After a heartbreaking overtime defeat on the road in Nashville, the Flyers return home to kick-off a two-game mini homestand, beginning with a visit from Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals.
The Flyers outshot the Predators 39-22 on Tuesday evening but ultimately fell, 3-2, in overtime, on a Filip Forsberg shot that slid right under the pads of Samuel Ersson. The game saw the Orange and Black down by a pair but goals by Sean Couturier and Travis Sanheim sent the game to sudden-death overtime, extending the Flyers’ point streak to six.
Meanwhile, the Capitals ride a two-game win streak after losing four straight. Washington swept the weekend with a 4-0 shutout victory over the Rangers on Saturday and a win in Chicago where they defeated the Blackhawks, 4-2.
A big factor to the Flyers six-game point streak has been veteran forward Sean Couturier.
After the departing of longtime captain Claude Giroux, Couturier has become a team leader along with Scott Laughton as two of the longest-tenured Flyers.
Couturier missed the second half of the 2021-22 season as well as the entire 2022-23 campaign with long-term injuries. He returned to the ice for the start of the 2023-24 season with a positive mindset and willingness to help his team out. Entering tonight, Couturier sits tied with Travis Sanheim for the second-most points on the team with 21.
The Flyers’ special teams have sparked over the past few weeks. While their power play hasn’t been that successful, their penalty killing has been something to keep an eye on.
Entering Monday, the Flyers ranked fifth in the NHL in penalty killing with an 86.2% kill percentage only trailing Vegas, Dallas, Los Angeles and Boston. They killed off all three penalties on Tuesday, but went 0-4 on a struggling power play.
As the Flyers penalty kill soars, the Capitals power play continues to have its issues. Their man advantage has dipped and Washington sits last on the power play at 8.4%.
With a win this evening, Flyers goaltender Carter Hart could have put himself in pretty good standing. Unfortunately, Hart is sick and will not start as scheduled, with Samuel Ersson filling in for him in goal.
Hart sits with 93 career wins, tied with Wayne Stephenson for the fourth-most wins in Flyers history. One more victory will put him in sole possession of fourth-most, only trailing Steve Mason, Bernie Parent, and Ron Hextall.
As for Washington, Dylan Strome continues to dominate for the Caps. The club’s offense has scored four or more times in three straight. Strome’s 11 goals lead the team as he notched a pair on Sunday in Chicago.
The last time these two division rivals faced off went the Flyers way. Philadelphia took a 3-1 victory on the road on January 14th, 2023, and three days prior saw the Flyers earn a 5-3 win at home.
When: 7:00pm ET
Where: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA
Broadcast Info: NBC Sports Philadelphia, 97.5 The Fanatic
Last Game PHI: 12/12/23, 3-2 OTL at Nashville
Last Game WSH: 12/10/23, 4-2 W at Chicago
PHI Goalie: Samuel Ersson (5-3-2, .883 SV%, 2.80 GAA, 1 SO)
WSH Goalie: Charlie Lindgren (6-2-1, .931 SV%, 2.34 GAA, 2 SO)
PHI Projected Lineup
#11 Tyson Foerster – #14 Sean Couturier – #11 Travis Konecny
#74 Owen Tippett – #48 Morgan Frost – #10 Bobby Brink
#86 Joel Farabee – #21 Scott Laughton – #89 Cam Atkinson
#44 Nicolas Deslauriers – #25 Ryan Poehling – #19 Garnet Hathaway
#8 Cam York – #6 Travis Sanheim
#24 Nick Seeler – #26 Sean Walker
#18 Marc Staal – #55 Rasmus Ristolainen
#33 Samuel Ersson
#32 Felix Sandström
Scratches: #5 Egor Zamula, #62 Olle Lycksell
Injuries: #27 Noah Cates, #79 Carter Hart
WSH Projected Lineup
#8 Alex Ovechkin – #17 Dylan Strome – #43 Tom Wilson
#91 Joe Snively – #92 Evgeny Kuznetsov – #77 T.J. Oshie
#21 Aliaksei Protas – #24 Connor McMichael – #39 Anthony Mantha
#47 Beck Malenstyn – #26 Nic Dowd – #96 Nicolas Aubé-Kubel
#42 Martin Fehervary – #74 John Carlson
#38 Rasmus Sandin – #57 Trevor van Riemsdyk
#6 Joel Edmundson – #3 Nick Jensen
#79 Charlie Lindgren
#35 Darcy Kuemper
Scratches: #27 Alexander Alexeyev, #45 Matthew Phillips, #46 Lucas Johansen
Injuries: #15 Sonny Milano, #19 Nicklas Bäckström, #67 Max Pacioretty
News and Notes
– This will be the 243rd meeting all-time between the Flyers and Capitals, with the Flyers leading 124-100-19.
– It was announced on Tuesday by Capitals and Wizards owner Ted Leonsis that the two clubs will be moving from their home in downtown Washington to Alexandria, Virginia, in 2028.
– Sean Couturier enters this evening’s game riding a six-game point streak (2G-5A).
– Travis Konecny sits one assist shy of hitting 200 for his career.
– Flyers bench boss John Tortorella is just three wins away from joining former Flyers coach Alain Vigneault with the 10th most wins by a coach in NHL history.
– In a 5-4 shootout loss on December 7th, Alex Ovechkin became the 16th player in NHL history to hit 1,500 points. “It’s a pretty cool number,” Ovechkin said. “I always say, without my teammates, I would never reach it. It’s pretty cool.”
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