The Flyers are on a spectacular run as of late. It's a run like this that could make themextremely formidable in the postseason. They are young and hungry, trying to claw their way back into the playoffs for the first time in years.
This is a young team that doesn't have a lot of big-time experience. However, for Alex Bump, Denver Barkey, and the newly signed and called-up Porter Martone, this will be a wonderful chance for them to grow quickly.
One of their biggest issues, the goaltending, has held up as of late. While Dan Vladar has been solid all year and should deserve at least some Vezina consideration (he won't win it, but at least deserves some top-10 votes), Sam Ersson has been on fire since the Olympic break. That takes a lot of pressure off of Vladar, and the Flyers won't feel the need to run Vladar into the ground the same way they did Ersson two years ago.
Despite all of this, there is one critical area the Flyers need to improve on.
Power Play Still Sucks
The Flyers are still dead last when it comes to scoring on the power play. It's a busted, broken record at this point. We're tired of saying it, and you're tired of reading about it. But it is the truth. They've struggled at this since they started missing the playoffs regularly---perhaps there is a strong connection there.
This year, they have scored on just 15.3% of the power play opportunities given to them. Their 33 power play goals are tied with St. Louis for league worst. That is not sustainable for a playoff run. A quick look at the top power play teams shows a list of teams that are in the playoffs or at least are still in the hunt. Since the Olympic break, they are a measly 10.5% on the power play, scoring just four goals on 38 chances. Yuck.
If they want to avoid being a one-and-done team, Philly has to capitalize on their man-advantage chances. Maybe this is where someone like Martone can help. Perhaps having an outside sniper will. help them.
The teams you face in the playoffs are, usually, the league's best. If you want to go toe-to-toe with them, you have to bring your A-game. Anything less won't do. Not scoring on prime chances to do so could doom this team. We've all known that this has been their problem for years. It's time to get that fixed.