NHL Playoffs: Flyers ‘got beat by a better team’

Apparently, history can only be made once.

After digging themselves a 3-0 series deficit against Boston, the Flyers came up short Friday night and watched their season end in a 5-1 loss. There would be no repeat of an epic comeback. There would be no chance to take care of unfinished business in the Stanley Cup finals.

The Flyers will return to their practice facility today to clean out their lockers and conduct exit interviews with the coaching staff. It’s all pretty standard stuff, even for a team that owned the best record in hockey early in the season.

“They took it to us right from the start,” Flyers GM Paul Holmgren said after Game 4. “My first reaction is that we got beat by a better team in this series. They deserve to be moving on.”

The biggest questions revolve around captain Mike Richards and defenseman Chris Pronger. Holmgren is expected to update the media today with the results of their medical tests. Early indications are that Richards will need wrist surgery, while Pronger may require back surgery.