ECQF Game 2: Flyers @ Penguins 4/17/09 (Penguins Lead 1-0)

The biggest game of the year. If the Flyers lose, as far as I'm concerned, all hope is lost. Insert your own favorite cliche here. Tonight is cliche city.

Why the Flyers Will Win:

• Because they have to. The Flyers are going to be desperate, and hopefully were embarrassed by their play in Game 1. There's a lot to prove. They will be better if they have any pride.
• The Flyers played their best near the end of the game. Maybe some good momentum got started? Maybe?
  
• How can Pittsburgh not underestimate these Flyers? Every talking head is saying that the series is over, how the Flyers are a terrible team, etc. The Flyers could very well catch them sleeping.
  
• Daniel Carcillo is not a playoff calibre player, and the Flyers will be better off without him. Hopefully Luca Sbisa can provide some sort of spark.
  

Why the Penguins Will Win:

• If Game 2 looks anything like Game 1, the Penguins will win. The Flyers were far from being in the contest at any point, so a lot has to change fast.
• The main problem the Flyers have had against the Penguins dating back to last year's playoffs is a complete inability to solve Marc-Andre Fleury. Second to the penalties, it was the main reason the Flyers lost Game 1. Keeping shots high and sending somebody to run him over repeatedly (I nominate Hartnell) could do a lot of good. But if nothing changes, it will be trouble.
• Normally I would say that the big advantage in penalties against that the Penguins held in Game 1 would mean some balancing out in Game 2. But the Carcillo suspension will just reinforce notions of the Flyers being goons. Expect whistles early and often.
  

If anybody is thinking along these lines, yes the Flyers did lose both Games 1 and 2 in Buffalo in 2006 and come back to tie the series by winning both Games 3 and 4 in Philadelphia. So it can be done. But both those Flyers wins were flukes, and the Flyers deservedly got destroyed in Games 5 and 6.

Prediction: Penguins win 3-0. I pray I'm wrong.

Puck drops at 7 on CSN Philadelphia, Versus, and CBC.

Let's go Flyers (clap clap clapclap clap).

Game #81 Preview: Flyers @ Islanders 4/11/09

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Last road game of the regular season. Here's hoping the last post-season road game is in another time zone.

Why the Flyers Will Win:

• The Flyers are 5-0-0 in their previous meetings with the Islanders this season. I'm sensing a pattern there.
  
• The Islanders have been really bad lately. REALLY BAD. With nothing to play for (and every loss helping their draft lottery chances in the Tavares Sweepstakes), the Islanders haven't been trying. Believe it or not, just like Michael Scott, there's a big difference between the Islanders trying and the Islanders not trying. The Islanders have lost their last two games by a combined score of 15-1. They're giving up an average of 2.5 goals a period, which is more than some teams have given up per game this year.
  
• Ryan Parent is back from whatever was wrong with him, so the defense (which wasn't even bad without him) will be all the better.
• Daniel Carcillo had his best game as a Flyer on Thursday. Still no scoring, but it's the closest he's come. Hopefully he takes advantage of the Islanders' shitty goaltending to get some momentum.
  

Why the Islanders Will Win:

• This is the definition of a trap game. It's impossible for the Flyers not to be thinking ahead to the playoffs, and even the Rangers tomorrow. Hopefully this team has more focus than that.
  
• If I'm the Flyers, losing this game wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. Dropping to sixth would mean losing home ice, yes, but it would also mean avoiding the hot Hurricanes and Penguins and facing the cold Devils in the first round. Not a terrible idea, maybe?

Prediction: Islanders win 4-1 in a game that unnerves many in Flyerland. Sorry.

Game #80 Preview: Flyers @ Rangers 4/9/09

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The Flyers are in, but still can finish anywhere between third and sixth, with home ice or without it, against Carolina, Pittsburgh, or even New Jersey. So these last three games against the New York teams are big.

Why the Flyers Will Win:

• The Flyers are much better than the Rangers. That oughta count for something.
• Next to the Penguins, it's pretty safe to say that the Rangers are this team's least liked opponent. The Flyers would undoubtedly love to keep the Rangerss out.

Why the Rangers Will Win:

• David Sloane, who has never before played a game at ANY professional level, will be starting tonight for the Flyers in place of the injured Ryan Parent. I'm not sure why it's not Luca Sbisa making his triumphant return, but it's probably a cap issue. Work it out, Holmgren. Jared Ross, John Kalinski, and Luca Sbisa are all much better than Danny Syvret, Andreas Nodl, and whoever this Sloane clown is.
• This could be the Rangers' last home game 'til October, potentially. That could be some motivation for them.

Prediction: Rangers win 3-1. No idea why.

Game #79 Preview: Panthers @ Flyers 4/7/09

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Tonight could be the night. With one point (or a Rangers loss), the Flyers would guarantee a playoff spot for the thirteenth time in fourteen seasons, a conference best. The Penguins and Canadiens can clinch tonight as well with wins.

Clinching is always fun. Here's what it looked like last year:

Why the Flyers Will Win:

• The last home game the Flyers played, they scored five goals in the first period. If they do that again, they'll probably win.
  
• Riley Cote's convenient right before the playoffs injury is keeping him out of this game, which means somebody who knows how to skate will get a jersey instead.
• Martin Biron is getting the start tonight, which is good, because he's the only Flyers goalie who knows how to win these days.
• A loss tonight could put the Flyers as low as SIXTH. That's bad. What's good is that the Flyers play well when the game means something. Which is good because the playoffs fast approach.
  

Why the Panthers Will Win:

• As much as tonight means for the Flyers, it's gotta mean a lot more for the Panthers. The Panthers are tied for eighth with the Panthers but don't own the tiebreak
  
• You may have noticed, in our non-stop efforts to improve here at The FF, we've put up a little meter on the sidebar which keeps track of how many goals Daniel Carcillo has scored for the Flyers. Unfortunately, it has to be updated manually. Fortunately, I doubt I'll ever have to update it. Daniel Carcinogen is coming off his worst game yet as a Flyer, taking 24 minutes worth of penalties against Ottawa on Saturday. He's just bad. Scratch him for the year and be done with it already.

Prediction: Florida wins 3-2 in a shootout. Flyers clinch, Panthers get two points. Everybody's happy.

Game #77 Preview: Maple Leafs @ Flyers 4/3/09

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Why the Flyers Will Win:

• Because losing this game would be really, really, really bad.

Prediction: Flyers win. Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease

Game #76 Preview: Flyers @ Maple Leafs 4/1/09

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The Flyers are playing their first of two games in four days in Ontario. The schedule is a bitch, meaning that the Flyers have to play three games in four days, flying back and forth to Canada twice in that short span.

Why the Flyers Will Win:

• It's James van Riemsdyk day in Flyerland, so spirits should be high.
• The Maple Leafs are really bad. And their GM is super pissed off, talking about what failures they are because they're going to miss the playoffs. Missing the playoffs is bad, but being in fourteenth is way worse. They're not very good.
  
• The Flyers don't really have the games in hand that they used to, and so now the playoff picture is a little more urgent. The Flyers are only one point ahead of Carolina, who is only one point ahead of Pittsburgh, who is only one point ahead of New York, who is only one point ahead of Montreal.
• Martin Biron gets the start, and the Flyers have been much much better with him at the helm.
• The Flyers aren't the Mets. They'll make the playoffs.

Why the Maple Leafs will Win:

• The Maple Leafs have absolutely nothing to play for, and will be dangerous. Lot of guys fighting for jobs for next year.
• The Flyers are 1-2 in games on TSN this year.

Prediction: Flyers win 4-1. I hope I'm right, since I want one of those Tastykakes shirts.

Game #74 Preview: Flyers @ Islanders 3/28/09

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Flyers in the friendly confines of Nassau Colliseum tonight, against a team that the Flyers dominate like none other, the 30th place New York Islanders.

Why the Flyers Will Win:

• The Flyers are just much better than the Islanders. They've won ten straight against them, and should have absolutely no problems tonight.

Why the Islanders Will Win:

• The Isles have to be riding high after a big 2-0 shut out of Detroit last night. They will be playing with as much confidence as a team that terrible possibly could.

This could very easily be the Flyers last ever game in Nassau, if the team does pack up and move to Kansas City or wherever else the rumors have them going. Good riddance.

Prediction: Flyers 5-1.

Game #73 Preview: Panthers @ Flyers 3/26/09

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It's the night we've all been waiting for. The night that Florida finally arrives to the Wachovia Center.

Why the Flyers Will Win:

• As I'm sure you've heard, tonight is Scott Hartnell Wig Night. 7,000 wigs in the arena. I just pray there's a hat trick. Those things would look so ridiculous on the ice, and the team whose fans threw rats at Flyers players during the 1996 playoffs certain
• How dumb would it be to lose on Scott Hartnell Wig Night? Fear of that embarrassment should be incentive enough.
• Florida's choke yesterday was out of control. Up 3-1 on Buffalo in the third, they managed to lose 5-3, seriously damaging their playoff hopes. Florida and Montreal seem to be competing for who gets to start their summer earlier, and the Panthers are winning that battle right now. Morale has to be absurdly low for the boys with the kitties on their shirts.

Why the Panthers Will Win:

• Things have been going so badly for Florida lately that it has to turn around sometime. Having this game only a night after their choke gives them less time to sulk, which could help.

Prediction: Flyers win 4-1. Hartnell almost certainly drops the gloves.

Game #72 Preview: Devils @ Flyers 3/23/09

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Back to back games against the two biggest divisional rivals on national television? What's not to love?

Why the Flyers Will Win:

• Momentum. The Flyers and Devils both played good teams whose colors are black-and-gold yesterday afternoon. The Flyers won, largely because their black-and-gold team showed up in blue. The Devils, on the other hand, looked pretty bad against Boston, Brodeur especially.
• The Devils have pretty little to play for these days. They'll finish in second. The Flyers are also locked into fourth, but since the Flyboys have something to prove against the Devils and the Devils don't have much to prove against the Flyers,
• Daniel Briere is playing real well right now. Hell, everybody except Daniel Carcillo is playing real well right now.
• Martin Brodeur will probably still be blinded by tears from the alimony beating he took recently.

Why the Devils Will Win:

• The Devils haven't back to back games since Obama has been president. Yeesh.
• Back in December, the Flyers played the Penguins and Devils back to back. They had a big win over Pittsburgh, then seemed absurdly content to get an OT loss vs. the Devils. If they're that complacent again, there could be issues.

Prediction: Flyers 3-1. Do it to it.

Puck drops at 7 on Versus.

Game #71 Preview: Flyers @ Penguins 3/22/09

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I'm not going to do the usual why each team will win thing, because honestly I can't come up with many decent reasons why the Penguins won't win this game. They're 13-1-2 since Bylsma took over. Malkin could be missing the game with a suspension for his late cheapshot vs. L.A., which would be nice, but probably won't be the difference.

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The difference for this team, which doesn't get talked about enough, is Fleury. Fleury was phenomenal in the playoffs last year, and was terrible early in this year. Now he's playing pretty well, and so is the rest of his team. The Flyers have only won once against the Penguins this season, and that was with the terrible Dany Sabourin in net for the flightless birds.

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This game is even more important than the average Pittsburgh game since it's the last time the Flyers and Penguins play in the regular season, before they almost certainly meet in the first round of the playoffs. If the Flyers can really just injur every decent Penguin--Crosby, Malkin, Gonchar, Fleury, Staal, Kunitz, Sykora--that would be good. Hopefully then Carolina would be able to move into the #5 seed, which would be a much easier opponent, and be the first time that the Flyers ever faced the Hurricanes/Whalers in a playoff series, leaving the Thrashers as the only Eastern team the Flyers have never faced in the playoffs.

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And the game is on NBC, which is good because I'll get to see it, but terrible because NBC's coverage is awful. Mike Milbury is awful. Pierre McGuire is awful. Whoever keeps them on the air is even more awful.

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Hopefully the game won't be awful. Hopefully the Flyers win. That would be good.

Puck drops at 12:30 in the Igloo. Go Flyers.

Game #70 Preview: Flyers @ Sabres 3/20/09

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I'm in a rush, but luckily tonight is pretty straight forward...

Why the Flyers Will Win:

• The Flyers have won every game in this season series, and with some ease. They'll win again tonight.

Why the Sabres Will Win:

• They won't.

Prediction: Flyers 4-1. Do it to it, boys.

Game #69 Preview: Flyers @ Red Wings 3/17/09

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For the first time in three years, it's time to play at the JLA. And it's on Versus, the second in a stretch of four out of five Flyers games that will be on national TV. Amen to that.


Why The Flyers Will Win:

• Sure the Flyers haven't won in their last seventeen trips to Detroit. But the eighteenth time's the charm, right?
• Martin Biron has been real solid in March, and is playing with a lot of confidence having finally locked up the starting gig. Look for him to be big tonight.
• The Red Wings have a lot of question marks in goal, and a propensity for getting blown out of the water. In their last three losses, they've given up eight, eight, and six goals. If the Flyers can get a first cut in, the Red Wings have proven to be a pretty hemophiliac team, completely unable to stop the bleeding.
• The Flyers are 4-0-1 this year in games on Versus, including wins in the last four.
• The Flyers are one of the few teams that can match Detroit's offensive depth. Jeff Carter, Mike Richards, Simon Gagne, Scott Hartnell, Joffrey Lupul, Mike Knuble, Claude Giroux, Daniel Briere and even Arron Asham make for quite the stacked front lines.
• Pretzels are only $1 all night long at the Joe. While this will boost morale, it will mean the locals will be too busy chewing to loudly support their boys in red.
• It's Ryan Parent's birthday, and he doesn't like losing on his birthday.

Why the Red Wings Will Win:

• The Flyers haven't won in their last seventeen trips to Detroit. No reason the eighteenth would be any different.
• Daniel Briere has been a mess in this latest incarnation. He's been slow and not even coming close to making goals happen. Until something changes he's going to keep being a huge hindrance to the team.
• Randy Jones is out for a week, and though he has his haters, he is clearly way better than Danny Syvret, who has been called up to take his place (no Guenin?).
• In case you haven't heard, the Red Wings are really, really good. They lead the league in points, and were the first team to clinch a playoff berth.

Prediction: Red Wings win 4-1. They're good.

Game #66 Preview: Rangers @ Flyers 3/14/09

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The two games this weekend vs. the Rangers obviously count the same in the standings, but I get the sense that Sunday's means more. It a nationally televised, network game at Madison Square Garden. But before tomorrow comes today, and today looks pretty good.

Why the Flyers Will Win:

• The Rangers, who were way out in first place to start the season at 10-2-1, had fallen out of playoff position to ninth before just recently getting back up to seventh. The Flyers have been much steadier throughout, and that counts for a lot.
• The last time these two teams met it was an absolute ass kicking.
• Martin Biron has been very solid of late, and he gets the start today, with Antero Niittymaki getting the nod for tomorrow.
• I really refuse to believe they're in any danger, but the Flyers technically are only five points ahead of ninth place. They're mentioning how tight it is in press conferences, which has boded well in the past.
• Sean Avery.

Why the Rangers Will Win:

• I'm betting Daniel Carcillo is going to do something real stupid with Avery. Stevens foreshadowed it pretty explicitly in his presser, and Carcillo is certainly still looking to make a name for himself.
• The last time the Rangers visited the Wach was a long time ago. When she was still relevant.Sarah's spirit still haunts the building, and the presence of two Alaskans (Matt Carle and Scott Gomez) is certain to awaken it. Maybe Ed Snider can pipe in some more deafening applause and patriotic music as an offering. Comcast-Spectacor will need to do something to keep the Ghost of Palin Past at bay, because she can't be happy about her daughter being dumped by her son-of-a-meth-dealer baby daddy.

Prediction: Rangers 3-2. Not feeling this one.

Oh, and if anyone can count the number of times Jeff Carter shrugs in the below clip, please post your estimate in the comments. I appreciate the help, because I just can't count that high.

Game #65 Preview: Capitals @ Flyers 3/12/09

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With a win tonight, the Flyers will have taken seven of the possible eight points in the season series vs. the Caps. That's as close to perfect as you can get without, you know, being perfect. But we'll take it.

Why The Flyers Will Win:

• Last time the Caps were in town, the Flyers won by six, so that's a reasonable spread for tonight. The memories of that wonderful Saturday in December are a lot of fun, please enjoy below

• The Caps still have an enormous mental block when it comes to the Caps. The Flyers have proved to be their kryptonite, and it clearly bugs the crap out of them from the top down, starting with Bruce Boudreau.
• The Flyers are scoring at will lately, which comes in handy against a team with less than spectacular goaltending. Lupul, Richards, Carter, Knuble, Gagne, Hartnell, even Giroux or Briere. None of them would be a shock to score more than once tonight.
• Martin Biron has been great of late and was quite the Cap-killer in the playoffs. Should be good tonight as well.
• They won last night, but the Caps absolute got the crap beat out of them last night. Twice.

Why the Caps Will Win:

• This game also certainly means more to the Caps. They've been struggling mightily of late, and the Flyers are their biggest rival.
• Daniel Briere comes back tonight. Which almost certainly means he'll re-break himself. Which could hurt morale.

Prediction: Flyers win 5-3. Should be a good time.

Game #65 Preview: Sabres @ Flyers

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Why The Flyers Will Win:

• Martin Biron has owned the Sabres of late, and was awesome vs. Nashville on Saturday. He has a real chance to lock down the #1 spot solidly with a big game tonight.
• Last time these two teams met, Mike Richards notched five points. Always improving, we expect him to tally around eighteen tonight.
• Buffalo's logo is not a Sabre. It's a buffalo. And that's just weird. It's not like the Devils' logo is a new jersey, or the Coyotes' logo is a Phoenix. The bills do the same sort of thing, and I just can't endorse this. The Flyers logo is flying, so it's fine, but the buffaslug on the Sabres jerseys isn't sharp or being fenced with or anything. That has to cost them at least a couple goals a game.

Why The Sabres Will Win:

• Patrick Lalime will probably get the start tonight, and while he might be pretty crappy nowadays, once upon a time he was a serious Flyer killer, allowing only two goals in five games in the first round of the 2002 playoffs. Yikes.
• When was the last time a Flyers goalie put together two solid games back to back? Not since at least 2008.
• No idea why Mike Richards missed practice yesterday.

Why Everybody Wins:

• The game is on Versus, so it will be in HD and seen nationwide, AND that horrible Sabres announcer will have the night off.

There is definitely going to be an anything you can do I can do better moment from Riley Cote aimed at Carcillo at some point during this win for the Flyers. I see four goals.

Mike Knuble wears The Hat tonight.

Game #63 Preview: Flames @ Flyers 3/5/09

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The Calgary Flames are a real nice team to watch. They're tough and orangey, easily the Flyers of the West. They've got a stud goalie in Kiprusoff, and a stud star in Iginla. They're physical and scrappy, and easily my second favorite team in the league (though obviously way out of first place).

Why The Flyers Will Win:

• The Flyers are coming off their best game of the season on Tuesday, and no reason that momentum doesn't hold.
• I'm not sure who gets the start for the Flyers tonight goaliewise, but if it's Niittymaki that's great because he's been so good lately, and if it's Biron that's great since he has something to prove.
• The Flames are exactly the kind of team Briere should do well against. Look for him to have a big night.
• Remember all the excitement about how healthy the Flyers were for the Boston game? They're still just as healthy.

Why The Flames Will Win:

• Morale in the Flyers locker room has to be weird right now, with the departure of Upshall. Carcillo is said to be a popular guy in Phoenix, but a lot of the Flyers probably miss their boy.
• With the departure of #9, the Flyers now have only two players on their roster with single digit numbers, Coburn (#5) and Jones (#6). Not sure what that means, but I'm guessing it's not good.

No prediction, can't really get a good feel for this game. Could be real good, could be real bad. Meh.

Game #62 Preview: Flyers @ Bruins 3/3/09

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1 vs. 4 tonight in a potential second round playoff match-up that may be more of a sure thing than anyone realizes. 5-8 in the East is really a joke, so look forward to a Boston vs. Philadelphia rematch of the last World Series come early May.

What's that you say? The Red Sox didn't make it to the World Series last year? They lost to the Devil Rays? The Devil Rays? Yikes...

Why The Flyers Will Win:

• For the first time since 1987 or so, the Flyers are playing with a full deck, all the arrows in the quiver. Biron, Niittymaki, Richards, Carter, Briere, Gagne, Knuble, Hartnell, Lupul, Upshall, Giroux, Timonen, Coburn, Jones, Parent, Carle, Alberts, Powe, Asham, hell even Cote will all be there. That's some serious all killer no filler. No Guenin, no Kukkonen, no Sbisa, no Metropolit, no Ross. It's a beautiful thing.
• Timonen back makes a huge difference. He's fairly invisible as far as huge deals go, but he sees the ice better than anyone on the team, and should help give some Viagra to a power play that's been horribly flaccid lately.
• Last time Tim Thomas played, he let in a shot from just inside the concourse. Sure he's an "all-star," but so were Carey Price and Henrik Lundqvist, and they've all sucked unbelievably hard of late.
  

Why The Bruins Will Win:

• Even though the Flyers are hitting unparalleled levels of stackedness, the Bruins are still damn good. #1 in the east, and playing at home.
• The trade deadline has to be hell for any player, more so on the noise-making Flyers than on the pretty quiet Bruins. If I had no idea who I'd be playing for in two days, I'd be pretty distracted to say the least. If I'm Joffrey Lupul or Randy Jones and I really want to stay in Philadelphia, I play like shit tonight, and maybe get suspended for a dirty hit or something. Hard to trade a player who just got suspended.
  

Prediction: Flyers win 4-3. Epic. Maybe OT.

The NHL has been cracking down on livestream sites with far too much effectiveness, so viewing may be in peril for me. But I'll try. Let me know if you know of any reliable, decent feeds that haven't been shut down yet by the man.

Happy as a Claude

Normally when you google an athlete, most all the pictures have them trying to look all stoic or tough, game faces on. Not Claude Giroux. Claude knows that the best way to make your opponent shake in his skates is to show off a big toothy grin. Or toothless, as the case may be for many an NHLer.

The Flyers should be smiling as they take the ice in Boston tonight. Claude is back from a bizarre loan to the Phantoms, Timonen is back from being the 26th Flyer this season out this season with the flu, For the first time this season they'll have all their big names in the lineup at once. No more excuses. The names on the ice tonight will be the names on the cup in June.

Except for the whole trade deadline distraction and the goalie controversy deals...

Game #61 Preview: Flyers @ Devils 3/1/09

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As trade winds swirl and blow most every Flyer's name around, a "big" game in Jersey looms. Truth be told, the Flyers are pretty much a lock to finish in fourth, so no games in the regular season matter. Fourth is good, and would mean home ice for the first time since the lockout. Kind of a pathetic thought...

Still gonna watch the game though, so might as well talk about it.

Why The Flyers Will Win:

• Daniel Briere makes his triumphant return!
• Briere's BFF Marty Biron has a big opening here, a chance to clinch the starting spot on the heel's of Niittymaki's disaster vs. Montreal. He does well when the games matter.
• Scott Clemmensen's ghost has got to be haunting the Devils. He got screwed faster than a girl scout who came to sell cookies at R. Kelly's house.
• If Martin Brodeur plays, he'll be tired AND obese. If Kevin Weekes plays, he'll be not very good, because he's Kevin Weekes. Advantage Flyers.

Why the Devils Will Win:

• Daniel Briere makes his triumphant return! Odds are he gets reinjured and KO'ed for the season by the end of the first period. Morale killer.
• Claude Giroux went to the Phantoms while Jared Ross stays? Huh? Put Giroux on defense for all I care, he's gotta stay in the lineup. And Guenin? Seriously? Keep Kukkonen up, even if he sucks and can't get picked up on waivers to save his life.

Odds are this is somebody's last game in a Flyers jersey. Whether it is Randy Jones, Joffrey Lupul, Braydon Coburn, or Scottie Upshall is yet to be determined. Hell, it might even be Briere's. Can't say I hate any of them or love Keri Lehtonen or Jay Bouwmeester, so I'm not too pumped for the rest of this week.

Prediction: 3-2 Devils. In OT if we're lucky. This pre-deadline stretch is a big ol' pile of fuck it.

Game #58 Preview: Flyers @ Capitals 2/24/08

This game is important, yeah, but by no means make or break for either. These are two good teams that can score and play defense. They both may have some goalie issues, but that's par for the course. Jeff Carter's flu symptoms, plus late breaking news that Kimmo Timonen is out with the flu hurts (seriously, do none of these guys get flu shots?), as does the location. The Caps are also plus a Fedorov they didn't have in previous meetings. But the last game these two teams played in DC in January was a nailbiter that went to a shootout, so this one should remain at least marginally close.

One of the pretty cool things about the standings right now is that there is absolutely no doubt who the four best teams in the east are. It's Boston, Washington, New Jersey, and Philadelphia. It would be a huge stunner really, even this far out, if any one of those teams didn't make the second round of the playoffs. The other eleven teams really aren't keeping up (maybe Florida), which I'm absolutely fine with. And arguably the weakest of the top four is Boston. It's gonna be a clusterfuck to the cup, just the way it should be.

Flyers games in DC are no longer in the sea of orange they used to be, but away fan support is still pretty stellar, and will be even more so because of yours truly honoring the Flyers with his presence tonight. They so lucky.