Philadelphia Flyers: Claude Giroux believes team is set up for a run

With one of the best teams the Flyers have had in years, Claude Giroux has high hopes for this group.

Claude Giroux has seen his fair share of playoff matchups during his time in Philadelphia. He has been here through all of the ups and downs. In fact, he is one of the last remaining members of the Flyers 2010 team that made the run to the Cup Final.

James van Riemsdyk, back for a second tour with the team, is the other member remaining of that team. But Giroux has been here the whole time and has experienced a variety of different Flyers teams.

The team hasn’t made a deep run since that time in 2010. They’ve only made the playoffs four times since 2012. And the final three ended in the first round.

But this year could be a different story. Under Alain Vigneault, this Flyers team has a different feel to them. While they’ve had their struggles, they’ve also been able to sustain a high tempo of play.

Since January 8th, they were one of the best team’s in the NHL. They ran off nine wins in a row before losing their final game before the season was paused. This Flyers team has shown they are capable of putting everything together when it matters most.

And Giroux feels this team has the best chance it has had in awhile to make a run to the Finals.

"“We have a lot of depth. We have veterans. We have young players that do a lot for us. Our goaltending. We’re just good everywhere. Confidence is a big part of it. If we can get that confidence early on during the round robin, I think that’s going to be huge for us.”"

Production come playoff time will be important and that’s something that Giroux has struggled with during the last three times the Flyers were in the playoffs. He had six points in 2014 before dropping down to just one point in 2016. He was slightly better in 2018, collecting three points.

But the Flyers will need production from a player like him when the playoffs role around. They will have the exhibition game against the Penguins on the 28th before the round-robin begins.

And while they’re spot in the playoffs is secure, coming out of that with confidence can boost the Flyers when the first round roles around. They have no idea who they will play until after the play-in series. But they can still come in with a confident attitude if they do well before that.

If they are able to come out firing after the round-robin series, Giroux’s belief could become a reality. This Flyers team is one of the best they’ve put together in quite some time. A Stanley Cup run is certainly not out of the question.