How Do the Flyers Rank Among Stanley Cup Favourites?
Philadelphia has made a flying start to their 2020-21 NHL campaign with a 12-5-3 record in the East Division.
Photo: Mark Blinch/NHLI/Getty Images
In a unique season in the National Hockey League, where teams are split into four divisions and only face divisional opponents during the regular season, the Flyers have a number of the more-fancied Stanley Cup contenders.
Whilst the defending champions Tampa Bay Lightning and very impressive Toronto Maple Leafs are not in the East, a number of the top 10 sides according to the sportsbooks do reside alongside Philadelphia’s hockey franchise.
Washington Capitals
The Washington Capitals currently top the East with a 13-5-4 record but were beaten 4-7 by the Flyers in their only head-to-head match so far this season, back at the Capital One Arena on 7 February.
Scott Laughton scored his first NHL hat-trick last month as Washington blew a 2-0 first-period lead and 4-4 after the second to be thrashed in the final 20 minutes.
It was a statement victory from Philadelphia at the time although their performances and results have dropped off in recent weeks. Laughton’s season hasn’t taken off too drastically since, with a total of 11 points (6 Goals, 5 Assists) in his 17 games played so far this campaign.
Boston Bruins
Still the sportsbooks’ favorites to win the East, the Boston Bruins currently sit down in fourth place in the division, though with an identical record with Philadelphia at 12-5-3.
More concerning for Alain Vigneault’s team is that they have an 0-3-2 record versus Boston in the opening couple of months of the season. This includes two 1-6 thrashings back in January at the start of the campaign, and a 3-7 defeat at home in the most recent meeting, on 21 February.
The two teams don’t meet again until April but the Flyers cannot afford to keep losing the head-to-head meetings if they want to be taken seriously as both playoff and Stanley Cup contenders this season.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Now 33 years old, Sidney Crosby is still regarded as one of the top players in the league. And the Pittsburgh Penguins will always be considered title contenders whilst he is on the ice. The 2009, 2016, and 2017 Stanley Cup champion with the Penguins have only recently been reactivated from the Covid protocol-related absence list but is still tied for the lead in goals (7), assists (11), and points (19) in 20 games.
Add Evgeni Malkin to the list and you see why the Penguins are once again among the sportsbooks’ favorites to win again this season.
Philadelphia started their 2020-21 campaign with back-to-back victories over their state rivals back in January and have split the series in March so far with the third game in Pittsburgh on 6 March.
Can the Flyers Reach the Playoffs?
After not only making the playoffs but entering at the seeding round-robin, the Philadelphia Flyers can absolutely make the playoffs once again.
Although they have been put in a division with four of the top five from the Eastern Conference last season they have the players, the staff, and a good start to the season to reach the post-season again in 2021.
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