Philadelphia Flyers: Players can lean on Matt Niskanen during playoffs
A veteran of the group, Matt Niskanen is the only Flyers player with a Stanley Cup to his name.
A big reason the Flyers went out and acquired Matt Niskanen was due to his veteran leadership. He has been around the league for quite some time and has the playoff experience to show for it.
And that includes being the only player on the roster to win a Stanley Cup. He leads the group in postseason games as well. He has appeared in 125 playoff games. That includes appearing in the postseason the last nine consecutive seasons.
This will be his 10th as the Flyers enter the playoffs with a chance to earn to top seed in the conference. And that experience will be vital for a young team.
In those 125 career postseason games, Niskanen has five goals and 40 assists. He’s not expected to be the Flyers top producer during the playoffs, however. Just as he’s done for Ivan Provorov this season, Niskanen is there to help provide a steady influence.
Because he knows what it takes to win.
"“You need to have a group of guys that are committed to doing that. Attitude goes a long way. You’re gonna need outstanding goalies. You’re gonna need a little luck. There’s a lot of things that go into it if you’re going to consistently win against the best teams for two months.”"
As mentioned in the above piece, Niskanen isn’t the type of player who is going to flaunt his status as a Stanley Cup champion. Instead, he will continue to be a quiet leader and provide tidbits here and there. It’s certainly a group that is different from the Capitals team that won in 2018.
Claude Giroux and James van Riemsdyk are the only two Flyers left from the cup run in 2010. That was the last time the team made a significant run through the playoffs. They came just one game shy of taking home the Stanley Cup.
So they are no doubt eager to return. And they are poised to do just that. While they are certainly not the favorite to win it all, the Flyers have what it takes to make a long run.