Laviolette has drawn criticism all year long for the Flyers’ inconsistent play and now with the playoffs looking like a pipe dream in Philadelphia, his security surrounding his job has been questioned.

There have been reports that have brought up the idea that Laviolette could be the whipping boy for management’s inability to acquire a proven goaltender.  You may recall Ilyz Bryzgalov has again been making headlines with the media, something that only adds fuel to the fire from his career low numbers.

Holmgren is quick to point out that injuries have decimated the Flyers lineup all season long, something that is out of Laviolette’s control.

“I think it’s been a difficult year because of the [injury] situation. We haven’t had our whole team all year.” – courtesy of the Inquirer.

The Flyers signed Laviolette to a two-year extension last August that runs through the 2014-15 season.  The contract alone could signify that the Flyers don’t want to make a move on their head coach, but sometimes what is said to the media doesn’t always hold true.

Philadelphia is all but out of the playoff picture sitting seven points back of the New York Rangers with only six games remaining.  If Laviolette does return next season you can bet the pressure to make the playoffs next year is a must.  Anything less will surely result in his walking papers, if he doesn’t receive them sooner.

• According to Tim Panaccio from CSNPhilly.com, Danny Briere is likely to be bought out by the Flyers this summer as one of their two amnesty buyout options.  Briere has two-years remaining on his deal that carries an annual salary of $6.5 million dollar cap hit, which is the highest on the Flyers roster.  Briere signed as a  free-agent in 2007 for a deal worth $52 million over 8-years and with the salary cap set to come down next season to $64.3 million from $70.2 million, the buyout will only cost the Flyers $3.3 million and will go a long way in ensuring they are under the cap ceiling.   Currently sidelined with a concussion, Briere could return to the Flyers lineup this weekend according to Panaccio who states Briere has been “symptom free” for the past four days.   The former first round pick has struggled this season with just 5 goals and 8 assists in 26 games.  He’s been out with the concussion since March 23rd.The 35-year old wants to remain in Phildaelphia but admits to Panaccio that it is out of his control.

“It’s reality. There’s no doubt about it. But at the same time, those are things I can’t control at this moment. All I can control is for me to come back into the lineup and play as good as I can, to show them. Other than that, I can’t worry about injuries or what they are going to decide to do. That’s out of my control at this point.”

•  Ilya Bryzgalov is back to  making headlines with the media again.  Mere days after telling local reporters that he didn’t care about whether he could be a buyout candidate this summer, the outspoken netminder lashed into the media when asked if he had fallen asleep during a team meeting, courtesy of TSN.ca.

“That’s embarrassing,” the 32-year-old responded. “You have to prove your sources. You became (unprofessional) journalists. You have to be better. Step up guys. Prove your information. Find reliable sources.”

Nothing like creating more controversy for a team that has already fallen under the scrutiny of the Philadelphia media.  But considering the source in Bryzgalov, it’s not surprising.

• Finally, with the train wreck of a season for the Flyers, one has to wonder about the future of head coach Peter Laviolette and whether or not he’ll be brought back next season. Back on March 15 Holmgren went on the record to state that he was not interested in making a coaching change.  That was when the Flyers were five points out of a playoff spot and playing decent hockey.  They’ve lost three straight after last night’s game at home to the Ottawa Senators and with drastic changes looming with Briere and potentially Bryzgalov’s buyouts, a fresh voice from the bench might be in order in Philly.  This is pure speculation on my part and have not heard anything of the sorts to this point. The Flyers did sign Laviolette to a two-year extension last August so it would be a bold move to make if Holmgren were to go ahead with it.

February 20, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Philadelphia Flyers center Claude Giroux (28) congratulates right wing Jakub Voracek (93) after Voracek the game winning goal against the Pittsburgh Penguins at the CONSOL Energy Center. Voracek scored a hat trick on the night. The Philadelphia Flyers won 6-5. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

I hate to say I told you so (just kidding, I love it), but Peter Laviolette and the Philadelphia Flyers that we know and love are back with a vengeance (I told you all to be patient and have faith and those who have, have been rewarded) . All the haters who said to fire Laviolette after the loss in Montreal are now biting their tongues because he was an integral part of the Flyers win last night. Everyone who wasn’t convinced by the 7-0 win against the New York Islanders on Monday will have definitely changed their minds after the 6-5 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins last night.

Sure there were mistakes made, I myself was doubtful when the Flyers found themselves trailing 2-0 in the first period, but Peter Laviolette called a time out that seemed to put his boys back in the game. The Flyers came back with the weirdest goal I’ve ever seen. All five Penguins players were in the net and the goal was eventually scored by Nicklas Grossmann off of Kris Letang’s helmet. Simmonds had a beauty after that to tie the game at 2 going into the second period. After tying it the Flyers didn’t trail for the rest of the game.

Jakub Voracek was by far the star of the game getting a hat trick and scoring the game winner with 1:30 left in the 3^rd period.  There would be another hat trick to be had in this game as well, a Gordie Howe hat trick was earned by Wayne Simmonds (a fight, a goal, and an assist for those who don’t know).

Honourable mention goes to the Flyers penalty killers especially those involved in the insanely long 5-on-3 in the third period. If there is one thing the Flyers can do it is kill a penalty.

I hope these are the Flyers that come to play for the rest of the season. Claude Giroux has lead this team back to where they once were and with Scott Hartnell on his way back in we can expect play like this to continue. There will definitely be a playoff run this year for the Philadelphia Flyers.