Broad Street Buzz
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James van Riemsdyk faces old team as Flyers take on Toronto

By Benjamin Gabrych

PHILADELPHIA, PA - NOVEMBER 15: James van Riemsdyk #25, Shayne Gostisbehere #53 and Wayne Simmonds #17 of the Philadelphia Flyers enter the ice surface for warm-ups against the New Jersey Devils on November 15, 2018 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Len Redkoles/NHLI via Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - NOVEMBER 15: James van Riemsdyk #25, Shayne Gostisbehere #53 and Wayne Simmonds #17 of the Philadelphia Flyers enter the ice surface for warm-ups against the New Jersey Devils on November 15, 2018 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Len Redkoles/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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The 29 year-old forward will take on his former team as the Philadelphia Flyers head to Toronto to face the Maple Leafs.

Coming off a 4-0 shutout victory over the New York Rangers, the Philadelphia Flyers will hit the road to take on the Toronto Maple Leafs.

This will be the first time that forward James van Riemsdyk returns to Toronto after leaving for Philadelphia this past offseason. van Riemsdyk, or JvR, played in a Leafs uniform for six seasons and scored his career high in goals with 36 in his final year with the team.

The Maple Leafs will pose as yet another tough matchup for the Flyers, as they haven’t showcased a lot of weaknesses so far this year. They rank fourth among NHL teams in total Goals-For with 78 and allow the tied fifth lowest Goals-Against with 62. They are one of the best two-way hockey teams in the league thus far, which is a reason why they sit at the top of the league record and points-wise.

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The Flyers will have to mimic every aspect of their performance against the Rangers in order to defeat Toronto and achieve back-to-back wins. They finally played well from start-to-finish, and also went three-for-three on the penalty-kill. The Maple Leafs have a vaunted power-play unit, who currently sit top-10 in the NHL with a 23.81 power-play percentage. Even with star player Auston Matthews sidelined with an injury, Toronto still possess plenty of weapons on their man advantage.

Youthful forward Mitch Marner has 28 points (6 Goals, 22 Assists) in 23 games for the Leafs so far and has not only helped fill the void of Matthews, but William Nylander as well. Nylander hasn’t played a game this season as he looks for a new contract. Toronto hasn’t missed a beat without him, though, thanks in large part to a big addition in the offseason. John Tavares has 26 points in the same amount of games, clearly living up to the major expectations for the team this year.

Look for JvR to bring everything’s he’s got against his former squad, both on the offensive and defensive side of the puck. It will also be key for defenseman Ivan Provorov to return to his 2017-18 form. Provorov has struggled with turnovers in his own zone this season and will need to be sharper with the puck. The Maple Leafs will take advantage of those giveaways in a heartbeat, especially with Provorov likely matching-up against Toronto’s top-line.

dark. Next. Giroux is very under-appreciated as a Flyers player.

The Flyers will hope to earn their 11th win of the season and extend their winning streak to two games.  Puck-drop is set for 7pm EST.

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