The Flyers uneventfully — save for a first-period fight — wrapped up the regular season Saturday with a 4-2 loss in Pittsburgh. Claude Giroux and Ilya Bryzgalov didn’t even suit up for the Orange and Black.
While that one was relatively tame, expect a lot more jam once the playoffs begin. The Flyers will head right back out to Western Pennsylvania on Wednesday to play the Penguins in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
“It’s going to be a bloodbath,” Scott Hartnell said.
“Wednesday will be a different animal,” Flyers coach Peter Laviolette said.
The Penguins own home-ice advantage, but the Flyers are 5-1 all-time in the building. They also finished with 25 road wins this season, which tied Boston for the NHL lead.
“The first team that gets four wins moves on to the second round,” Max Talbot said. “That’s how we see it. We’re playing a good team. It’s going to be a hard-fought battle.”
Grudge match
Here is the complete playoff slate for Penguins-Flyers:
Game 1: Wednesday, at Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m. (CSN)
Game 2: Friday, at Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m. (CSN)
Game 3: April 15, at FLYERS, 3 p.m. (NBC)
Game 4: April 18, at FLYERS, 7:30 p.m. (CSN)
Games 5, 6, 7 are if necessary.
Series is best-of-seven.
