Flyers Kick Off Seven Game Homestand Against Vegas
By Scott Cole
You know when you look at the NHL schedule and you wonder why the Flyers go on a four game road trip, come home for one game, and then spend three days back on the road. You always wonder why that happens. Well, one of the quirks of the schedule this year is that the Flyers will be home for seven consecutive home games. From now until March 30th, when they travel to Ottawa, the Flyers will be “entertaining” the crowds in Philly.
First up are the Western Conference leading Vegas Golden Knights. The last time these two faced off, the Flyers dropped a close game in overtime when Jonathan Marchessault scored with just 90 seconds left. What will happen this time?
Philadelphia Flyers
Record: 25-30-11 (61 points, 7th in Metro)
We’ve been talking a lot lately about how the young guys need to show what they got. We are trying to look at Tanner Laczynski, Morgan Frost, and Cam York to see what they can do. Elliot Desnoyers was recently been sent back to the AHL to gear up for a playoff run there. Tyson Foerster was recalled once more as Wade Allison still remains out.
However, this is also a time for others to showcase what they got. For a player like James van Riemsdyk, whose continued presence on the Flyers may have led to Chuck Fletcher being relieved of his duties as GM, should use this time to show teams he still “has it” and can cash in on a contract in the offseason. Other players who have had rumors tied to them all of/most of the season, like Kevin Hayes can also show the same thing. More importantly, if Danny Briere wants to build a winner here in Philly, he’s going to have to see who is worth keeping and who might have to be jettisoned.
Tony DeAngelo will be back after serving his two games suspension. If he can get back on track, the Flyers could use what he brings to the table. Also returning to the lineup is Brendan Lemieux who is back from an injury sustained last week. Felix Sandstrom is in net as Carter Hart is dealing with an illness.
Flyers Projected Lineup
Joel Farabee — Morgan Frost — Owen Tippett
Scott Laughton — Noah Cates — Tyson Foerster
James van Riemsdyk — Kevin Hayes — Brendan Lemieux
Nicolas Deslauriers — Tanner Laczynski – Kieffer Bellows
Ivan Provorov — Cam York
Travis Sanheim — Rasmus Ristolainen
Nick Seeler — Tony DeAngelo
Felix Sandstrom
Vegas Golden Knights
Record: 41-20-6 (88 points, 1st in Pacfic)
The Knights are very much like the Carolina Hurricanes. They don’t do any one particular thing well, but do all things fairly well. They are 13th in goals scored, 7th in fewest goals allowed, but are second lowest in penalty minutes taken. Three players have scored more than 20 goals: Jack Eichel (27), Reilly Smith (22), and Marchessault (21).
Likewise, their goalies are brick walls. However, this has been their problem this year. Logan Thompson and Adin Hill are both dealing with injuries as is replacement goalie Laurent Brossoit. Recently acquired Jonathan Quick has stepped in and has won all three games with one shutout. His numbers are a 1.97 GAA and a .939 save percentage. Translation: Vegas hasn’t lost a beat. They’ve won three straight including a 4-0 obliteration of the Metro leading Hurricanes on Saturday.
Golden Knights Projected Lineup
Ivan Barbashev — Jack Eichel — Jonathan Marchessault
Reilly Smith — William Karlsson — Pavel Dorofeyev
Paul Cotter — Chandler Stephenson — Michael Amadio
Brett Howden — Teddy Blueger — Phil Kessel
Alec Martinez — Alex Pietrangelo
Brayden McNabb — Shea Theodore
Nicolas Hague — Zach Whitecloud
Jonathan Quick
Where, When, and How to Watch/Listen
Time: 7:00 PM
Where: Wells Fargo Center
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Radio: 97.5 FM
Live Stream: FuboTV
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