The Philadelphia Flyers are finally hitting the road after a four-game homestand. Going 2-1-1, the team has packed up and are headed for their Western Canada trip that will start in Edmonton against the undefeated Oilers. This will be the second team the Flyers are seeing who are undefeated after losing to the Florida Panthers 4-2 in a game riddled by penalties.
Entering tonight, the Flyers will be on a three-game road trip in Western Canada. This will be the first of a back-to-back as they will be headed right to Vancouver after this game. This will also be their first of many back-to-backs this season.
Philadelphia Flyers
Record: 2-1-1 (5 Points) 8th in Metropolitan
The Flyers will be playing “late-night hockey” for the next couple of nights while they are in Western Canada before they come home to the Wells Fargo Center to play the Coyotes. They will be in Edmonton tonight, Vancouver tomorrow and head to Calgary on Saturday. They will be playing three games in four days and as such will need to use every available body in these matchups.
The Flyers will have to use both goalies in this back-to-back situation as Sherwood Park native Carter Hart will get the start in the city he grew up in which is twenty minutes outside of Edmonton. Hart is currently 1-1-1 with a GAA of 2.64 and SV% of .914.
This will be the second time Hart will be playing near his home city where he has a record of 0-1-0. He got shelled in their last meeting and the Flyers ended up losing 6-3 in that game. Back in 2019, that was the last time the Flyers have played the Oilers.
It has been two years since the Flyers last saw this team as they are a much different squad. Currently leading in goals is one of the newest offseason acquisitions in Cam Atkinson. He has four goals on the season, including having a two-goal game and a shorthanded tally as well. Trailing behind him are three Flyers with three goals each in Claude Giroux, Travis Konecny, and Joel Farabee. Farabee is also leading the team with six points with four trailing behind him with five points each in Keith Yandle, Atkinson, Derick Brassard, and Sean Couturier.
The Flyers are going to be without Ryan Ellis who is second on the team with ice time at 24:09 with Ivan Provorov leading the way with 25:33. His absence on the ice was noticeable last game with all the penalties the Flyers ended up having. Seeler is serviceable in the lineup, but no one on this roster currently can help fill Ellis’ skates and what he does on a nightly basis.
If the Flyers want to win this game, they will need to be fast and aggressive. The Oilers are a big team with a lot of skill and speed. Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are the biggest threats on this squad and the Flyers will need to watch their turnovers and stay out of the box to keep this duo from wreaking havoc. The depth scoring is going to need to show up as well as the top two lines are going to have their hands full with Edmonton’s.
Projected lineup:
Giroux – Couturier – Konecny
Farabee – Brassard – Atkinson
Lindblom – Laughton – Van Riemsdyk
Aube-Kubel –Thompson – MacEwen
Provorov – Braun
Sanheim – Ristolainen
Yandle – Seeler
Hart
Jones
Edmonton Oilers
Record 5-0-0 (10 Points) 1st in Pacific
On the other end of the ice is the 5-0 speedy Edmonton Oilers. The Oilers haven’t necessarily had a true test yet so the Flyers should be a good one for them. With Philadelphia having a much different squad, the Oilers have some new faces in their lineup as well.
Some of the biggest additions for the Oilers were their defensive additions in Duncan Keith and Cody Ceci. The biggest problems both teams had were that of the defensive department and both made adjustments to help that. So far it seems to have paid off for Edmonton as they have only given up 11 goals in five games this season.
To no ones surprise, Connor McDavid is leading the Oilers in goals with six. Zach Hyman trails behind him with five and Leon Draisaitl with four. McDavid also leads the team in points, accumulating 13 in five games with Draisaitl trailing behind him with 11.
With Mike Smith out with an injury, Miko Koskinen will most likely get the nod. He is 3-0 this season with a GAA of 2.03 and SV% of .943. Koskinen is a good goalie who will give the Flyers some difficulty.
Projected Lineup
Hymen – McDavid – Puljujarvi
Nugent-Hopkins – Draisaitl – Yamamoto
Foegele – Ryan – Kassian
Perlini – Shore – Turris
Nurse – Bouchard
Keith – Ceci
Koekkoek – Barrie
Koskinen
Skinner
When, Where, and How to Watch
Time: 10:00 PM
Where: Rodgers Place
TV Broadcast: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Radio Broadcast: 97.5 The Fanatic
Live Stream: Fubo TV
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