The battle of the Turnpike continues as the Flyers look to break losing streak
By Nick Butler
The Flyers will look to break their five-game losing streak tonight at the Rock(The Prudential Center) as they take on the New Jersey Devils. Both teams have 20 points so this will be a big two points for either teams to try to start catching up to the Blue Jackets and Penguins in the standings. This will be the 20th game for the Flyers tonight and a big test against a Metropolitan opponent. These games tend to get chippy and play out way differently than that of a non-division game.
This will be the start of a tough stretch of games for the Flyers. Their game against the Islanders has been postponed due to Covid which will be a blessing in disguise most likely. After tonight, they play on Wednesday at the Mecca(Madison Square Garden) against the red hot Rangers. They will then come to play the Lightning once again and welcome in the Colorado Avalanche to the Wells Fargo Center. After that they head back on the road back to the Prudential Center and out to Vegas and Glendale for games with the Golden Knights and Coyotes.
Philadelphia Flyers
8-7-4 (20 Points, 6th in the Metro)
The Flyers will look to finally get back in the win column tonight after a disheartening loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. They took the lead three times but the Hurricanes had an answer for each goal as the Flyers blew three one-goal leads. They had some great goals from Joel Farabee and Rasmus Ristolinen but they also had bad turnovers that led to goal after goal. Carter Hart could be blamed for one goal and that was the sixth one of the game from the Canes from Svechnikov.
The Flyers can build off finally putting more than three pucks into the net. They are also still very snakebitten as they had so many chances but they keep hitting posts and missing empty nets. Tonight, they have a chance to score some goals against some goalies who haven’t been great. Regardless of which goalie is net for the Devils, they both have GAAs over 2.50 and SV% of under 92%.
With Nate Thompson being hurt, I expect a much different 4th line tonight. Max Willman was called up for tonight and will most likely be on the fourt line. This new look line will have a much different feel too it tonight. Thompson has not been bad this season but the last three or four games, has been a liability and that line has not been as great as they have been. The Flyers were winning games when their fourth line was playing at the top of their game. I highly expect Willman, Bunnaman and MacEwen to be the go to boys on that line and they will be ready to go.
Martin Jones will get the start tonight. He will be looking to bounce back and get a win for the Flyers. He looked really solid against the Panthers and gave up two goals against one of the hottest teams in the NHL. Jones stood on his head throughout that game and just one unlucky fall by Giroux in OT that led to Ekblad getting open for a one timer in the slot. I expect Jones to play the exact same way.
The Flyers NEED the power play to click. While they did score three goals against the Canes, the power play went 0-3. This power play has been continuing to suck the life out of the offense. An offense can either gain or lose confidence and momentum with bad power plays and that was they have been. BAD. At some point, something needs to break and the Flyers need to start scoring but that will happen when this power play becomes effective.
Projected Lineup
Farabee – Couturier – Konecny
Giroux – Frost – Atkinson
Lindblom – Laughton – van Riemsdyk
Willman – Bunnaman – MacEwen
Provorov – Braun
Sanheim – Ristolainen
Yandle – Seeler
Jones
New Jersey Devils
8-6-4 (20 Points, 7th in the Metro)
The Devils have been just as disappointing as they were the season before. They have added some talent to this roster and have Lindy Ruff as their head coach but are still about the same team as they were last season. Jack Hughes has been out for a considerable amount of time while being on IR. This is still not a game to just look over as anything can happen on any given night.
With the addition of Dougie Hamilton, you would think this team would be scoring more often but it has been the opposite. The Devils have had the same issues as the Flyers. While they have been winning games, they have also been having issues putting the puck in the back net. This will be an interesting matchup as both teams are looking to break losing streaks. This will be a chippy game from the jump.
Mackenzie Blackwood will most likely get the nod for tonight. He is currently 3-1-2 and has a GAA of 2.84 and 92 SV%. Regardless of who starts, though, their goalies haven’t been great early on.
Projected Lineup
Zacha – Hischer – Vesey
Johnsson – Mercer – Bratt
Kuokkanen – Sharangovich – Tatar
Geertsen – McLeod – Bastian
Graves – Hamilton
Siegenthaler – Subban
Smith – Severson
Blackwood
When, Where, and How to Watch
Time: 7:00 PM
Where: Prudential Center
TV Broadcast: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Radio Broadcast: 97.5 the Fanatic
Live Stream: Fubo TV
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