The Philadelphia Flyers look to close out their season series against the Carolina Hurricanes, with the Flyers winning the first one but losing the last 2. After giving up 4 goals in the first period to the Florida Panthers on Thursday night, the Flyers’ attempted comeback fell short after giving up an ill-advised power play goal midway through the third period. The Flyers have lost 9 of their last 12 games since the All-Star Break but have been within 1 goal in the third period in 13 of their last 14 games and 19 of their last 21; do with that information what you will.
Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Division-leading Carolina Hurricanes, boast the best record in the Eastern Conference and best winning percentage in the NHL. They are 8-1-1 in their last 10 games and have won 3 consecutive games including a 2-0 shutout win against the NHL-points-leading Colorado Avalanche. Sebastian Aho leads the team in both goals and points with 24 and 58 respectively. Andrei Svechnikov is second with 23 goals and 51 points, Teuvo Teravainen has 46 points, Tony DeAngelo has 40 points in 43 games, and Vincent Trocheck rounds out the top 5 with 38 points.
The Hurricanes are 8th in the league in goals, 9th in shots, have the second best power play, and are the 3rd best on the face-off dot. In terms of defense they’re even better as they are 1st in goals allowed, 3rd in shots on goal allowed, and own the NHL’s best penalty kill. Frederik Andersen is one win away from the NHL’s top spot as he trails Andrei Vasilevskiy and Sergei Bobrovsky, who have 30 apiece.
The Flyers have the 30th-best offense, are 18th in the league in shots on goal, have the 30th-best power play, are 30th in shooting percentage, but are tied for 3rd in face-off percentage with the Hurricanes. Defensively they’re not any better as they are 24th-best in goals allowed, 28th in shots on goal allowed, and own the 21st-best penalty kill. Cam Atkinson has usurped Claude Giroux lately for the team’s lead in goals and points with 20 and 42 respectively. The captain has struggled since the All-Star break with 2 goals and 6 points in 12 games with the trade deadline pressure mounting.
PHI Record: 18-29-10, 46 pts, 8th in Metropolitan
CAR Record: 40-12-5, 85 pts, 1st in Metropolitan
When: 3:00pm ET
Where: PNC Arena, Raleigh, North Carolina
PHI Goalie: Martin Jones (7-10-3, 3.49 GAA, .897 SV%, 0 SO)
CAR Goalie: Frederik Andersen (29-8-2, 2.08 GAA, .928 SV%, 3 SO)
PHI Projected Lineup:
#23 Oskar Lindblom – #48 Morgan Frost – #11 Travis Konecny
#28 Claude Giroux – #19 Derick Brassard – #89 Cam Atkinson
#86 Joel Farabee – #13 Kevin Hayes – #25 James van Riemsdyk
#20 Gerry Mayhew – #38 Patrick Brown – #17 Zack MacEwen
#9 Ivan Provorov – #61 Justin Braun
#6 Travis Sanheim – #70 Rasmus Ristolainen
#3 Keith Yandle – #45 Cam York
#35 Martin Jones
#79 Carter Hart
FLA Projected Lineup:
#37 Andrei Svechnikov – #20 Sebastian Aho – #86 Teuvo Teravainen
#48 Jordan Martinook – #16 Vincent Trocheck – #88 Martin Necas
#21 Nino Neiderreiter – #11 Jordan Staal – #71 Jesper Fast
#78 Steven Lorentz – #82 Jesperi Kotkaniemi – #18 Derek Stepan
#74 Jaccob Slavin – #25 Ethan Bear
#76 Brady Skjei – #22 Brett Pesce
#28 Ian Cole – #64 Jalen Chatfield
#31 Frederik Andersen
#32 Antti Raanta
Last Game PHI: 3/10/22, 6-3 L at FLA
Last Game CAR: 3/10/22, 2-0 W vs COL
News and Notes:
– This is the fourth and final meeting between the two teams this season. Philadelphia won the first game 2-1 back on November 12th but then lost the next 2 games in Philadelphia, 6-3 in November and 4-3 in OT in February.
– This is the 152nd all-time matchup between the Flyers and the Hurricanes, with the Flyers holding a 88-39-14-10 edge in the series.
– Frederik Andersen is 9-4-3 in 16 career starts against the Flyers with a 3.12 GAA and a .908 SV%
– Carter Hart is 3-3-0 in 6 career games against the Hurricanes with a 2.99 GAA and a .910 SV%.
– The top line for the Hurricanes is lethal and one to watch out for. Sebastian Aho has 9 goals and 12 assists in 20 career games, while fellow cornerstone Andrei Svechnikov hasn’t had the same success as he has 2 goals and 4 points in 11 career games. To fill out the top line, Teuvo Teravainen has 20 points in 22 career games against the Orange and Black.
– Claude Giroux has 33 assists and 46 points in 47 career games against the Hurricanes, while Cam Atkinson has 11 goals in 39 games.
Broadcast Info: TV – ABC, ESPN+, Radio – 97.5 The Fanatic
Injuries:
PHI: Ryan Ellis (lower-body), Nate Thompson (shoudler), Sean Couturier (back), Kevin Connauton (upper-body), Scott Laughton (concussion)
CAR: Jake Gardiner (hip), Brendan Smith (upper-body), Tony DeAngelo (abdomen)
