Flyers at Blue Jackets
7 p.m. on Comcast SportsNet
The Flyers went 3-1-0 in their four-game stretch against the Red Wings, Blackhawks, Penguins and Islanders — teams with a combined record of 156-97-35.
Now, can they take care of a bottom feeder?
We'll get an answer Tuesday night when the Flyers (35-24-12) visit the Metropolitan-worst Columbus Blue Jackets (29-35-8) at Nationwide Arena.
The Flyers come in one point behind the Red Wings for the Eastern Conference's second wild-card spot, and three back of the first, held by the Islanders.
With Detroit visiting the Tampa Lightning tonight at 7:30, here are five things you need to know for the Flyers' matchup:
1. Alleviating the sting
After losing five straight to the Blue Jackets dating back to last season, the Flyers finally shook Columbus in authoritative fashion: a 6-0 thumping on March 5 at the Wells Fargo Center.
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If you recall, that was Radko Gudas Night, when the burly defenseman shocked all viewers with two goals and four points.
If anything, expect a much more physical Blue Jackets team this time around. Columbus is in spoiler mode and you better bet it remembers the last meeting with the Flyers.
"I hate using this word because I don’t think our team is like that, but we were just soft tonight," Blue Jackets left winger Nick Foligno said after the March 5 game. "Soft in a lot of things."
They may not even have the game film to study.
"We're not going to look at the tape," Columbus coach John Tortorella said at the time. "I’ve already told the other coaches to throw it away."
Regardless, expect a strong punch from the Blue Jackets. They've been a thorn in the Flyers' side the past three seasons and are 9-2-0 in the last 11 games against the orange and black.
2. No letdown
As Claude Giroux has stated multiple times throughout the playoff race, the Flyers aren't going to win every game.
A clunker may be in the cards from time to time — all teams have them over the course of a season.
It has been well publicized that the Flyers have a propensity to play down to the competition. The Flyers are 10-3-2 over their past 15 games, but three of those losses have come to teams not in the postseason picture.
This season, the Flyers are 18-9-5 — not awful, but not great — against teams outside the top eight of their respective conferences.
A game against a last-place team in late March is one you don't want to let slip.
3. Riding Mason?
Tuesday pits Flyers coach Dave Hakstol with a tough decision now that Michal Neuvirth is done for the regular season.
Do you throw out Anthony Stolarz for his NHL debut or go with Mason — who will play a ton the rest of the way — in a second straight road game of a back-to-back set?
Mason was brilliant in Monday's 4-1 win over the Islanders and likely wants to carry the torch for the Flyers.
"One down, 11 to go,” he said after Monday's win. "You just keep moving day by day."
Mason has played just three times in the second game of back-to-back situations this season. He's 1-1-1 — the win came in relief — with nine goals allowed in those contests.
In eight career games against his former team Columbus, Mason is 3-3-2 with a 2.62 goals-against average and .909 save percentage.
4. Keep an eye on ...
Flyers: The Flyers will need Wayne Simmonds to combat the Blue Jackets' physicality. In the heat of a playoff push, sometimes you have to win ugly, and Simmonds' game personifies that. The Flyers are 16-2-1 when the 27-year-old scores a goal and tonight's game has a grind-it-out feel to it — perfect for Simmonds.
Blue Jackets: This is an easy one: Scott Hartnell. The 33-year-old would probably want nothing more than to put a dent in his former team's playoff hopes. Hartnell, who fuels off motivation, has two goals and six assists in eight games against the Flyers since being traded in the summer of 2014.
5. This and that
• The Flyers are 9-2-1 in their last 12 games.
• The Flyers have lost seven straight in Columbus.
• The Blue Jackets are 2-5-0 in their last seven games.
• The Blue Jackets have committed 40 major penalties, most in the NHL.
• Giroux has 30 points (seven goals, 23 assists) in 28 games since the start of February.
• Columbus goalie Sergei Bobrovsky has dominated his former team, going 4-1-0 with a 1.80 goals-against average and .940 save percentage in five career games against Flyers.