Flyers vs. Devils, Game 51 of 2021 season: Live stream, storylines, game time and more

The Flyers (22-21-7) wrap up a stretch of four straight games against the Devils (16-27-7) when they host New Jersey on Saturday.

Let's get into the essentials for the game:

When: 7 p.m. ET with Flyers Pregame Live at 6:30 p.m. ET
Where: Wells Fargo Center
Broadcast: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Live stream: NBCSportsPhiladelphia.com and the NBC Sports MyTeams app

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• With a 5-3 loss Thursday to the Devils, the Flyers were eliminated from playoff contention. The Flyers had no longer been a competitive horse in the race, but their official ouster served as a punctuation mark on a disappointing 2020-21 season in which they fell well short of expectations.

When teams with expectations underachieve, changes are inevitable. The Flyers entered Saturday 19th in the league with a .510 point percentage and owning a minus-39 goal differential a year after finishing as a top-six club (.645) and having a plus-36 goal differential. The Flyers went 41-21-7 in 69 games last season; they have already matched their loss totals through 50 games this season.

"It's tough, for sure, taking a step back from the season we had last year," Shayne Gostisbehere said Friday. "We know we're a playoff team, especially with the guys we have. It's tough, you can't put your finger on one thing."

The Flyers clearly have holes to fill, which could require some franchise-altering moves ahead. The offseason will be crucial for a team that wants to contend again in 2021-22, a season that precedes an even bigger offseason.

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The players are not oblivious to the team's situation. The Flyers have six games left to play for pride and jobs before things could look different.

"You look back, you could say what if, what we could have done here, what we could have done there," Gostisbehere said. "But for us, with these last games, we still have a job to do, we want to win games, we don't want to go out like that.

"We also realize obviously some changes are going to come, we're not stupid in that sense. It's our lives, too, we know something is going to happen. But for us, to be good professionals, go out there and play the best to our ability. We've still got a job to do."

Travis Konecny echoed that sentiment, noting the Flyers' core driving the still-care department.

"The biggest thing that I've noticed is if anyone could pack it in, it could be our top guys who have all the trophies and records and all these things. At this point in time, they're our hardest-working group and leading the way," Konecny said. "Our leaders are the ones pushing right now. Every single game you get to play in the NHL is an honor and you can't take it for granted. If you're packing it in, you don't want to be here, you're not in the right spot."

• Gostisbehere is expected to return to the lineup after missing the last three games against New Jersey with a minor MCL sprain.

Following a two-game audition, Egor Zamula on Saturday was loaned back to AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley, which has two games this weekend: Saturday vs. Binghamton and Sunday at Hershey.

We'll have to wait and see if 2019 first-round draft pick Cam York (lower-body injury) is back in the lineup for the Phantoms.