Until Next Year? Another lost weekend may be dagger for Flyers
It was just 10 days ago that the Flyers managed to score their third straight win, scoring six goals in a 6-3 victory over the Nashville Predators. Their next game came two days later against the New York Rangers.
The Flyers were 12 seconds away from a fourth straight win. Keith Yandle scored to tie the game as the Flyers failed to clear the zone and ice the game.
That is the first of six games that have come and gone for the Flyers. Five of them have been losses. In the six-game stretch, the Flyers have scored 12 goals — five of them coming in the only win, a 5-1 drubbing of the Buffalo Sabres. In two straight weekends of back-to-back games, the Flyers have come away with just one point in the standings. In the two games in between, their only win of the six-game stretch has accounted for the only two-point effort.
Make no mistake about it, the Flyers have completely fizzled out. With injuries to Sean Couturier and Michael Del Zotto, being shorthanded certainly has played a factor. But Sunday night's loveless affair between the Rangers and Flyers not only probably spelled the beginning of the end for the Flyers potential playoff hopes, but also showed how poorly this group approached this stretch of games.
Sunday's game was the perfect example. With two fights coming in the first minute of the game as a result of Wayne Simmonds' jab to the head of Ryan McDonagh eight days ago, that should have set the tone for an entertaining game.
It was lifeless from the Flyers, who finally started to turn things up in the final nine minutes of the game, but only after falling behind 3-0.
The Flyers are missing two key players. Couturier and Del Zotto are not just filling spots until the future comes. They are as much a part of the future as Shayne Gostisbehere, who provided the only highlight of the game, assisting on Brayden Schenn's goal in the final 10 seconds of the game to extend his points streak to 12 just in the knick of time. This appears to once again be a matter of leadership and accountability.
The Flyers certainly have a formidable top line blueprint in Claude Giroux, Jake Voracek and Simmonds. But when there is little to nothing behind it, an awful lot rests on the shoulders of three players all playing together. If the opposition can simply take that line out of the equation, as the Rangers and New Jersey Devils have been able to do, then it's highly likely the Flyers offense will be almost non-existent.
The Flyers did watch goaltenders steal the show over the weekend. Cory Schneider and Henrik Lundqvist are among the best in the league. Goals are already at a premium.
Which brings us to another problem with the Flyers. Couturier and Del Zotto being out of the lineup opens up the ice. Many don't realize the efficiency they provide until you take them away and see what's left. What's left is Radko Gudas, Nick Schultz and Andrew MacDonald. These defensemen are essentially being asked to play top-pair minutes when most of them wouldn't crack the Top 4 of most teams in the league.
The sad truth for the Flyers is that they rely too much on a small sum of players that when lumped together in one line or one pair or just taken out of the lineup with injury can't hold up to teams with much better depth.
Despite that, the Flyers remain a team that hangs in the playoff race for a good portion of the season. Only once the dog days of the season hit, right about midway through February, the Flyers crumble from the weight. Giroux, Voracek, Simmonds and now Gostisbehere can't carry the team offensively. Couturier and Del Zotto start to wear down as well from a defensive workload that is physically demanding.
After a 1-3-2 stretch in the last six games, the Flyers are looking at a deficit that may be too much to overcome. They remain six points back, which is manageable with 27 games remaining, but their recent stretch of play, particularly without enough weapons on offense and key cogs on defense, just makes it more of a mountain.
Another lost weekend just created more doubt as the Flyers wait even further for a bright future to take shape.
Kevin Durso is managing editor for Flyerdelphia. Follow him on Twitter @Kevin_Durso.
