This was a pretty big week for the Flyers, and it was a successful one that validated their playoff push despite a clunker Saturday against Pittsburgh, a 4-1 loss (see story).
With 12 games left in the season, the orange and black sit three points behind the Detroit Red Wings for the Eastern Conference's final wild-card spot heading into a busy week.
On Monday, the Flyers' offensive toward the postseason continues in Brooklyn against the Islanders, who own the East's first wild-card spot and are five points ahead of the Flyers.
The Flyers have a four-game road trip next week, with two games out West. But before we move on to game No. 71, let's take a look back at the week that was:
• Let's get the bad out of the way. Saturday's effort against the Penguins was disheartening, especially in a game that carried a lot of weight in the standings. Pittsburgh came into the matchup four points up on the Flyers and owned the first wild-card spot, but with the win, it moved into third place in the Metropolitan Division. The good news is, however, the Flyers still have a game in hand on the Pens with two more meetings left in the season. They also face the Islanders twice more. The Flyers can still gain ground on Pittsburgh, and they still very much own their own destiny. Sure, a win Saturday would have kept the Flyers one point behind Detroit since it beat the Florida Panthers on Saturday night, but they are three points behind the Red Wings and do still have two games in hand on them. Do the math and Saturday's loss to Pittsburgh did not have a huge impact on the Flyers' playoff push.
• We have to acknowledge how successful this week was for the Flyers, a fringe team trying to fight its way into the playoffs. They came into the week with an opportunity to legitimize their push with games against the Red Wings, the Chicago Blackhawks and the Penguins, and they did just that. Let's go back to last week. To really believe this team could sneak into the postseason, you wanted to see the Flyers win at least two of the three games this week in regulation, preferably against Detroit and Pittsburgh. They lost to the Penguins, but beat the Wings and 'Hawks on back-to-back nights. It's hard to ignore this push anymore. We all know how this team is constructed and how general manager Ron Hextall is focused on the long term, but this push is real.
• Something odd happened Saturday when Hextall revealed after the game goalie Michal Neuvirth may be injured. Hextall told reporters Neuvirth "wasn't feeling right," and that was the reason Steve Mason started against the Penguins. We found out Sunday morning that Neuvirth is indeed injured. He's out three weeks with a lower-body injury, which means his regular season is likely over. But the Flyers continue to be secretive with injuries, and it's just strange. I know it's a hockey thing, but for the Flyers, what do they get from now revealing injuries? I don't see any competitive advantage there.
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• Speaking of goalies, Neuvirth's injury clears the path for Mason to be the No. 1 goalie again. Not that he ever really lost that title. Mason started two of the three games this week, and although he did give up six goals, he was solid. He had a huge blocker save on Henrik Zetterberg late in Tuesday's 4-3 win over Detroit that preserved the lead, and made several other quality stops against the Wings. Two of the three goals he yielded against the Penguins were not on him, and the other goal was a bad bounce. Still Mason was crucified on Flyers Twitter for that goal. Flip the switch. Had Neuvirth allowed that third goal, he would have been given a pass. But Mason? Flyers fans and (some) writers hold him to too high of a standard for any goalie, and it's simply unfair. Mason is the best goalie the Flyers have had since Hextall, and Philly fans don't appreciate what they finally have. A No. 1 goalie.
• Tuesday night's win over the Red Wings featured so many positives, and showed a drive this Flyers team lacked last season under Craig Berube with largely the same roster. Really, the determination this team has shown under Dave Hakstol in recent weeks has been lacking since the 2009-10 team that went to the Stanley Cup Final. This is a totally different team and it's not fair to compare this group to that one, but the fight this team is showing under Hakstol makes the future even more exciting. Hextall nailed the Hakstol hiring. Might be his best move yet as GM. It was a gutsy one.
• If you need more evidence Hakstol has this group believing, go back and watch the first period of the Detroit game. In the biggest game of the season to date, the Flyers came out of the gate with their strongest first period in years. They were dominant and the Red Wings didn't belong on the same ice for those 20 minutes. The orange and black fell two shots shy from tying a franchise record for a period, outshooting Detroit, 23-2, in the opening stanza and they did so spending nearly the entire period in the Wings' end. The Flyers executed Hakstol's system perfectly in that period, and it was refreshing to see. They've struggled with starts last season and even portions of this campaign, too.
• Since the trade deadline passed, Michael Raffl has been a totally different player. I'm sure the security from the two-year extension he signed helped, too. This week was a good one for Raffl. Against Detroit, Raffl potted two goals for his second career two-goal game. His other one also came against the Red Wings. Raffl's first goal might have been his most impressive one yet in his career. The winger took the puck from his own blue line, skated down the left side through the neutral zone, outmuscled Detroit defenseman Kyle Quincey before slipping it backhanded past goalie Petr Mrázek. It was a Jaromir Jagr-like goal and was a beautiful tally. He also added an assist in the Flyers' 3-2 win over the Blackhawks the next night.
• On the back end of a back-to-back, the Flyers went into the United Center, where Chicago is 24-10-2 this season, and came away with an impressive win over the defending Stanley Cup champions. If I were to tell you the Flyers would beat the Blackhawks twice this season before it started, you would have dismissed me quickly. But the Flyers took the season series from Chicago. They shut the Blackhawks out back in October, and they stifled them in the third period Wednesday night, holding the 'Hawks to just four third-period shots. It appeared the Flyers were playing for overtime with the game tied at two until Radko Gudas scored at 9:53 for his fourth career game-winning goal, and then when they took they lead, they had the killer instinct to completely shut down a highly-skilled team.
• It's hard to go this long without talking about Shayne Gostisbehere. The rookie wonder picked up his 16th goal of the season in Tuesday's game against Detroit, and he did so by not even taking a shot. Gostisbehere attempted to get the puck to Ryan White for an easy tap-in, but the puck deflected off Red Wings blueliner Danny DeKeyser and past Mrázek. Every one benefits from good luck and Gostisbehere certainly had it on his side Tuesday. His goal against Detroit was his first this season that did not tie a game or give the Flyers a lead. Think about that. It's truly amazing what this kid is doing.