Flyers at Coyotes
10 p.m. on Comcast SportsNet
Thanks to an adrenaline-pumping, come-from-behind win Thursday, the Flyers (36-24-13) can put the finishing touches on a successful four-game road swing when they meet the Arizona Coyotes (33-34-7) on Saturday night at Gila River Arena.
The Flyers have earned five of a possible six points in the first three games. Now, let’s get you up to date on the playoff race and the trip’s final matchup with five things you need to know:
1. Postseason picture
The Flyers are 10-2-2 since Feb. 25 — second behind only the Penguins for most wins in the NHL over that span.
That 14-game push has not only put the Flyers in prime position to grab a postseason bid, but also climb atop the wild-card standings.
With the sole focus on just making the playoffs, the Flyers have quietly crept within two points of the Islanders for the Eastern Conference’s first wild-card berth.
With Detroit's 7-2 loss to Pittsburgh on Saturday afternoon, the Flyers enter tonight's game with an opportunity to move two points ahead of the Red Wings for the second wild-card spot and final playoff seed in the East. While the Flyers have nine games remaining to Detroit’s seven and have won the regular-season series in points, the Red Wings currently hold the top tiebreaker with 35 regulation/overtime wins to the Flyers’ 34. New York visits Carolina at 7 p.m.
NHL
The Flyers have two meetings left with the Penguins and one each with the Red Wings and Islanders.
So big games lie ahead, but first the Flyers must focus on the Coyotes.
2. No rest for the weary
If it were up to Steve Mason, he probably wouldn’t sit the rest of the season.
“I’ll get plenty of days off in the summer,” he told reporters after Thursday’s 4-2 win over the Avalanche.
Mason, who has started nine of the past 10 games, appeared banged up after holding off Colorado’s late surge in the third period.
But Dave Hakstol says don’t fret.
“He’s 100 percent fine,” the Flyers’ head coach reassured at the team’s optional practice Friday in Glendale, Arizona (see story).
Mason has more than answered the bell as the playoff chase intensifies without backup Michal Neuvirth.
Mason has a 1.97 goals-against average in March, best among NHL goalies with eight or more games played during the month.
Just as impressive, the 27-year-old has stopped 106 of 111 shots he’s faced during the first three games of the road trip.
3. Howling Coyotes
Despite being a long shot for the playoffs, the Coyotes are no slouch.
Arizona is coming off a 3-1 win over Western Conference power Dallas and also owns victories this month over playoff-bound Florida and San Jose.
The Coyotes, who have won seven of their last 10 home games, have allowed the NHL’s fewest goals per game in March at 2.00.
The biggest reason for that is the return of goalie Mike Smith. After missing 40 games because of core muscle surgery, Smith has dazzled in his four games back, going 3-1-0 with just five goals allowed on 136 shots.
4. Keep an eye on …
Flyers: Claude Giroux has scored a goal in three straight games and has 33 points away from home, tied for second-most among Eastern Conference players. In his last 30 games, the captain has recorded 32 points and needs three more to pass Reggie Leach (514) for 12th on the Flyers’ all-time list.
Coyotes: Oliver Ekman-Larsson is one of the NHL’s elite scoring defensemen with 19 goals and 32 assists, and the Coyotes are 11-4-3 when he lights the lamp. In two games (both wins) back from an upper-body injury, the 24-year-old has a pair of assists. He’s also played well against the Flyers, scoring three goals in seven career games against the orange and black.
5. This and that
• The Flyers are on a six-game road point streak (4-0-2).
• Without Jakub Voracek, the Flyers won the first meeting with the Coyotes, 4-2, on Feb. 27 at the Wells Fargo Center.
• Radko Gudas had seven goals coming into the season. He has five in his last 10 games.
• The Flyers have killed off 24 of 25 power plays in March.
• Mason is 5-8-0 with a 2.95 goals-against average and .901 save percentage in 13 career games against the Coyotes
• Smith has a 3.70 goals-against average and .887 save percentage in 14 games lifetime against the Flyers.