Philadelphia Flyers
On Thursday, the NHL officially announced that the Flyers will face the Chicago Blackhawks to open the 2019-20 season in Prague, Czech Republic.
When it came down to it, the Flyers ran out of gas. Montreal was the hungrier team early, opened up the lead and let their goaltender do the rest. The regulation loss pushed the Flyers further back in the chase for the playoffs, and likely closed the book on an unlikely comeback.
There would be no magical comeback on this night. The Flyers were never able to solve the Canadiens at even strength and Montreal claimed a 3-1 win over the Flyers on Tuesday night at Wells Fargo Center.
The Flyers face the Montreal Canadiens on home ice to kick off the final 10 games on the schedule, having split the first two meetings of the season in Montreal.
Despite the Flyers’ slim chances of making this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs, there is victory in one way. After Sunday night’s exciting win over the Pittsburgh Penguins, the season series was won with the Flyers winning three of four meetings.
With 10 games remaining on the schedule, it remains to be seen if the Flyers take this win and turn it into some magical last-gasp playoff run that gets them in, but it kept their playoff hopes alive for now.
Carter Hart was back in goal and continued to give the Flyers a chance, turning away seven Pittsburgh shots in overtime. On a last-second two-on-one, Sean Couturier finished off the incredible rally for a 2-1 win over the Penguins, keeping the Flyers dimming playoff hopes alive for another day.
It became a night to forget for the Flyers, as what remains of their playoff hopes took a massive hit with a 7-6 loss to the Maple Leafs on Friday night.
The Flyers continue a crucial three-game stretch on Friday against the Toronto Maple Leafs, a team that they have not faced since Nov. 24, two days before Ron Hextall was fired as GM.
The Capitals didn’t win Thursday’s game with their stars, but their depth, getting good goaltending when they needed it and players to step up. For the Flyers, it was a reminder that a young defense can still pay the price for costly mistakes and that the depth needs to improve.