Starting strong, ending weak — Flyers reach the All-Star break

After winning 5 games in a row from January 10 to January 18 and beating top teams in the league like the Dallas Stars, the Flyers head to the All-Star break in the “L” column. Not only did the Flyers lose their last game before the break but are now on a 5 game losing streak.

The numbers speak for themselves, the Flyers allowed 27 goals during this 5-game losing streak and scored 12.

It can be surprising after the Flyers played incredible hockey in the few games before that losing streak. The Flyers completely dominated the Stars and took down, per head coach John Tortorella, one of the best teams in the NHL.

Like I said, it “can” be surprising, but it’s not. The Flyers have been overachieving since the start of the season. They are playing way over their “expected” talent and are finding ways to beat top teams in the NHL with a better roster than them. For example, the Golden Knights, Canucks, and Stars.  

After that success the Flyers had, it’s expected that it might go down and the losing streaks may “pop”. It can be difficult to keep overachieving in a long season of hockey.

But on the other hand, the Flyers were lucky, the All-Star break couldn’t have come at a better time. The Flyers needed a break, clear their mind, and get back on it with energy.

The Flyers are third in the metro, but the teams below them, like the Islanders, Penguins, and Devils have games in hand. These next few months will be interesting to see if the Flyers can actually get a playoff spot and surprise everyone.

The upcoming week will be interesting as we will see how they will come back from the long break.

They face the Panthers, who are second in the Atlantic, on Tuesday. The Panthers are 31-14-4 in 49 games this season, 6-2-2 in their last 10 games, and are on a 4-game winning streak. It’s going to be a tough start for the Flyers. But, on the positive side, starting away from home might be something good for the Flyers. The Flyers are 14-7-4 on the road this season with a differential of 12.

After that game against the Panthers, the Flyers will be at home for the rest of the week facing another top team, the Winnipeg Jets. They are 30-12-5 in 47 games this season but are on a 3-game losing streak. The Flyers will end their week, on Saturday, against the Kraken.

It will be interesting to see how the Flyers will respond, especially at home since they have struggled in those home games during the season with an 11-12-2 record.

With all that is happening right now with first the Cutter Gauthier story and now the Carter Hart and Hockey Canada one, it will be interesting to see how the Flyers will come back to the rink after more than a week of break, starting Tuesday.