Coming off a Claude Giroux masterclass and a heartbreaking shootout loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Philadelphia Flyers will play host to the Boston Bruins tonight with a 7pm puck drop.
Last Time These Teams Played
This will be the second time these two teams have faced off this season, and the second time the Flyers are hosting the B’s. In their first matchup on October 20th, the Flyers came away with a 6-3 victory, despite being outshot 40 to 24.
The Flyers’ goals in that game came from Cam Atkinson (twice), Sean Couturier, Joel Farabee, Travis Konecny, and Scott Laughton; while Taylor Hall, Karson Kuhlman, and Brad Marchand lit the lamp for the Bruins. Martin Jones was fantastic in that game, while Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman was shaky at best.
Knowing The Opponent
As usual, the Boston Bruins are carried by their “Perfection Line” of Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, and David Pastrnak. Marchand is leading the team with 19 points (8 goals and 11 assists), while Bergeron and Pastrnak are tied for second with 13 points (6 goals 7 assists and 4 goals 9 assists respectively). Charlie McAvoy, Taylor Hall, and Charlie Coyle are also all having strong starts to their season, which comes as no surprise to anyone.
Boston’s goaltending has been solid overall this season, as starter Jeremy Swayman has posted a 5-2-0 record with a 2.16 GAA and a .914 SV%. Backup Linus Ullmark has a 3-3-0 record with a 3.01 GAA and a .903 SV%.
Keys To Success
There are two major keys for the Flyers in order to win this game. First off, the Flyers have to shut down the “Perfection Line” which is easier said than done. As mentioned, Boston’s top line produces a large majority of their offense and tend to control the play basically the entire time they are on the ice. If the Flyers are able to limit their production and keep them off the puck, they should be in good shape.
The second major key for the Flyers is scoring goals. When these two teams faced off early in the season, the Flyers’ offense was red-hot and scoring a ton of goals. Since then, the offense has virtually disappeared, with just 13 goals in their last 6 games.
The Bruins are known for scoring goals, so the Flyers are going to have to put the puck into the net much more than they have of late if they want a chance to win this game. The Flyers’ goaltending has been fantastic this season, and that trend also must continue to give the Flyers a shot in this one.
My prediction: The Flyers offense comes back to life in front of the home crowd on Saturday night, and the Flyers hold on to win this one 4-3 in an exciting game.
Projected Lineups
PHILADELPHIA FLYERS
Joel Farabee-Sean Couturier-James van Riemsdyk
Claude Giroux-Derick Brassard-Cam Atkinson
Oskar Lindblom-Scott Laughton-Travis Konecny
Max Willman-Nate Thompson-Zack MacEwen
Ivan Provorov-Justin Braun
Travis Sanheim-Rasmus Ristolainen
Keith Yandle-Nick Seeler
Martin Jones
BOSTON BRUINS
Brad Marchand-Patrice Bergeron-David Pastrnak
Taylor Hall-Charlie Coyle-Nick Foligno
Jake DeBrusk-Erik Haula-Craig Smith
Anton Blidh-Tomas Nosek-Curtis Lazar
Derek Forbort-Charlie McAvoy
Matt Grzelcyk-Brandon Carlo
Mike Reilly-Jakub Zboril
Linus Ullmark
