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Strong finish. Now the real season starts.
You know Muse is going to want Crosby on Zegras in the PGH home games. The strategy of getting his top line vs Zegras did not work well for Arneil in WPG.
Nah. Most important matchup is Philly depth (it’s underrated) vs. Penguins star power at the top.
Which Muse has to match up against. Better scoring team vs better defensive team with scoring depth. Classic matchup.
The biggest question… is this something they can build upon going forward, or was it just a case of a lot of things going their way? Time will tell.
It wouldn’t have been possible without collapses by Columbus and the Islanders. They still had to play .700 hockey to make it happen. None of that matters now.
Most important matchup of the Flyers/Penguins series?
Tocchet vs. Muse.
98 points ought to get them in. They would need 12 in their last 9 games, that’s doable the way they’re playing.
If the Flyers play at their current pace for the last 9 games, they’re in the playoffs. BOS seems to be in for sure and DET, thanks to sub-.500 play their last 10, looks out. Five teams fighting for three spots.
In general, I agree an improved PP will help the team, no doubt. I’m not so sure the regime can bring a player in over the next 2 years that will just take over the PP, unless the current roster is completely reshaped. We’ll see if that happens. Not hiring a PP coach makes no sense to me. At best, Tocchet’s teams in the past had middle of the road PPs. Thinking they could not use help from a schematic standpoint I believe is short sighted.
Hextall’s getting rid of Mullen was an historic Flyers blunder. The team passing, PP or even, is not great. Guys are rarely able to get off good one-timers or quick releases because they have to reach or settle the puck and they’re so surprised when the puck is served up nicely, they don’t take the shot. Plus, there’s an overall tendency to look pass instead of shooting, even when the shot is there. Overall, they’re looking at being 20 points better this year and it’s not like their problems aren’t easy to spot. A couple of them will require roster moves.
Time is ticking gentlemen, the summer of ’26 was circled by this regime as “go time”, cannot call a mulligan now because the UFA market did not materialize like you thought.
The real mid-term need is not just a 1C but a 1C that can win draws and improve the power play. I think they’ve got two years to get that guy in here.
8-2-1 in their last 11 games now. .772 hockey. May be too little too late, they likely need some help from a couple teams. Maintaining their recent pace gets them to 100 points, which should be enough to get them in. That’s a pretty tall order though.
are they on the outside looking in? yes or no?
nothing but excuses that every team can apply in some form.
They are in a playoff race. They need to gain ground fast.
What excuses? Said before the season I expected improvement and they might make the playoffs if they got some breaks. They’d be in a playoff spot right now if they were in the west. They have a better win pct. than SEA and Utah.
