNet.
