After welcoming former captain Claude Giroux to Philadelphia on Saturday via a 4-2 victory over the Senators, the Flyers will host another familiar face when Kevin Hayes makes his first trip with the Blues to the Wells Fargo Center as the Flyers face St. Louis on Monday evening.
It will also be a homecoming for former Flyer and current Blues captain Brayden Schenn, who donned the Orange and Black for six seasons.
Scouting St. Louis
This Blues team looks a tad different from the team that defeated the Bruins in Game 7 of the 2019 Stanley Cup Final, but still has some players who can fire the puck.
Despite losing captain Ryan O’Reilly and veteran forward Vladimir Tarasenko, St. Louis has had trust in their young core. Forward Jake Neighbours is having quite the season.
The 21-year old 2020 former first round draft pick has tallied 27 points off of 20 goals and seven assists this season, sitting sixth among his club.
It has not been misery in Missouri for forward Robert Thomas.
This season, Thomas has dominated offensively and as a result, leads his team in points. The 24-year-old Aurora, Ontario native has 20 goals and 49 assists for 69 points with a plus-minus of 13.
Speaking of homecoming, Kevin Hayes will return to the Wells Fargo Center for the first time since signing with St. Louis last summer. Hayes spent the past four seasons with the Flyers, known for his determination and work ethic, and being a class act wherever he was needed. Hayes knew what it meant to be a true Philadelphian. In his four seasons with Philly, the Dorchester, Massachusetts native tallied 63 goals and 94 assists for 157 points in 253 games.
St. Louis’ power play is a stat that’s better off being put to the side.
This season, the Blues rank 25th at a 17.6 percent success rate. Despite being that low, their power play has clicked since the start of the calendar year.
The man-advantage for St. Louis has scored north of one goal for every four opportunities, going 21-for-82 for a 25.6% success rate.
The Blues sit in the middle of the league in penalty killing. They’ve gone 33-for-160, good for 15th at 79.4%.
FORE(FOER) STER!
Just like the Blues, the Flyers have had success built from the young core. One name being Tyson Foerster.
Foerster’s been one of the hottest Flyers as of late. Since coming back from an injury, Foerster’s potted six goals in five games. Since the All-Star break, the Alliston, Ontario native has registered nine points in 10 games. Most recently, Foerster potted two goals in Saturday’s 4-2 win over Ottawa. Both goals came in the final minute of the second period as he ripped a shot, beating Mads Søgaard. Just as the period was coming to a close, Foerster had a chance to make some Flyers history with a penalty shot. Foerster’s penalty shot goal of the season became the fifth goal scored on the penalty shot by the Flyers this season, good for the most scored by a team in a single-season in NHL history.
Flyers Special Teams
All year, the Flyers’ penalty kill has been a complete success. Entering tonight’s tilt with the Blues, Philadelphia’s penalty kill ranks first in the NHL at 86.3% with opposing power plays going 27-for-197.
The Flyers’ power play should definitely take a page out of their PK.
Philly’s power play ranks 31st in the league at 13.1% going 26-for-199. It has allowed three shorthanded goals, though the power play has seen some improvement since the start of 2024. Over the past 26 games, the Flyers’ man-advantage has jumped 16.5%.
Flyer to Watch
I’m sticking with Foerster to perform some more magic this evening. With the absence of leading scorer Travis Konecny due to injury, look for Foerster to light the lamp or even tally an assist or two.
Keys to Success
The Flyers need to strike first this evening. In each of their last three contests, the Flyers have had early leads in the first period. Bobby Brink potted a goal early against Tampa Bay and Washington. On Saturday, Joel Farabee tipped a shot from Nick Seeler just 1:08 into the first frame.
PHI Record: 32-23-7, 71 pts, 3rd in Metropolitan
STL Record: 31-26-3, 65 pts, 5th in Central
When: 7:00pm ET
Where: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA
Broadcast Info: NBC Sports Philadelphia, 97.5 The Fanatic
Last Game PHI: 3/2/24, 4-2 W vs. Ottawa
Last Game STL: 3/2/24, 3-1 W vs. Minnesota
PHI Goalie: Samuel Ersson (17-12-4, .897 SV%, 2.62 GAA, 3 SO)
STL Goalie: Jordan Binnington (21-16-3 .910 SV%, 2.88 GAA, 3 SO)
PHI Projected Lineup
#86 Joel Farabee – #21 Scott Laughton – #71 Tyson Foerster
#74 Owen Tippett – #48 Morgan Frost – #89 Cam Atkinson
#27 Noah Cates – #25 Ryan Poehling – #19 Garnet Hathaway
#44 Nicolas Deslauriers – #14 Sean Couturier – #10 Bobby Brink
#8 Cam York – #6 Travis Sanheim
#24 Nick Seeler – #26 Sean Walker
#5 Egor Zamula – #18 Marc Staal
#33 Samuel Ersson
#32 Felix Sandström
Scratches: #23 Ronnie Attard, #62 Olle Lycksell
Injuries: #9 Jamie Drysdale, #11 Travis Konecny, #55 Rasmus Ristolainen
STL Projected Lineup
#89 Pavel Buchnevich – #18 Robert Thomas – #25 Jordan Kyrou
#76 Zachary Bolduc – #10 Brayden Schenn – #63 Jake Neighbours
#20 Brandon Saad – #12 Kevin Hayes – #13 Alexey Toropchenko
#26 Nathan Walker – #70 Oskar Sundqvist – #42 Kasperi Kapanen
#4 Nick Leddy – #55 Colton Parayko
#47 Torey Krug – #72 Justin Faulk
#6 Marco Scandella – #48 Scott Perunovich
#50 Jordan Binnington
#30 Joel Hofer
Scratches: #59 Nikita Alexandrov, #75 Tyler Tucker, #79 Sammy Blais
Injuries: None
News and Notes
– Last time these two faced off, the Flyers took a 4-2 win on the road with goals from Joel Farabee, Scott Laughton, Ryan Poehling and Owen Tippett.
– Betting Odds: Flyers -150 ML, Blues +110 ML, O/U 6 Goals.
– All-time, the Flyers are 93-49 against St. Louis with 17 ties and five overtime losses.
– Samuel Ersson returns to the pipes after Felix Sandström got the win on Saturday. Ersson is searching for his 18th victory of the season.
– On Sunday, the Flyers officially announced the signing of 2023 third round pick Denver Barkey, beginning in the 2024-25 season. Barkey has tallied 31 goals and 56 assists for 87 points in the OHL with the London Knights. Barkey’s teammate and fellow Flyers draft pick Oliver Bonk has 23 goals and 38 assists for 61 points as a defenseman.
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