By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor 
At this time of year, four-point games are incredibly crucial and the hungrier team will come out on top. The Flyers were victimized by a hungrier team that played a more polished game.
That's the story of the loss that put the Flyers recent turnaround and increase in playoff life back on life support, as the Toronto Maple Leafs stormed to a 4-2 win on Thursday night.
Here are 10 Postgame Points from Flyers-Maple Leafs.
- The better team wore blue in this one. With all of their speed and skill, the Maple Leafs also brought a tenacity that the Flyers needed to have and didn't. After such a good effort in Buffalo, this was disappointing. I don't question their energy level, but when you constantly get outworked in the dirty areas, lose puck battles and can't control the puck, it's hard to win games. The Flyers failed to make adjustments or turn up the tenacity in a game that desperately needed it.
- Give the Leafs a ton of credit. This was a tremendous defensive effort. After allowing the early power-play goal and a few chances in the first period, they tightened things up and the Flyers never got much space again until their next power play midway through the third. And even then, Toronto took away space and pressured constantly.
- The Flyers penalty kill has fallen back to its terrible state. After allowing two goals on three attempts in Buffalo, Toronto went 2-for-2 on the power play. On both power play goals, a defenseman is trying to play for the blocked shot and a forward doesn't shift to the shooter's side of the ice to put pressure on him as the puck carrier. On both goals, the passive forward was Chris VandeVelde.
- Mitch Marner's power-play goal was as predictable as it gets. Get a power play, do nothing with it with a chance to tie the game, take a bad penalty, give up a goal. Like clockwork.
- Making his first start in five games, it was not a good return for Michal Neuvirth. He wasn't screened on any of Toronto's goal, and though they were tough shots, sometimes a goalie needs to make a save. There wasn't going to be a good time to give Steve Mason, riding a hot streak, a night off. But looking at the Flyers schedule, it was hard to find a good time anytime soon. In the other net, Frederik Andersen continues to stymie the Flyers. He's now 6-0-0 in his career against the Flyers after making 36 saves in this one.
- The game was defined by turnovers, the biggest being when Sean Couturier was stripped by Tyler Bozak exiting his own zone. Bozak never gave up the puck after that and beat Neuvirth with a wrister from the right circle. Then at the end, down by one and starting to press for the equalizer, Shayne Gostisbehere placed the puck right on the stick of Nazem Kadri, who hit the empty net to officially end things.
- It was a good game for Gostisbehere, late turnover aside. He scored another goal, his sixth of the season, and took the shot that was deflected in by Wayne Simmonds in the first. He's been more active offensively of late, which is starting to produce results.
- At one point in this game, the Leafs could have had a 6-1 lead. The number of posts and grade-A chances was so out of hand that it should have been a blowout. The second period was horrible, just loaded with Toronto chances left and right. It was only a matter of time when Bozak scored just shy of the midway point of the second period. Even after a modestly even third period and with just over a minute left, the Flyers were pressing for the equalizer, but it never really felt that close.
- The Flyers fourth line has looked better with Travis Konecny on the right wing, but for as much as Konecny creates chances, a line with Pierre-Edouard Bellemare and VandeVelde isn't equipped to finish. Konecny is so far superior to the two in offensive skill that is makes the rest of the line look incompetent around the net.
- I'm sick of hearing about good news, bad news with other teams. The task at hand is on the ice in front of you. Stop bringing up what Tampa is doing. Stop bringing up what the Islanders are doing. If the Flyers don't win the game they have to play first, it doesn't matter.
Bottom Line
How many of the Flyers games this season have been "must-win" games? It's an often overused cliche, where games in December and January are "must-win" games just because they have some sort of magnitude. But when you're chasing a playoff spot, every game is essentially a must-win game in the stretch run. And when you get a chance to play a team directly in front of you in the standings, it is definitely a must-win.
The Flyers blew a must-win on Thursday night. And the shame of it was they had a good start, got an early goal and had the moment. Then a bad penalty allows Toronto to get an easy goal. The second period was pitiful and pathetic. The third period was a classic shutdown period from a team that simply played better than you.
If you get a win in this game, then maybe there's some momentum and maybe some hope going into the weekend. With Boston, Columbus and Pittsburgh looming, the Flyers may need to win all three just to have any chance at the playoffs. And that's not going to happen.
The Flyers had playoff life because other teams in the race allowed them to. If the Islanders claim a win on Thursday night in Vancouver, the margin suddenly goes from two to five. That may be all she wrote on the 2016-17 Flyers.
