Claude Giroux
The next chapter in the Battle of Pennsylvania has a lot at stake for both sides. The Penguins are challenging for the division lead, just four points behind the Capitals, while the Flyers look to go into the All-Star break and bye week on a high note.
Travis Konecny scored the first two goals of the game and James van Riemsdyk had a goal and two assists, helping to pace the Flyers to a 4-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday night at Wells Fargo Center.
The Flyers next game comes against another team outside of playoff position. The Los Angeles Kings come to town on Saturday night and it is a game the Flyers certainly feel the need to come away with a better result.
Claude Giroux noted that, while it’s no excuse, it can be tough to get up the next day and play another game, no matter the opponent. Alain Vigneault didn’t buy into the theory. “You know that word that starts with b?” the Flyers head coach said.
Fresh off a 3-1-0 stretch against four of the top six teams in the league, the Flyers face a team outside the playoff picture in the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night.
The Flyers faced both the Capitals and Bruins on home ice, and at the time, each was at least in a tie for the most points in the NHL. Their only remaining road game before the All-Star break and bye week is also against a team tied for the most points in the standings. The defending Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues await in a Wednesday night matchup.
The Flyers take on the Boston Bruins on Monday night. The Bruins enter Monday’s game tied atop the league standings and on a three-game winning streak.
Andrei Vasilevskiy posted a shutout for the second straight game and the Lightning showed a real commitment to defensive play and taking away virtually everything the Flyers could have brought to the table. There was simply no room to operate, no room to execute and when the Flyers were able to pump the puck deep, they could not win the races because the Lightning were perfectly placed.
The Flyers next opponent was one of the bigger disappointments in the NHL a month ago, but since then, the Tampa Bay Lightning have risen to second place in the Atlantic Division and sixth in the league in points, due in large part to a current nine-game winning streak that they will bring to Philadelphia on Saturday night.
The Flyers next four games are against top teams in the league. It starts with the team right at the top of the NHL standings, the Washington Capitals, who dominated their way to a 6-1 win over Ottawa on Tuesday night.
