The hockey Gods kept everything within reach for the Philadelphia Flyers (37-25-12).
Despite a road loss to the Washington Capitals, the Flyers are two points out of the NHL Eastern Conference Wildcard. Furthermore, Philadelphia is three points out of the NHL Metropolitan Division with the opportunity to find themselves in the thick of a postseason berth by this weekend if all goes well.
First, the Flyers need a repeat performance of last Saturday, when they defeated the Detroit Red Wings (39-27-8), 5-3. Philadelphia has more firepower than the last time they faced the Red Wings. Since last Saturday, Porter Martone has made his NHL debut. This morning, it was announced that Tyson Foerster will make his long-awaited return. Suddenly, the lineup is healthy at the height of a push for a postseason berth.
“His [Tyson Foerster] hockey IQ is outstanding. You saw at the beginning of the year: shot ability, plays all situations; he’s a hockey player. He gets it done. We’re excited for him. He worked hard. Four months; a lot of lonely nights at the rink by himself. I give him a lot of credit.” – Rick Tocchet; 4/2/2026
Around the NHL, the Flyers are going to need a little help to keep that status quo. Daniel Brière and Keith Jones, along with the rest of the front office, will keep an eye on the Carolina Hurricanes and Buffalo Sabres, who could help stall the Columbus Blue Jackets and Ottawa Senators. As always, Philadelphia must take care of its business.
Kicking off a back-to-back, Rick Tocchet named Samuel Ersson tonight’s starting goaltender. At a glance, some may question that decision. However, considering the back-to-back opponents, Dan Vladař needs the rest after a 6-4 loss to the Capitals. He’ll cap off the back-to-back tomorrow night against the New York Islanders.
Tale of the Tape
- Power Play: 22.3% (13th) Detroit Red Wings
- Power Play: 15.3% (32nd) Philadelphia Flyers
- Penalty Kill: 78.2% (21st) Philadelphia Flyers
- Penalty Kill: 77.7% (22nd) Detroit Red Wings
- Faceoff: 50.8% (13th) Detroit Red Wings
- Faceoff: 49.1% (22nd) Philadelphia Flyers
- Goals For: 2.89 (21st) Detroit Red Wings
- Goals For: 2.85 (23rd) Philadelphia Flyers
- Goals Against: 2.97 (11th) Detroit Red Wings
- Goals Against: 2.99 (12th) Philadelphia Flyers
Injury Report: Detroit Red Wings
- Michael Rasmussen (undisclosed)
Injury Report: Philadelphia Flyers
When: 7pm/ET
Where: Xfinity Mobile Arena; Philadelphia, PA
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Last Game PHI: 3/31/26; 6-4 L; at Washington Capitals
Last Game DET: 3/31/26; 4-1 L; at Pittsburgh Penguins
Philadelphia Flyers
Ersson (13-10-5, 3.11GAA, 87%SV) has improved drastically when it mattered the most. His performance versus the Dallas Stars leaped off the page, and he recorded an assist when Trevor Zegras (23G, 37A) scored the game-winner in overtime. Vladař (24-13-7, 2.5GAA, 90.4%SV) shouldered a lot of the weight throughout the season, but Ersson is regaining form as the Flyers make their late-season push.
Matvei Michkov (16G, 24A, -8) struck a nerve with a few opposing skaters as of late. He baited Marco Kasper into concurrent minor penalties for roughing in Detroit before the Red Wings made a late push, nearly forcing Philadelphia into overtime. What’ll be most important is his playmaking on the power play. He’ll remain on the second power play group, but this time he’ll be on the ice with Martone.
Emil Andrae (2G, 11A, +14) has been fantastic. I spoke highly recently of how Carl Grundström (9G, 4A, +8) succeeded in the finer details on the ice, and the same can be echoed for Andrae. He’s drawing penalties, blocking shots, and returning the receipts against physical teams. Tocchet, at this point, must consider Andrae despite the size of opposing lineups. In pursuit of a postseason berth, it’s best for the Flyers to ice Andrae in any situation instead of Noah Juulsen (1G, 9A, +3).
Projected Lineup: Detroit Red Wings
Emmitt Finnie – Dylan Larkin – Carter Mazur
Alex DeBrincat – Andrew Copp – Patrick Kane
David Perron – JT Compher – Lucas Raymond
James van Riemsdyk – Marco Kasper – Mason Appleton
Simon Edvinsson – Moritz Seider
Ben Chiarot – Justin Faulk
Albert Johansson – Jacob Bernard-Docker
John Gibson
(Cam Talbot)
Projected Lineup: Philadelphia Flyers
Tyson Foerster – Trevor Zegras – Owen Tippett
Travis Konecny – Christian Dvorak – Porter Martone
Denver Barkey – Noah Cates – Matvei Michkov
Sean Couturier – Luke Glendening – Carl Grundström
Travis Sanheim -Rasmus Ristolainen
Cam York – Jamie Drysdale
Nick Seeler – Emil Andrae
Samuel Ersson
(Dan Vladař)
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