Flyers at Lightning, Game 65: Notes, Lineups, and How to Watch
Fresh after the trade deadline, the Philadelphia Flyers will aim for a sweep of the state of Florida when they visit the Tampa Bay Lightning.
This is the third and final meeting between the Flyers and Lightning. Each team has won a game, both by scoring six goals. Nikita Kucherov had a hat trick and four total points in a 6-3 win on Jan. 23. Philadelphia came within a goal twice, but couldn't complete the comeback. Over a month later, the Flyers used a five-goal third period to cruise to a 6-2 win over the Lightning. It was a strange game that featured a power outage in the third period. Three of the goals came from the backend as well.
Philadelphia Flyers
The Flyers will have a few fresh faces in the lineup. Denis Gurianov, acquired from the Predators, appears to be slotting in on a new-look fourth line with Morgan Frost and Nic Deslauriers. Gurianov has spent a chunk of this season in the AHL. He could be another reclamation-type player for Philadelphia. Erik Johnson, acquired from the Sabres, will pair up with Marc Staal on the backend. Johnson hasn't played with Feb. 27 but will jump into the Flyers' lineup.
The new additions add depth but keep the core of the team together. Danny Briere's message is clear. There is a belief in what this team can do and he is letting them play this one out together. It is a big reason why Scott Laughton remains. Reportedly, teammates begged Briere to keep Laughton with them for this run. If that doesn't show you how close this group is, nothing will.
The biggest keys to this game will be communication and discipline. Tampa has the best power play in the league, and they have the weapons to prove that. The unit burned the Flyers' in the loss to Tampa in January. Philadelphia may boast the league's best penalty kill. But testing that against this team is not a strategy to employ. As for communication, it will be about integrating the new players as quickly as possible. Johnson and Gurianov only had a morning skate to get acclimated with their new teammates. So it will be a lot of learning on the fly for them. That's where the communication is key.
Flyers Projected Lineup
Tyson Foerster - Sean Couturier - Travis Konecny
Joel Farabee - Scott Laughton - Owen Tippett
Noah Cates - Ryan Poehling - Garnet Hathaway
Nic Deslauriers - Morgan Frost - Denis Gurianov
Cam York - Travis Sanheim
Marc Staal - Erik Johnson
Egor Zamula - Ronnie Attard
Sam Ersson
Tampa Bay Lightning
The Lightning made a few moves of their own to sure up their team. They acquired Anthony Duclair from the Sharks. A speedy forward, he had 16 goals and 27 points in 56 games, so he's looking for a spark himself. They also added veteran defenseman Matt Dumba from the Coyotes. He has been around the league since 2013, mostly with the Wild.
The always dangerous Nikita Kucherov is far and away the leader of this team. His 106 points are 41 more points than Brayden Point. He is second in the league, behind Nathan MacKinnon's 111 points. Kucherov has 38 goals on the season and is on a seven-game point streak. He has 12 points in that span, though only two of them are goals. He hasn't scored in four straight. Point is second on the team with 32 goals, and has points in three straight against Philadelphia. Overall, he has eight goals and 15 points in 15 career games versus the Flyers.
Getting Andrei Vasilevskiy back on track is of the upmost importance for the Lightning. While he as won 21 games, he has a 3.03 GAA and a .894 SV%. He missed the first few months of the season after back surgery. Vasilevskiy gave up four goals to the Flyers last month, with the other two being empty netters. In the win back in January, he gave up three goals. So Philadelphia can find ways to score on him.
Lightning Projected Lineup
Steven Stamkos - Brayden Point - Nikita Kucherov
Brandon Hage - Anthony Cirelli - Anthony Duclair
Michael Eyssimont - Nick Paul - Mitchell Chaffee
Tyler Motte - Luke Glendening - Conor Sheary
Victor Hedman - Darren Raddysh
Matt Dumba - Erik Cernak
NIck Perbix - Calvin de Haan
Andrei Vasilevskiy
When, Where, and How to Watch/Listen
Time: 7:00 PM
Where: Amalie Arena
Watch: NBCSP
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Live Stream: FuboTV
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