Why the Long Road Test Will Make or Break the Philadelphia Flyers 2014-15 Season

The Philadelphia Flyers have struggled to find consistency this season and have a mediocre 8-10-3 record through 21 games.

Now, the Flyers approach a critical juncture in their schedule. Seven of their next eight games are on the road. After that, the club has a four-game home stand and then another eight straight road contests. That means that the Flyers have started a string where 15-of-20 games will be played away from the friendly confines of the Wells Fargo Center.

Thus far, Philadelphia's road record is just 2-7-1. If they continue to play at that pace, their playoff chances could be all but over by the time this 20-game swing concludes January 3 in New Jersey.

The road trip is not off to a stellar start. The Flyers lost in a shootout Monday to the New York Islanders and the fell to the Detroit Red Wings 5-2 on Wednesday.

There are a number of things the Flyers need to do to turn their fortunes around before it's too late.

First, the team's overall defense needs to improve. As of Thanksgiving morning, the Flyers rank 26th in the NHL with an average of 32.7 shots allowed per game, and are only 23rd in the league in goals allowed per game with 3.00. That's just not going to get it done.

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The team has known that defense has been a weakness even before the season started. According to Bruce Garrioch of The Ottawa Sun, Flyers' general manager Ron Hextall is looking to make a trade to improve his team. Garrioch wrote, "There is no question Hextall doesn’t want to sit still...Ideally, he would like to get a winger and a defenceman to help his struggling club."

The need for a winger is also a longstanding problem. The Flyers have a dearth of scoring depth this year. Although the Flyers are 11th in the league in goals scored per game, most of the offense has come from the top line, especially Claude Giroux and Jakub Voracek. Outside of the top line, only winger Wayne Simmonds has really produced as expected and five of Simmonds' eight goals this year have come on the power play.

That means that the other three lines need to pick up the slack and contribute more offensively. Players like R.J. Umberger, Vincent Lecavalier, Matt Read, Sean Couturier and Jason Akeson all need to step up their production or some of them will have to face the fact that they may not be in the team's long-term plans.

Perhaps the most disappointing aspect of the Flyers' slow start and the one thing they can correct and must improve on this long string of road games is their overall effort.

After the loss to Detroit, Flyers' head coach Craig Berube was again critical of his players' overall effort. "We had some guys that aren't competing and it results in goals against," Berube said in his post-game press conference as reported by The Associated Press, via Yahoo Sports. "You need everybody on your team competing at the highest level all the time in this league; otherwise you will not win."

There may be excuses for a lack of talent, but a lack of effort is completely unacceptable at this level. Both Berube and Hextall have called out the team in the past few weeks but the results on the ice don't seem to be changing.

After the November 19 loss to the New York Rangers, Hextall was heard yelling at this players in the locker room and after the expletives were finished, the GM told Randy Miller of NJ.com, "We didn't come out hungry enough and we didn't play well. We've got to be a lot better than that."

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The Flyers held a players-only meeting after the Detroit game but the players were evasive about what exactly was discussed. "We just talked about the things we need to get better at," Giroux told The Associated Press.

That change has to come soon and the players know it.

"It’s pretty easy to see things slipping away,” goalie Steve Mason told Scott Held of CSNPhilly.com after the Red Wings game. “Points are up for grabs but other teams are grabbing them and you’re not and you’re falling behind.”

If they don't make significant improvements very soon, the Flyers could be all but eliminated from playoff contention after this 20-game stretch is over. If the losing continues, don't expect Hextall to let things stay the same much longer.