After winning 4 games in a row and 3 straight on the road, your second place Philadelphia Flyers return home tonight to take on the Dallas Stars.
3-Game Sweep
The Flyers rattled off 3 straight road wins and now sit in second place in the Metropolitan Division. The Flyers defeated the Minnesota Wild, St. Louis Blues, and most notably shutout the 29-10-4 Winnipeg Jets.
After suffering a 2-1 loss to the Seattle Kraken which kicked off a 4-game skid for the Flyers, they have now won 5 of their last 6 games. The reseiliency of this Flyers team was on full display as they were without Sean Couturier and newly acquired Jamie Drysdale for 2 of the 3 games. The performances of players like Owen Tippett (4 goals in his last 5 games), Cam Atkinson (2 goals in Winnipeg), and the tandem of Carter Hart and Samuel Ersson (allowed a total of 7 goals in last 4 games) among others have kept the Flyers in the top of the Metro standings. In their way tonight to kick off a 4- game home stand is the Dallas Stars.
Tough Matchup
The Dallas Stars sit in 3rd place in the Central Division at 26-12-5 on the season. They are coming off of an impressive 5-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings and have won 4 of their last 5 games.
The Stars have a plethora of young offensive talent that will surely be on display tonight as the Flyers defense will have to contend with the likes of Jason Robertson, Roope Hintz and Wyatt Johnston. Leading the team in points with 45, the 24-year-old Robertson looks like he will be producing in the NHL for a while. Besides his goal scoring ability, he’s also been an excellent playmaker this year, dishing out 30 assists. One of my favorite players to watch, Roope Hintz, just recorded his 18th goal against the Kings along with longtime center Joe Pavelski. Hintz is second on the team in points and is 27 years old, another young talent for the Stars. The 20-year-old Johnston has also contributed thus far with 26 points. Johnston no doubt is a major building block for Dallas’ future alongside Robertson and Hintz.
Great Goalie Game
Even with the scoring talent of the Dallas Stars and how hot the Flyers have been, tonight’s matchup could be a low scoring affair with who is between the pipes for both clubs. The Stars will deploy their stud goaltender Jake Oettinger who has won back to back games after returning from injury.
For the season, Oettinger posts a 2.88 GAA and .905 SV%. The Flyers will send out their 1A netminder in Samuel Ersson who has been nothing short of fantastic this year. Ersson holds a 2.33 GAA and .910 SV%. Paired with starter Carter Hart, the Flyers have been blessed with great goaltending all year.
Coots and Drysdale Back
After missing two games with a minor injury, Sean Couturier checks back into the lineup alongside Owen Tippett and Travis Konecny. So far this season, Couturier has recorded 10 goals and 19 assists and hasn’t missed a beat. New defenseman Jamie Drysdale is the name everyone wants to watch as he too gets back into the lineup tonight after missing two games due to illness. Drysdale, coming over in the Cutter Gauthier trade, will be a welcomed site for the Flyers power play tonight as they will need to convert on their chances if they hope to defeat the Dallas Stars.
How Can the Flyers Win?
The Flyers have relied on great goaltending all year and tonight will be no different. Samuel Ersson has to continue his stellar season and frustrate the Stars’ offense. With Jake Oettinger on the other end of the ice, goals may be hard to come by for the Flyers offense tonight, making it that more vital for Ersson to out dual the Stars’ netminder. Let’s not put it all on Ersson though.
With Drysdale back in the fold, the power play should get some juice. Even though Drysdale has only practically just arrived, his presence on the power play is extremely noticeable and provides an element the Flyers haven’t had for a while. When the Flyers go a man up, they need to convert. Easier said than done.
PHI Record: 24-14-6, 54 pts, 2nd in Metropolitan
DAL Record: 26-12-5, 57 pts, 3rd in Central
When: 7:00pm ET
Where: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA
Broadcast Info: NBC Sports Philadelphia, 97.5 The Fanatic
Last Game PHI: 1/15/24, 4-2 W at St. Louis
Last Game DAL: 1/16/24, 5-1 W vs. Los Angeles
PHI Goalie: Samuel Ersson (11-5-3, .910 SV%, 2.33 GAA, 3 SO)
DAL Goalie: Jake Oettinger (13-8-2, .905 SV%, 2.88 GAA, 1 SO)
PHI Projected Lineup
#74 Owen Tippett – #14 Sean Couturier– #11 Travis Konecny
#71 Tyson Foerster – #48 Morgan Frost – #19 Garnet Hathaway
#86 Joel Farabee – #21 Scott Laughton – #89 Cam Atkinson
#27 Noah Cates – #25 Ryan Poehling
#6 Travis Sanheim – #9 Jamie Drysdale
#24 Nick Seeler – #26 Sean Walker
#8 Cam York – #55 Rasmus Ristolainen
#5 Egor Zamula
#33 Samuel Ersson
#79 Carter Hart
Scratches: #10 Bobby Brink, #18 Marc Staal, #44 Nicolas Deslauriers
Injuries: None
DAL Projected Lineup
#21 Jason Robertson – #24 Roope Hintz – #53 Wyatt Johnston
#27 Mason Marchment – #95 Matt Duchene – #91 Tyler Seguin
#14 Jamie Benn – #18 Sam Steel – #16 Joe Pavelski
#15 Craig Smith – #12 Radek Faksa – #63 Evgenii Dadonov
#20 Ryan Suter – #5 Nils Lundkvist
#23 Esa Lindell – #2 Jani Hakanpää
#55 Thomas Harley – #44 Joel Hanley
#29 Jake Oettinger
#41 Scott Wedgewood
Scratches: #10 Ty Dellandrea
Injuries: #4 Miro Heiskanen
News and Notes
– The Flyers are 76-49-32 vs. the Stars all-time.
– Betting Odds: Stars -138, Flyers +115, O/U 5.5 goals.
– In 32 games as the underdog this season, the Flyers have 16 wins.
– The Flyers have allowed 2.5 goals per game in last 10 games, while the Stars have allowed 2.6 goals per game in last 10 games.
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