The Philadelphia Flyers (15-9-3) host the San Jose Sharks (14-13-3) at the Xfinity Mobile Arena. The opening faceoff is scheduled for 7pm/ET.
The Flyers return to action looking to rebound from a 3-2 loss to the Colorado Avalanche, the third of six straight games on home ice. The San Jose Sharks, however, are coming in on the tail end of a five-game road trip. San Jose is 1-1 so far, picking up a 4-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes in their most recent game.
The Sharks typically start games strong. They are tied for second in the NHL with 32 first-period goals, while the Flyers sit 26th with just 22. These slow starts have hurt the Flyers this season, they have scored first in only nine games, the fewest in the league. San Jose has scored the first goal of the game 15 times this season and went on to win 10 of those games.
Third periods are relatively quiet for both Philadelphia and San Jose. Both teams sit at the bottom of the league in 3rd period scoring: the Flyers are tied for 30th with 23, and the Sharks are last with 18. Neither team has let in many goals in the 3rd period, either. The Flyers have allowed only 18 third-period goals, the second fewest in the NHL, and the Sharks have given up 31 goals, which is tied for 16th in the NHL.
These teams have not met yet this season, but back in early October, Danny Brière sent Ryan Ellis and his full $6.25 million cap hit to San Jose to help the Sharks reach the salary cap minimum along with a conditional 2026 sixth-round pick. In return, the Flyers acquired forward Carl Grundström,who is expected to suit up tonight for his 2nd game as a Flyer, and defenseman Artem Guryev.
Injury Report: Philadelphia Flyers
Cam York (Upper-body)
Tyson Foerster (Lower-body)
Rasmus Ristolainen (Triceps)
Injury Report: San Jose Sharks
Michael Misa (Lower-body)
Vincent Desharnais (Upper-body)
Where: Xfinity Mobile Arena; Philadelphia, PA
When: 12/08/2025; 7pm/ET
TV Broadcast: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Last Game PHI: 12/07/2025; 2-3 L; vs. Colorado Avalanche
Last Game SJS: 12/07/2025; 4-1 W; @ Carolina Hurricanes
Philadelphia Flyers
The Flyers enter this matchup 3-2 in their last 5 games, averaging 3.2 goals for and 3.2 goals against over that stretch. Despite the loss to Colorado, they got tow important goals from Sean Couturier and Travis Konecny. For Konecny, it marked his second game straight with a goal and his fourth consecutive game with a point. Six of his seven goals this season have come on home ice.
Ty Murchison, a fifth-round pick in the 2021 NHL Draft, is expected to make his NHL debut tonight. The defenseman spent four seasons at Arizona State University before turning pro late last year, appearing in four games with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and recording a goal and an assist. This season, he has played 21 games with the Phantoms, adding one goal and three assists as he continues his development. He looks forward to his debut this evening and was able to get his 20 closest family and friends into Philadelphia in time for this moment. When asked his thoughts on making it to the league considering he was picked in the later rounds of the draft, he said, “It’s been a journey… Never really too much [pressure] on that. Focusing on getting better, hoping one day I would get here.”
And a happy 21st birthday to Matvei Michkov! He has five points (2G, 3A) in his last five games and has already appeared in 107 NHL games, recording 34 goals and 45 assists.
Couturier also suited up on his 21st birthday (December 7, 2013), a 5-1 loss in Dallas. In the third period of that game, he and Brendan Dillon scuffled and both received roughing minors and 10-minute misconducts, and the two eventually fought the following season when Dillon was with the Sharks.
Konecny did not play on his 21st birthday, but by that time he had already logged 138 NHL games with 29 goals and 36 assists.
San Jose Sharks
The Sharks come into this one 2-3 in their last five games, average 3 goals per game but allowing 3.8 against in that span.
Macklin Celebrini, the number 1 overall pick in the 2024 Draft, had a goal, his first since November 23, and two assists in the Sharks’ most recent game. Despite that small drought, he still leads San Jose in goals (15), assists (28), and points (43). His 28 assists are tied for the most in the NHL and his 43 points rank second league-wide. For comparison, Flyers leader Trevor Zegras tops the team with 10 goals, 16 assists, and 26 points, a testament to how impressive Celebrini’s production has been.
