The Flyers announced today that two key players will not be joining the team for their trip to Boston today. The Flyers are scheduled to take on the Bruins in the second game of a home-and-home series tomorrow afternoon.
Captain Mike Richards and Scottie Upshall are still feeling the effects of a flu that has run wild through the Flyers' locker room. Both players are said to be feeling better, but team officials decided they will not travel with the team in an effort to isolate the illness from the rest of the team. Several players have fallen ill recently, no doubt contributing to the team's 1-3 skid since the all-star break.
This is bad news for a team that was out-worked in the final two periods of Wednesday night's loss to the Bruins. Richards is the emotional spark plug for Philadelphia, and has the second highest team point total, trailing only Jeff Carter.
Kudos to team officials for not rushing germ-infested players back to a locker room that will need its strength down the home stretch. Let's bite the bullet, regain our strength, and gather ourselves for the final months of the season. They can not afford to lose any more games out of their players. When Richards, Upshall, and the injured Danny Briere rejoin the team, they should be poised to make a run.
With those pesky Penguins not posing a serious threat this year, all signs point towards a matured Flyers team appearing in the Stanley Cup finals. Rest up boys, and a spoon full of sugar helps the medicine go down.
Keywords: Boston Bruins, Danny Briere, Mike Richards, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburg Penguins, Scottie Upshall
