NHL Playoff Race: Flyers, Capitals, Blue Jackets vie to p...

What’s Happening

Breaking it down: A few days ago, we had Saturday circled as the ‘make or break’ day as far as finding out who the Penguins would likely be playing in the first round of the playoffs.

Philadelphia was one point up on the NY Islanders and Saturday would see the Flyers play the Winnipeg Jets and NYI take […] Story by NHL Playoff Race: Flyers, Capitals, Blue Jackets vie to play Penguins PHILADELPHIA , PA - DECEMBER 01: Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby #87 scores a goal during the game between the Philadelphia Flyers and the Pittsburg Penguins on December 1st, 2025 at the Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia, PA. (Photo /Icon Sportswire via ) | Icon Sportswire via Jim Rixner Mon, at 12:54 PM UTC · 3 min read Add Yahoo Sports on Google A few days ago, we had Saturday circled as the ‘make or break’ day as far as finding out who the Penguins would likely be playing in the first round of the playoffs. (it feels like chaos)

The results were conclusive — the Flyers romped to a 7-1 win, the Islanders got shutout and took an L 3-0.

The Details

Then, yesterday the Islanders made their elimination official Montreal. Com , the Battle of Pennsylvania is coming into further focus for the first round of the playoffs.

Here are the odds of opponent for the Penguins. The Flyers have two games left – one tonight against a Carolina team that has first place sewed up.

Why This Matters

The Hurricanes have clutched three straight, they haven’t employed a ‘pack it in and wait for the playoffs’ strategy so it might be a tough game. Then Philadelphia plays tomorrow night against the Canadiens, who have incentive to win to strengthen their chances of winning the Atlantic Division. Should Philadelphia win either game or pickup overtime/shootout losses in both games, then their ticket to the playoffs is punched.

Players and coaches will be watching how this unfolds closely.

Key Takeaways

• The playoff race only gets interesting if the Flyers suffer a regulation loss tonight against the Hurricanes.
• That would throw at least some hope to Washington and Columbus — who play each other on Tuesday.

The Bottom Line

The playoff race only gets interesting if the Flyers suffer a regulation loss tonight against the Hurricanes. That would throw at least some hope to Washington and Columbus — who play each other on Tuesday.

Are you here for this or nah?