He finished the season with 15 goals and 35 points in 78 games. In his first playoff appearance, van Riemsdyk was part of a massive comeback effort as the Flyers, down 3–0 at the start of the 2010 Eastern Conference semifinals, battled to Game 7. Van Riemsdyk scored his first career playoff goal in the first period of Game 7, shifting the momentum to the Flyers and helping them advance to the Eastern Conference finals. It was the first time that a team had come back from a 3–0 deficit to win an NHL playoff series since the New York Islanders defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1975. The Flyers ultimately advanced to the 2010 Stanley Cup Finals, whereupon they fell to the Chicago Blackhawks. In 21 playoff games as a rookie, van Riemsdyk scored three goals and three assists. Van Riemsdyk continued his offensive trajectory during his sophomore 2010–11 season, scoring 21 goals in 75 games. On February 15, 2011, van Riemsdyk landed his first Gordie Howe hat trick, registering a point, an assist, and a fight in a 4–3 shootout win against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The fight was also the first of van Riemsdyk's NHL career, as he defended Giroux against former Flyer Randy Jones. His first regular hat-trick came the following month, with three goals in the Flyers' 4–1 victory over the New York Islanders on March 26, 2011. At the 2021 Eastern Conference quarterfinals, van Riemsdyk once again provided a critical Game 7 playoff performance for the Flyers, playing a role in three goals of the series-winning 5–2 win over the Buffalo Sabres. The Flyers took the Bruins to seven games in the semifinals as well, with van Riemsdyk netting two goals to take the final game into overtime, but the Bruins ultimately took the series 3–2 in overtime. As he entered his third season of professional hockey, van Riemsdyk became representative of the modern power forward. Unlike figures like Eric Lindros and John LeClair, he and other contemporary power forwards utilized their speed and agility as much as their strength. His effectiveness was limited, however, by a variety of injuries, including a hip problem, a concussion, an oblique strain, and a rib cage strain, that forced van Riemsdyk to miss a total of 43 games in both the regular 2011–12 season and the playoffs. Most debilitating was a fractured left foot that van Riemsdyk sustained