Andrew Noel, Staff

Saturday night continued the trend of the Flyers not performing their best when the lights are the brightest. In front of a national audience and 70 thousand cheering fans, the Flyers stumbled to a 6-3 loss against the New Jersey Devils. Thanks to the loss, they have now only won one of the six outdoor games they have played in franchise history.  It was a disappointing output for a franchise that wants to be among the league’s most feared and respected teams. 

The game was a reality check for the Flyers, who, in all honesty, were lucky to lose by just three goals. The Devils took the lead after just 32 seconds and never looked back. It was a bad game for the Flyers, who should be winning these kinds of games easily if they want to think about making a playoff run. Unfortunately, at this point, a playoff appearance at all would be a miracle. It is hard to imagine that just a few weeks ago fans were saying that the Flyers were a Stanley Cup favorite. But anything, especially in sports, can change in just a few weeks. 

The Flyers did bounce back with a midweek win in Chicago over the Blackhawks. The game was a much improved performance from the Flyers who controlled throughout and came out as deserved 3-1 winners. As encouraging as the win was, it is worth remembering that the Blackhawks are the worst team in hockey, and pretty much everyone beats them.  

Overall, it was another week of stagnation for the Flyers: One step forward, two steps back. As discussed in recent articles, the Flyers are coming up with a decision on what they want to do with their team, not just for the short term but for the long term as well. The later in the season it gets, the more and more clear it becomes as to what kind of team the Flyers are. They have improved over the last two seasons, no doubt, but they continue to struggle against the best teams in the league. If General Manager Danny Briere were to do nothing during the upcoming trade deadline, then he would leave the Flyers in no man’s land, which in sports, is the worst place to be. They would be too good to get a top draft pick, but not good enough to make the playoffs. 

The new Flyers leadership has been very open with the fans about the direction of the team. That was great in the beginning, but words must turn into actions, and so far, no actions have been taken to make this fanbase believe that this regime will be any different from the ones in the past. Time has not run out for the Flyers, but the clock is ticking, and if the clock hits zero, then fans will be right to question this front office and wonder if this front office group will be any different from those in the past.  

Saturday’s game against the Devils was a chance for the Flyers to exorcise old demons against a division foe. Instead, they showed that lots of progress still has to be made before they can be considered one of the league’s top teams. Unless this new Flyers leadership makes big changes at the trade deadline, then fans should have no hope that these new Flyers will be anything different than the old Flyers.