Over the last three games, the Philadelphia Flyers (12-12-4) unraveled. John Tortorella pulled Ivan Fedotov after surrendering two goals in the first period, and then the Flyers squandered a late third-period lead versus the Florida Panthers (7-5; L). Then, Philadelphia dropped a decision to the Boston Bruins (4-3; OTL), and the late tripping calls on Garnet Hathaway and Sean Couturier drew the ire of Tortorella.
“One thing I teach my team to do is not dive. Maybe I should start teaching them that. The way this has gone; the way this shit goes on, maybe I should start teaching them how to dive.” – John Tortorella; 12/7/2024
Two nights ago, the Flyers could not catch up with the Utah Hockey Club (4-2; L). Philadelphia is dropping down the NHL Metropolitan Standings, out of an Eastern Conference Wildcard spot, and into the bottom half of the NHL Standings.
“I thought the game [vs. Utah Hockey Club] sucked, quite honestly. There wasn’t a lot of energy from either team. I don’t expect that to happen again with us. I thought against Boston [Bruins], well played well. Vegas, we played some good hockey. Discipline is a little bit of a problem; even the Utah game. I thought we had our legs and we take a couple penalties, and it just knocks us down. We got to remain diligent on our discipline so we get the whole bench involved.” – John Tortorella; 12/10/2024
However, the Flyers visit the Columbus Blue Jackets tonight at 7:00pm/ET.
“I’m going to move by that Utah game, as far as it just wasn’t much of a game, and get ready to play against a pretty good team [Columbus Blue Jackets] here. Both teams have the same record. A lot of skill with Columbus. They go out and kick Winnipeg [Jets] their last game. They’ll be playing with a ton of confidence, tonight.” – John Tortorella; 12/10/2024
Philadelphia (-122) is slightly favored, per DraftKings Sportsbook. The Flyers rank 22nd (80GF) in offense, 27th (96GA) in defense, 28th (16.9%) on the powerplay, and 13th (80.5%) on the penalty kill. Comparably, the Blue Jackets rank 9th (92GF) in offense, 28th (96GA) in defense, 24th (17.4%) on the powerplay, and 30th (71.6%) on the penalty kill. The most substantial opportunity for Tortorella and his lineup will be the killing penalties, whether that means a shorthanded goal or taking advantage of Columbus when on the powerplay.
When: 12/10/24; 7:00pm/ET
Where: Nationwide Arena; Columbus, OH
Broadcast Info: NBC Sports Philadelphia; Flyers Radio 24/7
Last Game PHI: 12/8/24; 4-2 L; vs. Utah Hockey Club
Last Game CBJ: 12/8/24; 4-1 W; at Winnipeg Jets
Philadelphia Flyers
Sam Ersson (5-3-2, 89.7%SV, 2.83GAA) will start. He returned to the ice in a losing effort versus Utah. Ersson allowed four goals in his return, but if you assess those surrendered goals, they were not due to a lack of effort. Unfortunate bounces, a deflection, and two blown assignments on special teams sealed the deal. It was his first in-game appearance in 25+ days (since 11/11/24 versus the San Jose Sharks; 4-3; SOW).
Jamie Drysdale (-9, 30BLK, 3HIT, 6TK, 23GV, 50.8%FF) returned to the lineup, too. With the puck, he was decisive in his rover role and his skating along the blue line remains an asset. Drysdale would have scored versus the Utah Hockey Club, but Travis Konecny was guilty of goaltender interference. Joel Farabee did not agree with the call, though Tortorella did not have a beef with the officiating.
“I’m not going to turn him [Drysdale] into a defensive specialist. I want him up the ice. I watched his first shift of our game against Utah; he surfs up, closes a play inside the blue line, doesn’t back off, breaks up the play, and he ends up in the blue paint looking to score a goal. That’s what I want to see out of him. We’ll teach him the defensive part of it; I don’t think he’s ever going to be great at it. I just wanted to meet us halfway there; I want him the other way. I want him to see the ice better.” – John Tortorella; 12/10/2024
Matvei Michkov (11G, 14A) notched an assist on an Owen Tippett goal versus Utah. In his last five games, Michkov added eight points (3G, 5A) to his point production. Nonetheless, a conversation sparked on Monday regarding his late ejection after exchanging pleasantries with Barrett Hayton. Michkov, with pinpoint accuracy, pelted Hayton with a punch, then swiped the whistle out of the mouth of an official who kept blowing it in his direction after removal from the scrum. On the way to the locker room, he signed an autograph for a Philadelphia fan.
Tortorella was unaware of that moment between Michkov and a Flyers fan until it was brought to his attention in the pregame press conference today.
Projected Lineup: Philadelphia Flyers
#86 Joel Farabee – #14 Sean Couturier – #11 Travis Konecny
#74 Owen Tippett – #48 Morgan Frost – #39 Matvei Michkov
#71 Tyson Foerster – #27 Noah Cates – #10 Bobby Brink
#21 Scott Laughton – #25 Ryan Poehling – #19 Garnet Hathaway
#8 Cam York – #6 Travis Sanheim
#24 Nick Seeler – #9 Jamie Drysdale
#36 Emil Andrae – #55 Rasmus Ristolainen
#33 Sam Ersson
(#35 Alexei Kolosov)
Projected Lineup: Columbus Blue Jackets
#21 James van Riemsdyk – #23 Sean Monahan – #91 Kent Johnson
#10 Dmitri Voronkov – #19 Adam Fantilli – #86 Kirill Marchenko
#27 Zach Aston-Reese – #4 Cole Sillinger – #24 Mathieu Olivier
#7 Sean Kuraly – #17 Justin Danforth – #62 Kevin Labanc
#8 Zach Werenski – #15 Dante Fabbro
#9 Ivan Provorov – #78 Damon Severson
#2 Jake Christiansen – #22 Jordan Harris
#90 Elvis Merzlikins
(#40 Daniil Tarasov)
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