Kevin Durso

The Capitals grabbed two goals late in the second, then another in the third as they closed out a 3-1 result on Sunday night at Wells Fargo Center.

The Flyers will take on the Washington Capitals three times this week, starting with a Sunday night meeting to close out a stretch of six games in nine nights.

In the third period, the Flyers looked tired. They looked like the tank was empty. And the Penguins, certainly not at their best, were able to take advantage with one goal that proved to be the difference in a 4-3 result. And it doesn’t get any easier, as the Flyers are right back on the ice on Sunday.

As the third period progressed in a tie game, the Flyers started to show the lack of energy that comes with playing so frequently, while the Penguins got the only goal that mattered and finished off the game, claiming a 4-3 decision in the rubber match of the three-game series between the two teams on Saturday afternoon.

The Flyers and Penguins meet for the third and final time this week, trying to decide the winner of the three-game series. 

The Flyers gave up three goals in the first four minutes of the game. Alain Vigneault used his timeout. The Flyers didn’t come back in waves, but trimmed away the lead and completed the rally with just over two minutes left in regulation, resulting in arguably their most impressive win of the season.

A deflection goal by Scott Laughton tied the game with 6:23 remaining, then Claude Giroux’s second goal of the game with 2:08 to play proved to be the difference in the Flyers 4-3 comeback win over the Penguins on Thursday night.

The second game is set for Thursday night, and the Penguins will remain without their captain due to COVID protocols. Meanwhile, the Flyers get another chance to respond to adversity and to play with a full lineup after their own COVID situation.

With their full lineup back on the ice, the Penguins showed the formula that defeats the Flyers, and did it without Sidney Crosby in the lineup. Following a quick response to a Flyers goal off a turnover, they commanded the play from there, and it didn’t seem to matter that the Flyers were throwing plenty of rubber at the Pittsburgh net.

The Penguins took control in the second period and erased a Flyers third-period goal in short order on their way to a 5-2 result over the Flyers on Tuesday night.

After a weekend sweep in Buffalo, the Flyers were gearing up to face one of the best in the world and get a test from a team right there in the playoff race. But on Tuesday morning, Sidney Crosby was ruled out for Tuesday upon his placement on the NHL’s COVID list. Now, the Flyers will face the rest of the Penguins without their captain, as this three-game series begins on Tuesday night. 

This time, it was Carter Hart’s turn in goal to have an excellent outing in goal to help the Flyers get another two points in the standings. It just happened to involve a three-goal second period that produced another 3-0 victory.

Carter Hart’s shutout performance plus three second-period goals were the difference, as the Flyers once again defeated the Sabres, 3-0, on Sunday afternoon to complete the weekend sweep.

The Flyers look to keep the success going against the Sabres, who are dealing with some struggles and injuries that have hindered their play in the last few weeks.

Finally, the Flyers are at a spot where there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. Four more players returned to the lineup on Saturday afternoon and with those players back, plus another excellent goaltending performance, the nearly full-strength Flyers showed what may have been missing from their recent games.

Brian Elliott was on point, making 23 saves to secure his second shutout of the season, both coming against the Sabres, once again in a 3-0 victory on Saturday afternoon.

The Flyers are on the road for the next five games, starting with a weekend back-to-back against the Buffalo Sabres. The first game is Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m.

It wasn’t a pretty win, and it wasn’t going to be pretty with the Flyers still plenty shorthanded from their COVID situation. But Claude Giroux marked the first player to return on a list that will only be increasing with each passing day, and he showed just how motivated he was to come back strong.

Claude Giroux had three assists as the Flyers struck for two goals in the first and second periods, holding off the Rangers in a 4-3 win on Wednesday night at Wells Fargo Center.

The Flyers are also getting some reinforcements back in the lineup. Claude Giroux returned to practice on Tuesday and was the first of the players on the COVID list to return. More will follow in the coming days. For now, Giroux and the rest of the team continue their season, facing the New York Rangers on Wednesday night.

Captain Claude Giroux was back on the ice for the first time since going on the COVID list on Feb. 9, leading to the postponement of that night’s game against the Washington Capitals. Plus, five more Flyers games have new dates in the latest round of league reschedulings.

Embed from Getty Images By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor  If the Flyers were satisfied to take a point…

With a shorthanded lineup once again, the Bruins got another late second-period goal that started the unraveling. This time, it didn’t even take until the third. Three goals for the Bruins in 1:39 capped off a four-goal period, as the Flyers were routed in the outdoor game at Lake Tahoe by a score of 7-3 on Sunday night.

For the Flyers, the Bruins have been a thorn in the side for the entire season, handing them four losses so far. The road doesn’t get any easier as the Flyers head into this outdoor game in Lake Tahoe with a still shorthanded lineup.

While the Rangers snapped a four-game losing streak and earned just their fifth win of the season against the Flyers on Thursday night, the circumstances the Flyers were in made this an uphill battle from the start. The Flyers got off to a good one at that, but ultimately had to overcome too much to secure that second point.

When it came down to the wire, a late goal managed to get them a point in the standings and force overtime, but in a shootout, the Rangers would prevail over the Flyers with a pair of goals in a 3-2 final at Wells Fargo Center on Thursday night.

The Flyers face the New York Rangers in their first game since last Sunday. The Rangers enter this game on a four-game losing streak, fresh off a loss to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday in the Devils’ first game back since their own COVID situation.

The Flyers were back on Tuesday for practice with a limited group and more players are expected to rejoin the team on Wednesday ahead of Thursday’s game against the New York Rangers. The Flyers also had five games rescheduled by the NHL in the wake of COVID-19 caused postponements.

On both Saturday and Sunday, the Flyers list remained at seven players, but Sunday brought a new addition in Travis Konecny. Travis Sanheim, the player who was first to be placed on the list last Sunday, was removed from the list.