Flyers will try to extinguish Flames to break out of losing streak
Another game equals another chance to end the losing streak the Flyers currently find themselves in. They were 1.9 seconds away from doing so against the Montreal Canadiens before a Cole Caufield equalizer and Nick Suzuki shootout winner took that away. So now the streak is at six games and is getting dangerously close to double digits. They will try to break out of that against the Calgary Flames
That isn’t what John Tortorella is focusing on, though. Something he has said all season long has had to do with the effort and compete level of this team. While there is still plenty that the Flyers have to work on, there hasn’t been a lack of effort from what he has seen. This team is trying and giving it their all every game that they are out there.
And despite having been through a few months of the season, Tortorella still isn’t quite sure what he has with this team. That has a lot to do with the number of injuries the Flyers have faced since the start of the season.
Philadelphia Flyers
Record: 7-7-4 (18 points, 6th in Metro)
Looking at the injuries that the Flyers have dealt with, they are out two lines of forwards with the players currently sidelined. They just recently lost both Travis Konecny and Scott Laughton in back-to-back games. There has been no update on the status of either player as they are expected to miss tonight’s game. Konecny is dealing with an upper-body injury, possibly his hand. And it’s unknown what Laughton may have, though it’s thought to possibly be concussion-related.
You can add those two with Sean Couturier, James van Riemsdyk, Cam Atkinson, and Wade Allison. So that’s six forwards who are currently injured in some way. Over 15M of their cap is currently on injured reserve as they have had to jumble together lines that look more like an AHL lineup than an NHL one.
With injuries to key players, that means that those younger players are getting more ice time and bigger responsibilities. Morgan Frost is one of them as he has seen a recent promotion to the top line between Joel Farabee and Owen Tippett. As long as he is earning these minutes, it’s somewhere that Tortorella will continue to deploy Frost, including on the penalty kill. Tippett has also seen a surge in his confidence. He sits two goals away from setting a new career-high in the NHL.
Noah Cates has also seen a boost as well. Wanting to continue to develop him at the center position, Tortorella has decided to move Kevin Hayes over to the wing for now. Aside from the development aspect, Tortorella has felt that Cates has been more defensively responsible as well. Tanner Laczynski has also returned and will get another chance to show the team that he belongs in the NHL.
Projected Lineup
Joel Farabee – Morgan Frost – Owen Tippett
Kevin Hayes – Noah Cates – Zack MacEwen
Max Willman – Patrick Brown – Tanner Laczynski
Nicolas Deslauriers – Lukas Sedlak – Kieffer Bellows
Ivan Provorov – Tony DeAngelo
Travis Sanheim – Justin Braun
Nick Seeler – Rasmus Ristolainen
Carter Hart
Calgary Flames
Record: 8-7-2 (18 points, 5th in Pacific)
Calgary is in the midst of its second Eastern trip of the month. Before coming to Philadelphia, the Flames faced Tampa Bay and Florida just a few days ago. They are coming off a shootout victory over the Panthers. And they will look a bit different from the last time the Flyers faced them.
While they no longer have Johnny Gaudreau and Matthew Tkachuk in their lineup, they did add Jonathan Huberdeau and Nazem Kadri this offseason. Huberdeau is off to a relatively slow start based on his 115-point campaign last year. He’s posted just two goals and eight points in 14 games. But he hasn’t had to lead the team with some of the scorings they have been getting from other places.
Elias Lindholm leads the way for Calgary with 16 points in 17 games. His six goals are second to Kadri’s eight this season, who is behind Lindholm with 15 points. Tyler Toffoli has also had a nice start to the year with six goals and 13 points thus far. While no one on the Flames has double-digit goals just yet, 15 players have scored at least one goal this season while 20 players have recorded at least one point.
It’s no surprise that Jacob Markstrom has been in the net for most of the Flames’ games. Though he is not off to a strong start, posting a 3.11 GAA and a .887 SV%. He’s been in the net for 14 of Calgary’s 17 games this season. So expect to see him once again against the Flyers. He holds a 4-3-1 record in nine starts against Philadelphia, posting an impressive 1.58 GAA and a .949 SV% to go along with one shutout.
Projected Lineup
Adam Ruzicka – Elias Lindholm – Tyler Toffoli
Dillon Dube – Nazem Kadri – Andrew Mangiapane
Jonathan Huberdeau – Mikael Backlund – Blake Coleman
Milan Lucic – Trevor Lewis – Brett Richie
Noah Hanifin – Rasmus Andersson
Nikita Zadorov – Mackenzie Weegar
Dennis Gilbert – Chris Tanev
Jacob Markstrom
Where, When, and How to Watch/Listen
Time: 7 PM
Where: Wells Fargo Center
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Radio: 97.5 FM
Live Stream: Fubo Tv
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