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Flyers, Stars continue down opposite paths after Philly’s 4-2 win

Michael Raffl, Jordie Benn

Dallas Stars’ Jordie Benn, left, collides with Philadelphia Flyers’ Michael Raffl, of Austria, during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Thursday, March 20, 2014, in Philadelphia. Benn was penalized for hooking on the play. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

AP

In very broad terms, the Philadelphia Flyers and Dallas Stars seem like kindred spirits: flawed-but-fun teams that boast enough offensive star power to potentially be upset threats in the playoffs. It’s starting to look like only one of those squads will get the chance to make their opponents sweat, though.

The Flyers extended their winning streak to four games and gave the Stars their fourth loss in a row via a 4-2 win on Thursday.

Philly hasn’t just been beating up on tomato cans during this streak, either; they swept a weekend series against the Pittsburgh Penguins, managed a comeback win against the Chicago Blackhawks and dealt some serious damage to Dallas’ playoff hopes tonight.

One could argue that Philly’s edge came down to secondary scoring. Claude Giroux continues his dominant work, but the Stars received another strong night from their 1-2 punch of offensive stars with Jamie Benn getting two goals this time. Wayne Simmonds’ own hot streak seemed to tilt the scale the Flyers’ way, however, as he found the net twice himself.

However you slice it, the Flyers’ playoff hopes look increasingly realistic while the Stars may need the Phoenix Coyotes to stumble to really get back into the West mix.

Follow James O’Brien @cyclelikesedins