We are less than 48 hours away from the NHL trade deadline. There has been a lot of action so far with many more trades a-coming. So far the Flyers have stood pat, with their lone deal trading Isaac Ratcliffe to the Predators. But more could be coming as Chuck Fletcher is in full sale mode. And from what it sounds like, most everyone is up for grabs.
With that in mind, there is still hockey to play, Tonight, the Flyers will be hosting the playoff bound and recently beefed up New York Rangers. It is also possible that tonight is the last time we’ll see James van Riemsdyk as a Flyer.
Philadelphia Flyers
Record: 23-28-10 (56 points, 7th in Metro)
Van Riemsdyk isn’t the only Flyer that the hockey world is poking around at. Just go to any hockey website, this one included, you will see rumors about likely guys traded (JVR), possible trades (Provy and Kevin Hayes), and really farfetched ones (Konency).
But JVR seems to be the guy that everyone is talking about; and for good reason. He’s a free agent. He can still contribute on a competitive team. He’s always been a star on the power play. And as teams having been furiously adding onto their rosters over the last week or so, JVR is just another puzzle piece that could fit.
His return to Philly didn’t go as well as we’d hoped. He’s been hurt and down with COVID. He’s lost a lot of production. He never lived up to his contract or his promise. It’s a shame he never became the star we wanted over 12 years ago. It’s a shame he never put up the numbers here he did in Toronto. But it’s best at this time if we move on.
Flyers Projected Lineup
Scott Laughton — Noah Cates — Wade Allison
Joel Farabee — Morgan Frost — Owen Tippett
Nicolas Deslauriers — Elliot Desnoyers — Patrick Brown
James van Riemsdyk — Kevin Hayes
Ivan Provorov — Cam York
Travis Sanheim — Rasmus Ristolainen
Nick Seeler — Tony DeAngelo
Justin Braun
Carter Hart
New York Rangers
Record: 34-17-9 (77 points, 3rd in Metro)
It’s not often people see a third place team and think “possible Stanley Cup favorite”, and yet here we are. This team was already loaded with Artemi Panarin and Mika Zibanejad. Their goalie, Igor Shesterkin, is somehow seemingly better than Henrik Lundqvist. And then they went out and traded for Vladimir Tarasenko and Patrick Kane. That’s a lot of Stanley Cup rings between those two.
However, NY is fighting to stay in the race. Boston has gotten better as have Tampa Bay, Toronto, and New Jersey. Rumors are also swirling around what the Carolina Hurricanes are going to do next. It’s an arms race in the East and the Rangers are right in the middle of it.
Rangers Projected Lineup
Chris Kreider — Mika Zibanejad — Vladimir Tarasenko
Artemi Panarin — Vincent Trocheck — Jimmy Vesey
Alexis Lafreniere — Filip Chytil — Kaapo Kakko
Tyler Motte — Barclay Goodrow
Braden Schneider — Adam Fox
Niko Mikkola — Jacob Trouba
Ben Harpur
Igor Shesterkin
Where, When, and How to Watch/Listen
Time: 7:30 PM
Where: Wells Fargo Center
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Radio: 97.5 FM
Live Stream: FuboTV
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