Fresh off a win over the NHL front-running Winnipeg Jets, the Flyers had gone 4-0-1 coming off the two-week break for the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament, and with 22 games remaining it was clear that although there was a long way to go, one could envision a path to a playoff spot for the first time in five years for this moribund franchise.

There always is a darkness before dawn, and it’s getting pretty dark now for the Flyers. On Sunday the Orange and Black lost 3-1 to the New Jersey Devils. It is their fourth straight loss, in which they have been outscored,

The Philadelphia Flyers needed this one. Or, at the very least, they needed to show signs that they were trending in the right direction after a stretch of frustrating losses. And while the effort was certainly there against the New Jersey Devils,