The round-robin tournament of the NHL’s 24-team return-to-play format will represent different kinds of importance for the fourth-seeded Flyers.
Firstly, they couldn’t ask for a better tune-up ahead of their first-round series. They’ll play each of the Eastern Conference’s top three teams once before meeting their opening-round opponent.
Secondly, those dates with the East’s best could help the Flyers climb even more. The total points accumulated in the round-robin tournament will determine the conference’s seed Nos. 1-4. If there are ties after the set of games, which will feature regular-season overtime and shootout rules, the regular-season points percentages of each club will serve as the tiebreaker.
How could the Flyers fare in the round-robin portion and what would it ultimately mean for their outlook in the 24-team setup?
Here are three factors to note:
1. Can Flyers win round robin?
They shouldn’t be considered heavy underdogs. The Flyers will be confident in their opportunity to improve their seed after going 2-1-0 against the top-seeded Bruins during the regular season and 3-0-1 vs. the third-seeded Capitals. The second-seeded Lightning were the one club that gave the Flyers trouble. The Flyers dropped two games in regulation to Tampa Bay, but one was a 1-0 defeat and the other was a chippy 5-3 loss with an empty-netter in the final 22 seconds.
The Flyers have a goalie who keeps them in games and a group that held its own with the fellow top seeds in major statistical categories:
Goals per game
Lightning — 3.47
Capitals — 3.42
Flyers — 3.29
Bruins — 3.24
Goals against per game
Bruins — 2.39
Flyers — 2.77
Lightning — 2.77
Capitals — 3.07
Power play percentage
Bruins — 25.2
Lightning — 23.1
Flyers — 20.8
Capitals — 19.4
Penalty kill percentage
Bruins — 84.3
Capitals — 82.6
Flyers — 81.8
Lightning — 81.4
2. Wait, would they want to climb?
It’s an interesting question right now because the NHL and NHLPA are undetermined on the format for the first and second rounds, whether it be bracketed or reseeding after the qualifying round.
That’s a huge question.
Say the Flyers stayed at No. 4 in a bracket-style scenario and the 12th-seeded Canadiens knocked off the fifth-seeded Penguins, the Flyers would face Montreal. On paper, that would be a pretty favorable matchup against the lowest seed in the East. Whereas the No. 1 seed in the conference would face the winner of the No. 8 vs. No. 9 matchup.
If the league instead agrees to reseed, such a scenario would see the No. 1 seed face the Canadiens during the first round, whereas the Flyers, as the fourth seed, would get the highest remaining seed to advance from the qualifying round.
When/if the Flyers play round-robin games, the NHL will have made a decision on the format for the first and second rounds. Right now, just about everything is undecided for the Flyers.
3. The good thing?
The Flyers can’t hurt themselves in the round robin. As the lowest seed of the four, they can only improve their seed. If the Flyers struggle, they stay put at No. 4 and at least played three competitive warmup games for their first-round series.
The Flyers went 22-8-5 against the Eastern Conference playoff field during the regular season, so they’ll like their chances against whichever team they draw.
Subscribe and rate Flyers Talk: Apple Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify | Stitcher | Art19 | YouTube
Click here to download the MyTeams App by NBC Sports! Receive comprehensive coverage of your teams and stream the Flyers, Sixers and Phillies games easily on your device.
More on the Flyers
Flyers’ playoff hype video will leave you wanting to run through a wall
Predictions for Flyers’ best Game 1 lineup to start 24-team playoff
Everything Flyers fans need to know for NHL’s 24-team playoff tournament
Breaking down Flyers’ Stanley Cup odds after NHL announces 24-team plan
Flyers fans are going crazy after latest news on return-to-play format
