The Philadelphia Flyers have overachieved with a relatively young lineup, while the Pittsburgh Penguins are looking old as they continue to fade.
For these stories, and others, check out the links below:
Around the NHL and National Hockey Now
Philly Hockey Now: The Flyers are still a playoff longshot, but they have surprisingly made this an entertaining season with the development of their young players and their physical play. My column on their season at the All-Star break. Philadelphia Flyers.
Pittsburgh Hockey Now: A review of the Penguins’ sorry week, which went from bad to worse. Pittsburgh Penguins.
Washington Hockey Now: The Capitals collapsed in the second period Sunday and were blasted by Toronto, 5-1. Caps goalie Darcy Kuemper was chased early. Washington Capitals.
Florida Hockey Now: The Panthers, of all teams, became the first team to beat Boston twice this season with a win Saturday. Now they are on their break, and the players are heading to all sorts of places, from the Cayman Islands to Vermont (Vermont?!). Florida Panthers.
Detroit Hockey Now: The Red Wings probably need to go 22-11-1 the rest of the way to earn a playoff berth. So what’s on their to-do list when their break ends? Detroit Red Wings.
Montreal Hockey Now: Like the Flyers, the injury-plagued Canadiens have had several young players step it up. The Habs are on pace to break the NHL record for most man-games lost due to injuries. Montreal Canadiens.
New York Islanders Hockey Now: Thanks to consecutive wins, the Islanders are just two points behind Pittsburgh for the second wild-card spot. That said, the offense has been offensive. New York Islanders.
Boston Hockey Now: The Bruins (38-7-5) are officially in their first slump of the season. They suffered their third straight defeat Sunday, falling in Carolina, 4-1. Boston leads the NHL with 81 points, while Carolina (72) is second. Boston Bruins.
Los Angeles Hockey Now: The Kings looked tired in their last game, a 5-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Los Angeles Kings.
Colorado Hockey Now: The Avs have a return plan for star winger Gabe Landeskog. Colorado Avalanche.
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