The Philadelphia Flyers (40-27-12) seek to shake off their recent 6-3 beating in Detroit by crossing the border and knocking off the Winnipeg Jets (35-31-12). Opening puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET Saturday at Canada Life Centre for a matchup critical to all parties involved.
The Orange and Black didn’t showcase their best style of hockey against the Detroit Red Wings. Philadelphia was unsuccessful on the man advantage; I know, shocking. They went 1-for-6 while the Flyers’ penalty kill couldn’t stop Detroit’s power play unit which scored on three separate occasions, two of those goals resulted after roughing minors. The Flyers are well aware they control their own destiny, but their recent undisciplined mentality and tendency to want to take someone’s head off displayed on ice won’t jolt them into their first postseason in six years.
“You just can’t punch a guy in the head, or you can’t rip a guy’s helmet off. It makes no sense. That isn’t tough hockey. A little disappointed in some guys doing that, but like I said, let’s learn from it,” Rick Tocchet mentioned postgame.
Now the loss wasn’t the end of the world for Philadelphia. Thankfully, the Buffalo Sabres did the Flyers a favor by winning against the Columbus Blue Jackets that night. Even better news that went Philadelphia’s way was the New York Islanders dropped a vital game, 3-0, in a matchup with the Ottawa Senators on Saturday afternoon.
The Flyers still hold the third spot in the Metropolitan Division with 92 points leading the pack and chased by New York (91) and Columbus (90). A Wild Card spot is also a possibility for the Flyers, but the Senators and Boston Bruins have 96 points and maintain those two seedings. It’s important to note that the Flyers don’t have any tiebreakers with any teams in the playoff mix outside of the Bruins.
“All year long we’ve believed in our group and we still do,” Sean Couturier said.
If the Flyers go undefeated over these last three games, they’re in. A loss would then shift the focus onto the other teams nipping at the Flyers’ heels. Here’s a breakdown at the percentages for Philadelphia’s playoff hopes following tonight’s contest with the Jets, per Moneypuck.com.
Win – 65.1% for PHI to make the playoffs.
OTL – 42% for PHI to make the playoffs.
Regulation Loss – 23.7% for PHI to make the playoffs.
Winnipeg is in a similar position in the Western Conference; however, they’re on the outside looking in. The Jets trail by three points for the second wildcard position and have been playing legitimate hockey, posting a 7-2-0 record of late and relying on Connor Hellebuyck in net. The reigning Vezina and Hart Memorial Trophy winner started 11 of the last 12 outings for the Jets and turned aside 57 of 62 shots (.919 SV%) in his previous three appearances.
Hellebuyck will once again be between the pipes for the Jets, his ninth consecutive start, while Dan Vladař is expected to return and tend the crease after being pulled Thursday in Detroit. Vladař let four goals in on eight shots prior to getting yanked, but he wasn’t responsible for his teammates’ ungoverned penalties. Vladař’s response to the rare times he’s allowed four or more goals is a 6-1-0 record and .908 SV%. He’ll be trying to achieve his 28th win of the season which would double his previous career-high set in 2022-23.
Philadelphia’s Injury Report:
– Rodrigo Ābols (ankle)
– Nikita Grebenkin (upper body)
Winnipeg’s Injury Report:
– Colin Miller (knee)
– Gustav Nyquist (undisclosed)
– Morgan Barron (lower body)
– Elias Salomonsson (concussion)
Philadelphia’s Player to Watch: Travis Konecny
The Flyers’ young talent has taken over this team. Tyson Foerster has three goals in five games since returning from injury, Porter Martone is at a point-per-game pace since joining Philadelphia, and Matvei Michkov has 11 assists in his last 13 matchups. With Owen Tippett and Trevor Zegras scoring goals, it’s like Travis Konecny is hiding behind the curtain. His goal scoring slowed down, netting five goals in 20 contests after the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics wrapped up. The term “invisible” is currently being used online to describe Konecny and tonight feels like the night for him to make his presence known.
Winnipeg’s Player to Watch: Mark Scheifele
The Jets captain is on a heater landing on the scoresheet 16 times across his eight prior performances. He fed skilled players like Kyle Connor and Gabriel Vilardi, tallying seven helpers during Winnipeg’s three-game win streak. Scheifele pocketed two goals when the Jets came to Philadelphia in October, giving his team the edge in a 5-2 victory.
Philadelphia’s Projected Lines:
#71 Tyson Foerster – #46 Trevor Zegras – #74 Owen Tippett
#11 Travis Konecny – #22 Christian Dvorak – #94 Porter Martone
#20 Alex Bump – #27 Noah Cates – #39 Matvei Michkov
#52 Denver Barkey – #14 Sean Couturier – #41 Luke Glendening
#6 Travis Sanheim – #55 Rasmus Ristolainen
#8 Cam York – #9 Jamie Drysdale
#24 Nick Seeler – #36 Emil Andrae
#80 Dan Vladař
(#33 Sam Ersson)
Winnipeg’s Projected Lines:
#81 Kyle Connor – #55 Mark Scheifele – #9 Alex Iafallo
#91 Cole Perfetti – #17 Adam Lowry – #13 Gabriel Vilardi
#62 Nino Niederreiter – #7 Vladislav Namestnikov – #93 Brad Lambert
#45 Cole Koepke – #19 Jonathan Toews – #27 Isak Rosén
#44 Josh Morrissey – #2 Dylan DeMelo
#54 Dylan Samberg – #4 Neal Pionk
#24 Haydn Fleury – #78 Jacob Bryson
#37 Connor Hellebuyck
(#1 Eric Comrie)
