It’s a quick turnaround for the Flyers as they’re right back on the ice against the San Sharks. This will come just over 24 hours after their overtime win against the Seattle Kraken.
Philadelphia brings a six-game point streak into this one, having gone 5-0-1 during that stretch. And while they have been able to keep the streak going, they’ll need much better play than they showed against Seattle. They were significantly outplayed for the first two periods and had Martin Jones specifically to thank for getting them to overtime.
The Sharks come in off a wild 8-7 shootout loss against the Coyotes. The teams combined for four goals in the first along with five goals in the remaining two regulation periods. San Jose was unable to hold their 7-5 lead in the final frame, giving up the tying goal with under two minutes to play.
This is the first time they two have faced this season, their last matchup coming back in February of 2020.
Philadelphia Flyers
Record: 13-12-5 (31 points, 5th in Metro)
Thanks to their overtime victory, the Flyers jumped over the idle Columbus Blue Jackets for fifth in the division. They sit just two points out of the second wild card spot that is currently held by the Detroit Red Wings.
It’s a much better look than the 10-game losing streak they were previously on, but the on ice product could still use plenty of work. It was evident during the first two periods against the Kraken. The Flyers were dominated despite scoring the game’s first goal. They couldn’t get sustained pressure in the offensive zone, or sometimes even neutral zone for that matter. And Jones was forced, at times, to come up with big saves.
One constant remains true and that is that Claude Giroux continues to defy the age curve. His assist on van Riemsdyk’s opening goal pushed him into second place on the franchise’s all time points list. It was also the 600th assist of his career. Giroux has five points in his last five games, and is at a point-per-game clip in his last 10.
The Flyers remain without all of their COVID protocol players and could be without Sean Couturier for a bit longer. He was moved to IR yesterday, seemingly meaning he left protocol. But he has also been battling through some injuries as the team appears to be giving him some more time. The depth has certainly been tested and will continue to be that way on this trip.
Martin Jones faced a much heavier workload than hoped for last night. He faced 36 shots in the overtime victory. But that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t be able to take on his old team this evening. With no morning skate, Mike Yeo won’t announce his starting goaltender until closer to game time. But don’t be surprised if Jones gets the call for the back to back.
If Felix Sandstrom is the answer, it will be his NHL debut. The team is confident he will be ready to go if his name is indeed called. His numbers indicate a struggling goaltender but it was the environment around him that didn’t help said numbers.
Projected Lineup
Farabee – Hayes – Konecny
Lindblom – Giroux – Atkinson
van Riemsdyk – Frost – Mayhew
Willman – Brown – MacEwen
Provorov – Braun
Sanheim – Ristolainen
Yandle – Connauton
Jones
San Jose Sharks
Record: 16-14-1 (33 points, 5th in Pacific)
The Sharks are not the Cup contender they once were, but that doesn’t mean they don’t still have some talented players on their roster. You just have to look through some names that you might not recognize to get there.
They still have the likes of Logan Couture, Tomas Hertl, Brent Burns, and Erik Karlsson, all of which are having solid seasons. That includes Timo Meier as well. He leads the team with 31 points, already tying his high from last season in 28 less games. He’s also scored goals in back-to-back games.
Couture finds himself second on the team with 27 points. He’s got two goals and four points overall in his last five games. Hertl recently came out of COVID protocol ahead of their game against the Coyotes. He had five points in five games prior to being placed in protocol, scoring in his first game after as well.
James Reimer, the Sharks replacement for Jones, has played well during his first season in San Jose. While he was in net for the loss against Arizona, Reimer had given up just five goals in his last four games prior to that, one of which was a shutout over Chicago. He’s posted a 10-5-1 record to go along with his 2.29 GAA and .928 SV%.
Projected Lineup
Barabanov – Couture — Meier
Nieto – Hertl – Gregor
Cogliano – Bonino – Halbgewachs
Gadjovich – Pederson – Viel
Ferraro – Burns
Middleton – Karlsson
Vlasic – Simek
Reimer
When, Where, and How to Watch
Time: 10:30 PM
Where: SAP Arena
TV Broadcast: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Radio Broadcast: 93.3 WMMR
Live Stream: Fubo TV
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