The Philadelphia Flyers fell to the Tampa Bay Lighting 2-0. However, Philadelphia made a reasonable effort.
Flyers fall to lightning
While the Flyers looked defeated following their 5-0 shutout loss to the Hurricanes this past Saturday, they approached Monday night’s game against Tampa with a sense of competitive energy. The Flyers were aggressive, with 41 hits compared to Tampa’s 19. Even Ivan Fedotov, who started between the pipes, had one of the best games of his season with 21 saves.
The Flyers are 2-8-0 in their last 10 games. The Flyers are 1-7 in their previous eight games. The last win the team enjoyed was against the Lighting in a shootout during their last homestand. That was also the last time the team was able to score a goal. The Flyers have been shut out in six consecutive periods of play.
A wake up call
Philadelphia is now ranked #27th overall in the NHL. The first elimination of the 2024-2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs took place on Monday, as the San Jose Sharks found themselves having a long offseason yet again. With this defeat, the Flyers found themselves retaking last place in the Metropolitan with 64 points. The reality is that Philly is second to last in the Eastern Conference, as the Buffalo Sabres are below Philadelphia with only 60 points.
It is almost impossible for the Flyers to make a playoff appearance this season. As players such as Emil Andrae have been called up, the lack of support around those players to develop them properly has stung. Andrae has been paired with Zamula since the call-up. Having him with a player like Nick Seeler would help more with his development, which the Flyers need to try to do. The season’s final games should focus on helping develop the young players.
Philadelphia gets ready to take on the Washington Capitals in a few days. The overall gameplan should be for the team to switch up some lines and pairings to see if there’s better ice chemistry yet to be tapped into. This is the best plan of action to play the younger players. A few more in Lehigh deserve a shot at getting called up before the season ends.
Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images
