Examining the Flyers Place in the Metro
There’s an old proverb in hockey, that the two most important seasons in any team’s history, are this one and the next one. Any NHL fan could tell you it’s still true. So, coming off a Flyers season for the record books in all the wrong ways, it’s time to ask just how well the Flyers are positioned to compete once they shift back to their traditional spot in the Metropolitan Division next season.
The True Contenders
New York Islanders
If this list was based solely on regular season performance, the New York Islanders may not be at the top of this list, but you can’t argue with back-to-back appearances in the Conference Finals (temporarily renamed Semifinals in 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs). They’re easily the best defensive team in the Eastern Conference and possibly the best in the entire league (2nd fewest goals allowed league-wide). They have arguably the best goalie tandem in the NHL with Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov, who posted a league-best .921 combined save percentage this year.
While their system may not lend itself to high-octane offense, they still have some really shifty and creative forwards like J.G. Pageau and Mathew Barzal. They also expect net-front wizard Anders Lee, who missed the majority of the 2020-21 season to injury, back healthy next year. To the dismay of anyone who enjoys offense, personality, or any kind of fun in a hockey team, the Islanders appear to be a true Cup contender heading in to 2021-22.
Carolina Hurricanes
The temporary realignment of the divisions really worked out well for the Carolina Hurricanes, as they managed to beat out both the surprising Florida Panthers and the defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning to finish first in the new-look Central division. They ultimately lost to Tampa in five games in the second round of the playoffs.
Carolina has the look of a real contender but could suffer some serious hits to their fifth ranked defense in free agency. All three of their goalies—James Reimer, Petr Mrazek and Alex Nedeljkovic are set to hit the open market, and the Canes could also lose defenseman Dougie Hamilton—possibly to the Flyers. While Carolina looks like a contender now, strong defensive teams who lose key pieces can certainly experience letdowns.
Washington Capitals
The Washington Capitals seem to be the team that will just never die. Although they failed to win a sixth straight division title this year, they still played solidly on both offense and defense and on special teams play, finishing third on the power play and fifth on the penalty kill. Future Hall of Famer Alex Ovechkin continued to score at a ridiculous rate, posting 24 goals in only 45 games played,
The scary thing is that the Caps got depth scoring to back him as well. They had an impressive nine players score 10 or more goals; the most in the NHL. That wasn’t enough to save them from being unceremoniously dumped by the Boston Bruins in five games during the first round of the playoffs, however. The Caps are a little tight against the cap this offseason (wordplay). They currently have $9.5 million available, but they will most likely have to spend the vast majority of it to re-sign Ovechkin. As long as the Great Eight continues his remarkable quest to become the NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer, a record currently held by the legendary Wayne Gretzky, the Capitals will be a contender.