Sens ‘Em Packing: Flyers fall to Ottawa

Zach Smith opened the scoring in the Senators' 3-1 win over the Flyers.

A push for the playoff will now turn to playing for pride. The Flyers could have made a run at the final playoff spot after winning four straight games, capped off by a 5-3 win over the Maple Leafs just a week ago.

But since then, the Flyers have dropped three straight games, complete with their 3-1 loss to the Ottawa Senators on Thursday night at the Wells Fargo Center.

The Senators struck first, scoring 3:20 into the game on a breakaway by Zach Smith.

The Flyers would struggle for scoring chances early, but managed the equalizer with just over eight minutes left in the first. Simon Gagne fired a turnaround shot on goal and it was deflected by Claude Giroux past Sens' goalie Robin Lehner. It was the Flyers' first shorthanded goal of the season.

After a scoreless second, the two teams played 14 minutes of scoreless hockey in the third. But the game-changing play came at the 13:53 mark of the third. Giroux was called for a double minor for high sticking, giving Ottawa four minutes of power play time.

They didn't take long to strike. Colin Greening managed a breakaway and scored with 5:36 left in regulation.

The Flyers killed off the remaining two minutes of Giroux's penalty, but couldn't find the urgency needed to get the tying goal late. Daniel Alfredsson iced the game with an empty-net goal with six seconds left.

The Flyers had spent the week vowing to play that "60-minute game." They look like they showed up for about five.

The same demons that plagued the Flyers from the start of the season have resurfaced in the last three games. There is no urgency on offense. The defense is caught napping – no pun intended – on the same regular basis they were early in the season.

Ilya Bryzgalov made some excellent saves to keep the game close. He was hardly at fault for the two goals he allowed.

The Flyers are a battered bunch. That's no secret. But they still have Giroux. They still have Scott Hartnell. They still have Kimmo Timonen, and Jake Voracek and Wayne Simmonds. There is enough talent on this team to win a game. There is enough talent on this team to play 60 minutes.

The Flyers can't seem to do either. And with their latest loss, it likely put their postseason hopes to rest.

Kevin Durso is a contributor for Flyerdelphia. You can follow him twitter @KDursoPhilsNet.