Flyers Still Await Next Opponent

Flyers rest, wait as playoffs go on without them

Let the other Eastern Conference playoff teams body check, elbow, trip and rough each other up for seven games. The Flyers are pleased to rest and recover until they find out who they play in the second round.

The NHL sent a release Wednesday touting, “Playoff Excitement Peaks With Three Game 7s.”

Maybe in New York, Boston or Florida.

But postseason boredom has reigned in Philadelphia.
 
The Flyers haven't played since Sunday when they eliminated the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games. They likely won't play again until this weekend, leaving their nights free to watch the playoffs and wonder if they'll have to start scouting the Caps… or Panthers ... or Devils.

“We're doing the best we can do right now and we're doing it the best we can,” coach Peter Laviolette said Wednesday. “When the puck drops, our guys will be excited to play.”

It's the playoffs, so they should be excited to play.

The key for Laviolette is to make sure the Flyers are as focused and sharp as they need to be against a team coming off the emotional high of a Game 7 victory.

The Flyers insisted the time off won't dull their performance.

“When you're watching the games on TV, you want to be playing,” forward Claude Giroux said.

The Flyers took Monday off as a reward for knocking out the Penguins before returning to practice the last few days.

Danny Briere, Jaromir Jagr and Kimmo Timonen earned another maintenance day of rest Wednesday. Injured defensemen Nicklas Grossmann and Andrej Meszaros practiced and could be available for the next round.

As for the opponent, it’s still possible the Flyers could host the Senators in the next round if Ottawa beats the Rangers in New York Thursday night or Washington, which beat Boston Wednesday night. They could also still face either New Jersey or Florida, depending how things shake out Thursday night.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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