Who needs this more? Who's on the hot seat?

With Alex Ovechkin scoring his 11th game winning goal of the year last night, the Capitals overtook the Flyers throne and now sit atop the East. The Flyers now sit one points behind the Caps with a game in hand of their southern rivals. Now the focus is on the New York Rangers as the Flyers spend their 79th game of the season seeking revenge.


Last time these two met Madison Square Garden got quite a show. The Flyers, suffering of the flu, surrendered seven goals and did not manage to beat Lundqvist once. The Rangers rode that high up the standings winning six of their following ten, picking up at least one point in seven of those eleven.

Despite their recent tear, the Rangers have been falling back into reality and almost out of the playoffs. Going 1-2-1 in their last four has created a new situation for New York, they now are only one point ahead of the Hurricanes for the eight and final playoff spot in the East.

Speaking of the final spots, the ninth place Hurricanes face off against the seventh place Sabres at 500pm on MSG and NHL Net CA. The teams are separated by only three points with each team having four games remaining. With a Canes win and a Rangers loss, New York would be bumped to eighth in the East.

Onto the Flyers, the team who has made head-scratchers go bald. The Flyers now sit in second in the Eastern Conference after limping to the finish line going 4-3-3 in their last ten. Now the Flyers are faced with a situation where a win would propel them back into first in the East, but a loss would bring many questions.

Coach Peter Laviolette, when asked about the Flyers clinching a playoff berth in mid-march, said that their goal was to wrap up home ice advantage in the East. After many analysts have said the Flyers are bored and feel no purpose to play hard with their fate so close to sealed, the team is starting to make the wise bite their tongues. We saw the Flyers come out and play well in Pittsburgh, when forced into a corner, now we'll see how they respond to being second in the Eastern Conference for the first time in months.

Consensus though among Flyers fans is that the team can flip the switch and turn it on in time to make a lengthy playoff run, but if they show no heart today questions will undoubtedly arise about this team's drive. Laviolette is not big on losing and has no place in his mind for it and he has transcended this to his players.  Clinching early and seeing your leader, Chris Pronger, go down after blocking a shot has to be fresh in this team's mind. Flyers may have loosened up to avoid injuries and reduce fatigue for the stretch run, but today there is no time for otherwise sensible thinking, today we need a win.