The Philadelphia Flyers host the Boston Bruins this evening at the newly-named Xfinfity Mobile Arena, at 5:00pm ET.
The team will be looking to rebound after their defeat to the Washington Capitals in Hershey. If you enjoy watching all-around bad hockey, that game was for you. In fairness, the Flyers deployed a good amount of “bubble guys”, all trying to make the roster for this up coming season. However, none really stood out. Coach Rick Tocchet thought the team looked tired and sought to get them some rest after the beatdown in Hershey.
Tonight, the Flyers will dress a more established Flyer lineup with the likes of veterans Sean Couturier, Travis Konency, Travis Sanheim and others scheduled to to hit the ice. However tonight will be another chance for prospects such as Alex Bump and Jett Luchanko to show the Flyers brass why they belong.
Who to Watch
The two highly touted prospects coming into training camp for the Flyers have to be former Western Michigan standout Alex Bump and former first rounder Jett Luchanko. Both players possess great skill offensively but have yet to really show it during this preseason.
Tonight against Boston is another chance for each to impress as Tocchet has them in the lineup once more. Luchanko has shown the ability to enter the offensive zone with speed rather easily. However, puck control and offensive awareness seem to be a struggle thus far. As for Bump, his shot is still there but he has yet to find the back of the net. Here’s to hoping tonight one or both of these players break out and inject some life into the roster battles.
Its easy to focus on Bump and Luchanko, but pay attention to Nikita Grebenkin. The returning player in the Scott Laughton deal, Grebenkin has shown the ability and desire to get to the hard areas of the ice and has looked all around good in his limited ice time. Tonight he gets another chance to showcase his abilities and possibly play alongside fellow Russian Matvei Michkov once more. Grebenkin is battling to stay up with the big club as well and certainly can slot in as a bottom-6 forward if he takes a big step the rest of the way. And don’t let Grebenkin’s happy-go-lucky personality off ice make you think he won’t get in the faces of the opponents. Grebenkin has shown great physicality and that he enjoys getting under the skin of the other team. Something that will be needed in a bottom 6 role with the Flyers.
Boston Gets Some Help
Hampus Lindholm, a defenseman who has not played since November after a patella fracture, will play tonight. He will play along with forward Pavel Zacha, who is also making his preseason debut. Zacha recorded 47 points in 82 games, scoring 14 goals in the 24-25 season.
When: 5:00pm ET
Where: Xfinity Mobile Arena; Philadelphia, PA
TV/Radio: PhiladelphiaFlyers.com, 97.5 The Fanatic and Flyers Radio 24/7
#20 Alex Bump – #14 Sean Couturier – #11 Travis Konecny
#22 Christian Dvorak – #46 Trevor Zegras – #39 Matvei Michkov
#74 Owen Tippett – #17 Jett Luchanko – #29 Nikita Grebenkin
#78 Jacob Gaucher – #18 Rodrigo Ābols – #19 Garnet Hathaway
#8 Cam York – #6 Travis Sanheim
#13 Adam Ginning – #9 Jamie Drysdale
#24 Nick Seeler – #3 Helge Grans
#33 Sam Ersson
(#64 Carson Bjarnason)
Bruins Game Roster
Forwards: Dalton Bancroft, Johnny Beecher, Patrick Brown, Riley Duran, Mikey Eyssimont, Brett Harrison, Mark Kastelic, Marat Khusnutdinov, Sean Kuraly, Georgii Merkulov, Riley Tufte, Jeffrey Viel, Pavel Zacha
Defensemen: Jonathan Aspirot, Frederic Brunet, Michael Callahan, Jordan Harris, Henri Jokiharju, Hampus Lindholm, Mason Lohrei
Goaltenders: Luke Cavallin, Michael DiPietro, Simon Zajicek
