Flyers-Sabres: Postgame Points

By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor 

If Tuesday's game was a sign of things to come, then consider the Flyers alive and well in the race for the final playoff spot.

Scoring hasn't come easy for the Orange and Black, but they sure made it look easy in Buffalo, matching their highest output of the season with six goals in a big win.

Here are 10 Postgame Points from Flyers-Sabres.

  1. Tuesday's game was really the first for the Flyers in a series of games to come over the final month of the season where the task at hand was directly in front of them. This was an important game for Buffalo's playoff hopes too. So for the Flyers to come out with the jump and deliver in a meaningful game was huge. With points in four straight games and their only loss coming in overtime to the NHL-leading Capitals, things are looking up for the Flyers of late.
  2. If six goals in a game for the Flyers seems like a shock, that's because it's only happened twice this season prior to Tuesday's game. The Flyers scored six goals in a 6-3 win over the Hurricanes on Oct. 22 and six in a 6-5 win over Edmonton on Dec. 8 during the 10-game winning streak. That was the last time the Flyers had even scored five goals in regulation — considering that their 5-4 win over Vancouver on Jan. 12 was a shootout win.
  3. Give a ton of credit to the defensive pairing of Radko Gudas and Michael Del Zotto and the Flyers bottom six forwards. Sean Couturier, Travis Konecny and Del Zotto each had two points. Gudas had a three-point game. Even Chris VandeVelde joined in on the act with a goal. The top two lines have to be catalysts, but games can be decided by contributions made from your depth players. The Flyers got a ton of contributions from the bottom six in this game.
  4. Claude Giroux found himself at the right place at the right time to snap a 12-game goalless drought. For a change, the puck luck was on Giroux's side. He wasn't going to miss from right in front of the net. Good to see the captain back in the goal-scoring column.
  5. As Travis Konecny's return from injury drew closer, it was obvious that wherever the Flyers decided to plug Konecny, he should not be taking the place of his "temporary" replacement. Jordan Weal has been excellent from his first game up. The energy he brings is evident, but he's started to show his skill and talent over these last few games and is really a good compliment to Giroux and Wayne Simmonds on the top line. 
  6. Tuesday's game wasn't perfect. The Flyers missed some very important opportunities early in the game on the power play. The Flyers had a 1-0 lead when they got the game's first power play. And it was a very good power play with several scoring chances and four shots on goal. In a 1-1 tie, they got the next two power plays and did nothing with them. There's no complaints with a 6-3 win, but the power play cost the Flyers a win in Washington and it almost did the same in Buffalo, at least in the early going it seemed that way. To be fair, when the Flyers went 0-for-6 against the Washington penalty kill, they were facing a Top-10 penalty kill in the league. Against Buffalo, they were 0-for-3 against the 29th-ranked penalty kill.
  7. Similarly, Buffalo may have only been in the game because of the power play. When the Sabres got their first power play, they scored 15 seconds in with a quick shot from Evander Kane that very closely resembled Nicklas Backstrom's game-winning goal on Saturday. On their next power play, Jack Eichel needed three seconds to score. Two goals in 18 seconds of power-play time.
  8. Buffalo certainly started to lose their edge in this game as the Flyers poured it on late in the second and early in the third, but Jack Eichel had a very impressive game. Now on an 11-game point streak, you can't ignore the gem that Buffalo got with the second pick in the 2015 NHL Draft. His first goal of the night was the 100th point of his career in 127 games. The kid is very good.
  9. One of the players not on the scoresheet at the end of the night was Valtteri Filppula, but the impact he is having on the team is certainly apparent. What was most noticeable on Tuesday was his two-way play, creating chances on offense and coming back into the defensive zone to break up chances and do his part defensively. This is a good pickup for Ron Hextall, considering the Flyers lacked a true second-line center until now.
  10. Lost in all the scoring was another solid game for Steve Mason. You can't fault him for any of Buffalo's goals and he quietly made 31 saves, including several testers early in the game while things were still tied or the margin was one.

Bottom Line

The Flyers have certainly set a foundation over the last week with wins over Colorado, Florida and now Buffalo and Saturday's overtime loss in Washington. To pick up seven points out of a possible eight in the last four games in huge progress for a team that couldn't string together much of anything in recent weeks.

It doesn't get any easier, and Thursday's game could be one of the make-or-break games for the Flyers season. Chasing two teams for the final wildcard spot, the Flyers have to chip away at each team. A regulation win would pull the Flyers even with Toronto and allow them to set their sights on the Islanders. That's what is at stake.

Toronto has struggled of late with a 3-4-3 record in their last 10 games and the Flyers have started to pick up some steam, but they will need to reciprocate this effort from Tuesday night in Toronto on Thursday. It's as simple as that. 

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