The Flyers are catching a huge break in the NHL schedule over the next five days.
They'll face the Tampa Bay Lightning twice in a home-and-home series without Steven Stamkos in the Bolts' lineup.
Stamkos had right knee surgery (torn lateral meniscus) surgery this week and will miss four months, including Saturday’s matinee at the Wells Fargo Center.
It’s the latest in a series of awful injuries to the Bolts' captain going back three years: a broken leg, and blood clots last season that limited him to just one playoff appearance against Pittsburgh in a wild series.
Stamkos (nine goals, 20 points) and Nikita Kucherov (nine goals, 22 points) are among the most dangerous duos in the NHL.
“You don’t replace a player like that,” Flyers defenseman Michael Del Zotto said. “He is one of the most elite players in the league.
"We still look at their club and they have a lot of speed and skill, guys who can fill that void in different situations. No one is obviously going to be able to fill that void on the power play with that slap shot he has.
"It’s a very similar team to Winnipeg with its top two lines. They have a lot of speed. They can make plays on the go.”
Vladislav Namestnikov will replace Stamkos at center between Ondrej Palat and Kuckerov. Sean Couturier’s line will likely go head to head against them Saturday.
“They still have a pretty good lineup even if Stamkos isn’t there,” Couturier said. “He’s a key player. But they still have (Tyler) Johnson, (Alex) Killorn, Palat and Kucherov. They have a lot of talent there. Kind of similar to last night [against Winnipeg].
“If we take care of details, it will make a difference. We can’t take them lightly even if they are missing Stamkos. Two years ago, they made a run without him. They’re a really good team even without him. We have to be ready.”
The Bolts made it to the Stanley Cup Final two seasons ago and the Eastern Conference Finals last spring largely missing Stamkos.
What the Flyers have to do against Tampa is copy their blueprint from Thursday’s game against the Jets: strong start followed by an even stronger shutdown finish in the third period.
“You just have to be cognizant, play that way through all 60 minutes," Wayne Simmonds said. "You start with your first shift and I think definitely when you’re going into the third with a lead, you can’t let up at all.
“We’ve got to pressure. Falling behind is kind of where we’ve laid back in the third period, we kind of let teams give it to us. I think that’s where we get in trouble, so we've got to keep following this groove that we had in the third period [against Winnipeg].”