Don\u2019t Look a Gift Horse in the Mouth<\/p>\n
The Flyers played a strong first period on Tuesday, outshooting the Blue Jackets 10-3 and collecting 78.52% of the 5-on-5 expected goals (per Natural Stat Trick<\/a>). But their inability to come away with multiple goals ultimately cost them and was one of the biggest reasons they suffered a loss that crushed their playoff chances.<\/p>\n Against a rebuilding Blackhawks team, they wouldn\u2019t make the same mistake twice. Chicago was a good story early in the season, but despite a respectable 4-4-3 record in March entering last night, they held the worst xG% share in the NHL this month and for the entire campaign.<\/p>\n They certainly looked the part out of the gates. Within the opening 2:33 of action, Spencer Knight gifted the puck to Christian Dvorak for an easy set-up to Alex Bump with the net vacated, which was immediately followed by Andre Burakovsky throwing the puck directly at Luke Glendening at the right faceoff circle, who set up a backdoor tap-in for Sean Couturier to score his second goal in as many games.<\/p>\n Chicago needs three wins in its final 10 games to avoid a sixth straight season below the 30-victory plateau. In contrast, the Flyers haven\u2019t been below that barrier since 2021-22 and could reach 40 wins for the first time since 2019-20 with a hot finish (a mark the Blackhawks haven\u2019t reached since their last proper playoff appearance in 2017).<\/p>\n The Flyers believe this difference will help develop their players faster and\/or better than teams like the Blackhawks that bottom out for an extended stretch. Chicago does have plenty of high-end talent; Connor Bedard leads the team in scoring despite missing 14 games due to injury, and Anton Frondell is off to a promising start through two games. But the jury is still out, with Thursday showing Chicago still has a fairly sizable gap to close between the middling Flyers, let alone bona fide playoff teams.<\/p>\n Tippett Taking Over<\/p>\n We\u2019ve seen a fair share of dominant Owen Tippett<\/a> performances over the years, but rarely has he had a stretch of consistent excellence like the one he\u2019s been riding over the last three weeks. He\u2019s ripped 40 shots on goal over his last nine games, and in his last 10 contests, he\u2019s picked up five goals and three assists.<\/p>\n Assists two and three in that span came in Thursday\u2019s second period. First, he crisply sprung<\/a> Trevor Zegras into the offensive zone with a lane to the net, resulting in a rebound goal for Denver Barkey. Then, he expertly sold a shot to freeze the Chicago defense and open up Dvorak<\/a> for the easiest of his 15 goals this season.<\/p>\n Since March 9, Tippett has been one of the team\u2019s top play-drivers as well. He could\u2019ve had even more production on Thursday, showing consistent assertiveness by earning his second first-period breakaway in as many games and then displaying an impressive power drive to the net in the second. This isn\u2019t going to look like a much different season for Tippett from a production standpoint when all\u2019s said and done. But his form down the stretch could build momentum for next season\u2026 or trade value for the summer.<\/p>\n Ersson\u2019s Last Stand?<\/p>\n One of the tricky parts of evaluating these late-season stretches is that they often contain a lot of fool\u2019s gold. With the bottom of the league weakening after selling at the deadline and general apathy threatening to set in, struggling players can sometimes get an opportunity to (somewhat) right the wrongs of the season\u2019s first 60 or so games.<\/p>\n Case in point: Sam Ersson<\/a>. The Swede was well on his way to a second straight season as one of the NHL\u2019s worst statistical netminders, and the prospect of not receiving a qualifying offer this summer was quickly becoming more likely. So, naturally, Ersson has a .931 save percentage and has stopped 2.73 goals above expected (per Moneypuck.com<\/a>) since the Olympic break ended. Go figure.<\/p>\n Related: Flyers\u2019 Reliance on Dan Vlada\u0159 Could Lead to Turmoil in 2026\u201327<\/a><\/p>\n While the Flyers were far and away the better team in this game, Ersson was counted on a few times. His sprawling save prevented a buzz-killing 2-on-1 shorthanded goal for Chicago in the first period, and he made several solid stops throughout the night. He finished the night by preventing a late stat-killer by staying with Ryan Greene all alone in front, turning aside a backhander with his blocker.<\/p>\n General manager Daniel Bri\u00e8re needs to be careful about letting one or two good months of solid play overshadow a season and two-thirds of porous results. But these games do count, especially for Ersson, who could be playing as much for his Flyers future as a role with another NHL team. Maybe he could be the next Anthony Stolarz or Alex Lyon \u2014 a young-ish goalie who doesn\u2019t stand out much over a few seasons with the Flyers but puts it together somewhere else. Or maybe somewhere else is still in Philly after all.<\/p>\n What\u2019s Next<\/p>\n The Flyers definitely don\u2019t control their own destiny in the playoff race, but they do control their standing regarding one team: the Detroit Red Wings. Somehow, none of the Flyers\u2019 first 71 games have come against their 1997 Stanley Cup Final opponents, who currently sit two points ahead of Philadelphia and have won just three of their last 10 games.<\/p>\n Of course, Detroit isn\u2019t in a playoff spot right now, so even if the Flyers do win Saturday and April 9 in Motown and April 2 at home (which is unlikely itself), that would guarantee nothing. But if you want the inevitable to set in amongst the team, a loss Saturday might do it, especially with a tough back-to-back looming Sunday night against the Dallas Stars.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a>![\"Matvei](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Michkov-Tippett-Philadelphia-Flyers-1200x800.jpg\")
Philadelphia Flyers right wing Owen Tippett (74) celebrates his goal with right wing Matvei Michkov (39) against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the third period at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images<\/p>\n![\"SUBSCRIBE](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Flyers_Banner-1200x122.jpg\")
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