For Flyers, home is where the goals are

If the Flyers could play every game at the Wells Fargo Center, they’d be in pretty good shape.

Philadelphia is 11-6-3 at home (good for 25 of their 41 points). But away from South Broad street they are 6-13-4.

“I think its a combination of things,” Mark Streit said after a three-point game Monday in an attempt to explain the difference. “In December, pretty much the whole month was on the road, tough trips with tough games and though buildings to play in. It wasn’t satisfying. Here we are more confident. We have the great fans and a great building to play in.”

In their latest stint at home the Flyers pulled out three wins in four straight games on home ice, most recently a 7-3 win against the Atlantic Division leading Lightning.

The onslaught saw Philly outshoot their rivals from the south 13-6 in a five-goal second period, with Jakub Voracek continuing his season-long tear by adding a goal and an assist, giving him 52 points through 43 games.

The Flyers power play is nearly unstoppable at home. Against Tampa Monday, the Flyers scored three power play goals, upping their scoring percentage to 30.1, the best mark in the NHL (compared to a 23.3 percent mark overall).

“I don’t think we did anything crazy or fancy than we normally do,” Brayden Schenn said. “I think we got some bounces tonight, some shots on net and pucks were going in.”

The team also averages nearly a half a goal more at home, scoring 3.10 at Wells Fargo and just 2.47 goals per game on the road.

This is a difference of 21 percent. a pretty remarkable difference. Imagine an NBA squad scoring nearly 20 more points per game at home, or an NFL squad scoring almost an extra touchdown on their home field.

“The home fans get behind us and we like playing here,” Schenn said. “I’m not sure how many home games we have left this year, but we have to make them count.”

There is good news for the Flyers as they attempt to claw their way back into the playoff picture, as the squad will play six of their next nine games (and 10 of their next 17) at home including a five-game homestand from Jan. 20-Feb. 5.

“The upcoming games, we have to be good either way,” Streit said, “and I have faith we will be good on the road as well.”

Next up for Philly is a single game on the road in Washington against the Capitols.

“We have to be ready for another hard fought game,” Schenn said. “They have great players and the team is playing real well right now. That is a team we are trying to catch.”