Flyers hopeful for a Black Friday victory against Penguins
The Flyers have yet another opportunity to end their losing streak before it reaches double digit. They fell in overtime to the Washington Capitals on Wednesday, their streak stretching to eight games. They will take on the Penguins this evening trying to avoid a ninth streak loss.
The franchise record 13-game losing streak from last season is getting closer and closer to being matched by this current Flyers’ team. Three of the last five games have gone to overtime, two of which Philadelphia led in the final three minutes of the game. So while they have been close to breaking the streak recently, they have failed to do so and desperately need to end the losing.
Effort and compete can only get a team so far. In the end, the team needs results and they need them now.
Philadelphia Flyers
Record: 7-8-5 (19 points, 6th in Metro)
One of the biggest problems for the Flyers recently has been their inability to battle back when facing adversity. Early in the season, they were spotting teams 2-0 leads but were finding ways to come back and win. That isn’t happening anymore. Even if they find a way to even things up, they aren’t able to use that momentum to find that winning play.
They have also held leads in some of these games and have been unable to hold on. They were 1.9 seconds away from a victory against the Canadiens. They also held the lead against Washington before surrendering a goal with about three minutes left and falling in the shootout once again.
Facing a red-hot Penguins team means there isn’t a lot that will favor the Flyers in this matchup. So they will need to have strong play up and down the lineup. They have gotten that from their goaltenders but need their offense to find ways to score. It doesn’t matter if there is effort if that doesn’t translate into goals. They have scored two or fewer goals in six of their eight losses.
Projected Lineup
Joel Farabee – Morgan Frost – Owen Tippett
Noah Cates – Kevin Hayes – Zack MacEwen
Jackson Cates – Patrick Brown – Tanner Laczynski
Nicolas Deslauriers – Lukas Sedlak – Kieffer Bellows
Ivan Provorov – Tony DeAngelo
Travis Sanheim – Justin Braun
Nick Seeler – Rasmus Ristolainen
Carter Hart
Pittsburgh Penguins
Record: 10-7-3 (23 points, 5th in Metro)
While the Penguins have only four more points than the Flyers, they have been red-hot recently. They are 6-1-1 over their last eight and have one four games in a row. They are coming off a shootout victory against the Calgary Flames in which Tristan Jarry stopped 33 of 34 shots that he faced.
There are a lot of names on the Pittsburgh roster that the Flyers should keep an eye on. But if there’s one player in particular they need to shut down, it’s Jake Guentzel. He has nine goals and 24 points in 23 games against Philadelphia. Those totals almost match his current season numbers, 10 goals and 16 points in 16 games. Sidney Crosby, 10 goals and 17 points, and Evgeni Malkin, eight goals and 20 points, are off to strong starts as well.
Jarry has won his last three starts, one of which was a 32-save shutout against the Winnipeg Jets. He holds a 3.06 GAA and a .910 SV%. He has given up four or more goals in five of his 12 games this season. Unsurprisingly, he has only been on the winning side in one of those games. This Penguins’ offense has the ability to outscore their goaltenders mistakes if need be. So this matchup could come down to goaltending.
Projected Lineup
Jake Guentzel -Sidney Crosby – Rickard Rakell
Jason Zucker – Evgeni Malkin – Bryan Rust
Brock McGinn – Jeff Carter – Danton Heinen
Ryan Poehling – Teddy Blueger – Josh Archibald
Marcus Pettersson – Kris Letang
Pierre-Olivier Joseph – Jeff Petry
Brian Dumoulin – Jan Rutta
Tristan Jarry
When, Where, and How to Watch
Time: 5:30 PM
Where: Wells Fargo Center
Watch: TNT
Radio: 93.3 FM
Live Stream: Fubo Tv
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