Let’s call this upcoming week the quiet one before it all goes crazy. After all, next Sunday is Easter followed by Opening Day in Washington and the NCAA Basketball Championship on Monday. Needless to say there are going to be a bunch of things to keep us rapt for a very long time.
And that’s just the least of it. When April gets into full swing, not only will the Phillies begin their march for a fourth straight visit to the playoffs, but also the Philadelphia Union play before the home crowd for the very first time (April 10), the Penn Relays descend on the city, the Flyers could (maybe) have some playoff games, and the Eagles will attempt to plug in some players to all those empty spots in the draft.
Yes, it’s going to be busy.
But it’s not like we were just sitting around with nothing to do this past week. Oh no, far from it. In fact, we spent this weekend watching one of the strangest NCAA tournaments unfold as well as what could be a Hindenburg-like ending to the Flyers’ season.
Really, what in the world is going on with the Flyers?
Riding a five-game losing streak at the absolute wrong time to be riding anything, the Flyers have been outscored 18-7. Worse, with just one game remaining in March, the Flyers have scored more than three goals in a game just twice and one of those was in a 7-4 loss.
Needless to say, the Flyers have to get it together very quickly because with seven games to go in the season nothing is guaranteed. The 80 points put the Flyers in the last spot in the Eastern Conference playoff race just two points ahead of Atlanta, a team that swept a home-and-home from Philly last week. If the standings hold up, the Flyers get to play Washington, which might result in nothing more than an extra two home games before the season ends.
Of the six teams remaining on the Flyers’ schedule, only three are locks to make the playoffs. Though the fans and some of the media seem to believe the officials have it out for the Flyers, at least the schedule makers gave them a break. Then again, with the way the Flyers have been playing does it really matter who they play?
Besides, after the loss in Pittsburgh on Saturday the team seemed most wrapped up in a woe-is-us attitude. Goalie Johan Backlund was injured in his first NHL start, while a disallowed goal that would have given the team a one-goal lead seemed to ruin some would-be momentum. Of course they didn't score the rest of the game, but that kind of ruins the story.
The only bit of momentum conjured from the loss to the Penguins was the idea that the league, the officials, that slippery ice and maybe even the Rand Corporation were involved in a conspiracy to “get” the Flyers.
Yeah, that’s it—they’re out to get the Flyers. Maybe they are out to get them because they aren’t good enough, appear to be lacking in heart or character and seem to turtle up when the going gets tough.
Otherwise, this picking on the Flyers must stop!
OK, sarcasm aside, what’s the answer here? Is it simply a matter of trimming some payroll and adding some different players? Were the injuries too much to bear? Is the chemistry all wrong? How about all of the above?
Would a collapse that results in the Flyers not making the playoffs be the best tonic for the long run?
We’ll find out soon enough.