I had to check my surroundings last night to make sure I wasn’t in a time machine.

After all, there was Claude Giroux telling us that the Flyers are laser-focused going to bring their best game to the 82nd and final game of the season against the New York Rangers Saturday afternoon with a playoff berth on the line.

I couldn’t help but have a feeling of deja vu.

It took me back eight years, to when the Flyers were in the same scenario. Beat the Rangers and make the playoffs.

OK, so there are some minor differences.

Technically, the Flyers don’t have to win, they just need to get to overtime and then can lose, and still get in.

Oh, and there’s also the scenario where they lose in regulation, and then back into the playoffs if the Florida Panthers lose to either Buffalo at home Saturday night or in Boston Sunday night.

And this time around, even though the Rangers have already announced that Henrik Lundqvist will be in goal for that final game against the Flyers, they really have nothing to play for other than to be a spoiler.

The Rangers were in the same boat as the Flyers in that 2010 game. They needed a win to get in as well. This Rangers team is starting a rebuild, and they are sitting in the Metropolitan Division basement.

So, it’s not exactly the same…. but….

The Flyers have positioned themselves in a do-or-maybe-die situation in the final game of the season.

An optimist will tell you, that after losing 10 straight games in November and seven of eight in early March, that to be in a situation where you can control your own playoff participation destiny in the final game of the season shows great resolve and determination by the team.

That’s fair.

But a pessimist will tell you that a team that was in first place in the Metro when they awoke on February 27th after a victory over Montreal could, in the span of just 19 games, fall completely out of the playoffs altogether shows you just how fragile and incomplete the team is and should generate questions about the coaching, the roster construction and, in that equation, the general manager.

And that would also be fair.

It’s not like they’ve been flat out awful since then – they are 7-7-4 since with one game to go – but it also coincided with the NHL trade deadline where other teams who were behind the Flyers at the time made moves to bolster their rosters and the Flyers, with the exception of trading for Petr Mrazek out of necessity the week before – stood pat.

So it’s not a surprise that despite playing .500 hockey (from a points percentage perspective, which I hate, but I digress…) that they’ve been surpassed by teams who addressed their weaknesses.

That’s not to say Ron Hextall should have started selling his well-stocked farm to improve this year’s Flyers, but, if you wanted to make a commitment to this season as a successful one and not just another year in the rebuild – as many in the organization declared several times this season – then something more should have probably happened at that deadline.

Grab another reliable defenseman. Or, if scoring depth is your biggest worry, maybe add a forward who could have helped so you aren’t swapping Michael Raffl and Travis Konecny in the penultimate game of the season to try and spread out the scoring in your lineup.

But that didn’t happen, and here we are… Facing a 60-minute test in which the Flyers have to at least match, if not be better, than the last place team in the division.

Sounds easy enough, right?

Well, it’s not.

The two teams met at the Wells Fargo Center a couple weeks back and it was a tough game. The Flyers won 4-3, but the Rangers nearly skated the Flyers out of the building. They are a young team bereft of any star skaters, and they just keep coming at you.

They make mistakes, sure, and probably too many of them, which is why they are in the cellar, but they hung with the Flyers with a rookie in goal in that game as well.

This time will be different. This time it will be King Henrik – and you can bet he’ll be out for revenge.

Lundqvist usually stymies the Flyers. His lifetime record against Philadelphia is 35-15-4. However, the last time he faced them was his worst outing ever against the Flyers and he let up seven goals at Madison Square Garden.

Oh, and don’t think he doesn’t recognize the gravity of the game and doesn’t remember what it felt like to lose that 82nd game in 2010 and miss the playoffs.

I assure you Lundqvist – and his Rangers teammates – will be up for this game. They won’t just go through the motions.

So, Giroux better be prescient when he says the Flyers will play their best game Saturday – because they’re going to need to do so.

Now, I wouldn’t have spent the past 800 words or so preparing you for this game Saturday if things didn’t go as they did last night.

So let’s look at what happened:

1. The Flyers won despite their goalie

This was the biggest story of the night because it’ll be the biggest focus of Saturday, and if the Flyers make the playoffs it will be the biggest story of the playoffs for them as well.

As per usual, goaltending is a huge question mark.

Someone in the press box said to me last night, “I feel like it’s 2011 all over again.”

A lot of retro feelings last night….

Anyway… Brian Elliott returned to the lineup for the first time since injuring himself on Feb. 10 and enduring core muscle surgery (nee, sports hernia; nee groin pull).

Coming into the game, I felt like Elliott would be a stabilizing presence in goal. He’s not a great goalie, but he’s steady, does his job, and doesn’t make a lot of mistakes. Plus, the players in front of him are most confident when he’s in net.

It didn’t take long though to see that Elliott was quite rusty.

He fought the puck all night. And although he made a few key saves at key moments, he also let in a couple goals that he usually doesn’t. This one was by far the worst:

That’s bad.

Elliott explained what happened afterwards and took responsibility for it, but sheesh:

“I leaned a little too far into the post and that levered my pad off the ice,” he said, “Not something you want to happen, especially when G scores that big goal, but we responded well. Jake came down and ripped it. I knew the next shot coming I wasn’t letting in.”

He didn’t, but this wasn’t exactly a confident save that occurred afterwards:

If any of the Flyers goalies can be consistent and reliable for the playoffs, it’s Elliott – and I think the coaches know that and I expect to see him between the pipes Saturday.

But he has to be better than last night. We’ll give him a small pass because it was his first game in almost two months, but if the first period against the Rangers is shaky, Hakstol may have to be Gabe Kapler-esque in calling for relief.

2. Captain clutch

One of the things that has made Claude Giroux so special this season has been his propensity to come through time and again when it matters most.

It seems that almost every Flyers game hangs in the balance in the third period or overtime – win or lose – and it always seems Giroux is in the middle of making a positive play to help the team win or get close to winning.

Just this week, he scored the OT game-winner against Boston, he tied the game against the Islanders Tuesday, completing a three-goal, third period comeback, only to see it flit away 28 seconds later, and he briefly gave the Flyers a third period lead last night with this:

Of course, it was wiped out by the goal Elliott let in above, but it’s time and again that he is doing this for the Flyers.

He now has 99 points….

Yes, you read that correctly – 99 points – he originally wasn’t credited with an assist on Michael Raffl’s goal last night:

The Flyers petitioned the league last night and the league denied the request for the scoring change. Then, we led the charge. I was right on the front lines with many others also calling the NHL out for their ridiculous assessment that Carolina “possessed the puck” on the Giroux pass to the slot:

Like I said, I wasn’t alone. Dozens of others also questioned it. The league, feeling that social media pressure, changed its mind Friday morning. Good work Flyers Twitter.

So with 99 points, Giroux is alone, second in the NHL in scoring this year behind only Connor McDavid in Edmonton.

If the Flyers do get to the playoffs, the Hart Trophy race really shouldn’t be that tough. Yes, Taylor Hall has had a similar impact in New Jersey, but he’s not the all-around player Giroux is.

Giroux is having the best season by a Flyers player in at least a generation. And I don’t say that lightly. This is the best since Eric Lindros before all the concussions and drama.

This should be a no-brainer for the Professional Hockey Writers Association. Don’t screw it up guys.

3. Don’t forget Jake

Jake Voracek has been playing second fiddle to Giroux for much of the season, but he too is having a career year.

He was the guy who showed the leadership qualities in settling down the bench before the overtime win over Boston on Sunday – and then went out and made the perfect pass to Giroux for his game-winner.

And when the Flyers were really facing the difficult time of a tie game late in the third period and the season was really on the line, Voracek was there yet again:

It was Jake’s 20th goal of the season – the fifth time in his career he’s reached that plateau. He now has 84 points this season – a career high.

He’s playing at another level right now, too – you can sense it with both Giroux and Voracek just by talking to them – they are willing the Flyers to win games by themselves. It’s been really impressive to watch.

4. Provy and Ghost

So, Shayne Gostisbehere won the Barry Ashbee Trophy for the best defenseman on the Flyers last night. It’s the second time he won the award (other winners below).

But it was the only Flyers award that was in doubt. Because it could have gone to Ivan Provorov and I would argue that it should have.

That’s not a knock on Ghost. He’s had a great season. He became just the third Flyers defenseman to ever record 50 assists in a season last night. He now has 64 points on the season. It’s been one of the best offensive seasons from a defenseman in Flyers history.

But Provorov is no slouch in that department either – He now has 40 points this season after scoring this goal last night:

He’s been really active in the offensive zone lately – he sees that lane and goes to the net. It’s something you don’t expect from a defenseman if you are the opposition, but it’s a smart play (made even smarter when you see Giroux’s awareness as he rotates to cover Provorov’s position on the point – a subtle but excellent play by the captain that often goes unnoticed in these reviews).

Provorov has been a horse for the Flyers – not only has he had a quality season with 40 points and 16 goals – but he’s the team’s best defensive defenseman.

I think if we’re judging all-around game, Provy edges Ghost and should have won the award. The Flyers media who voted (doesn’t include me) thought otherwise.

But, they’ve both had a great year.

5. The Awards

Most of these were pretty cut and dry:

  • Bobby Clarke Trophy (Team MVP) – Claude Giroux
  • Barry Ashbee Trophy (Best Defenseman) – Shayne Gostisbehere
  • Yanick Dupre Class Guy Award (Dedication to Hockey – also rapport with the media) – Sean Couturier
  • Pelle Lindbergh Memorial Trophy (Most Improved Player – as voted by the players) – Sean Couturier
  • Gene Hart Memorial Trophy (Player with the most “heart” as voted by the Fan Club) – Sean Couturier
  • Toyota Cup (Most points earned from three star selections) – Claude Giroux

As I mentioned above, I would have voted Provy over Ghost, but it’s not an egregious pick. I was surprised by the Fan Club vote – I could have sworn they would have voted Travis Konecny for most heart. Not that it really matters…