NHL Playoffs Schedule And Bracket 2012: Flyers Vs. Penguins And The Rest Of The Eastern Conference

The Philadelphia Flyers concluded their regular season Saturday with a disappointing loss to inter-state rival the Pittsburgh Penguins, 4-2. However, for Flyers fans its time to shake it off -- you probably already have -- and focus on the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs, which begins Wednesday.

Oddly enough, the Flyers will play the Penguins in what should be a very intense first-round match-up, which features Pittsburgh with home-ice advantage. Over the course of the regular season, the Flyers defeated the Pen's in four of the six contest. Here's the schedule and TV coverage of the anticipated playoff series:

No. 1-seed New York Rangers vs. No. 8 Ottawa Senators: The Sens' won the season series 3-1.
No. 2 Boston Bruins vs. No. 7 Washington Capitals: The Caps' were 3-1 against the Bruins in the regular season.
No. 3 Florida Panthers vs. No. 6 New Jersey Devils: The two teams split the season series 2-2

Here's a look at the Western Conference:

Penguins Vs. Flyers: Pittsburgh Downs Philadelphia, 4-2, In Regular-Season Finale

The regular-season finale doesn't help a team win a Stanley Cup. That's the motto the Philadelphia Flyers will need to have after falling to the Pittsburgh Penguins, 4-2, Saturday in the 2012 regular-season finale at the CONSOL Energy Center. The results was meaningless when it comes to the NHL playoffs, which will feature both teams playing each other in the first round.

The highlight of the game was Pittsburgh's forward Evgeni Malkin netting his 50th goal of the season. Malkin reached the half-century mark with a slap shot that beat Philadelphia goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky with 12 seconds remaining in the second period.

From there, the heated rivalry contest was a bit stagnate as neither team scored in the final period as both teams are getting ready for what really counts, the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Brayden Schen and Jaromir Jagr each scored goals for the Flyers, who finished the regular season 47-26-9 (103 points) and will be the No. 5 seed. Meanwhile, Pascal Dupuis, Chris Kunitz, Sidney Crosby and Malkin netted scores for the Pens' (51-25-6, 108 points) who will be the No. 4 seed.

For more Philadelphia Flyers coverage, visit our team page or our blog Broad Street Hockey.

Philadelphia Flyers Re-sign Nicklas Grossmann, Solidify Defense

The Philadelphia Flyers signed the deadline acquisition to a four-year, $14 million contract extension, locking up the physical defensive stalwart for the foreseeable future.

Flyers Vs Penguins: One Last Meaningless Game Before The Playoffs

The Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins conclude the regular season on Saturday with a playoff preview.