Again? So soon?? Alright, sure, why not: the Flyers head to Detroit to face the Red Wings for the second time in a week. Keep in mind, the Flyers have yet to face their divisional cross-state rival Pittsburgh Penguins this season, but they’re hurrying through Atlantic Division opponents. The NHL schedule sure is weird!
Anyway, since their matchup last week, in which Scott Laughton decided to do it all himself, the Flyers lost to the Minnesota Wild in a game where Marc-Andre Fleury rewound the clock for his swan song, and Kirill Kaprizov did Kirill Kaprizov things. The Flyers played well enough, but the Wild are rolling–no shame in a loss there.
The Red Wings, meanwhile, got a 4-2 win of their own over the Toronto Maple Leafs. That win took Detroit to 4-4-2 in their last 10 games, but they’re still kicking around the basement of the Atlantic with the Buffalo Sabres and Montreal Canadiens. Much of what was in last week’s preview remains true this week: Detroit’s roster is deeply flawed, without enough true superstar talent to build around, and head coach Derek LaLonde is unable to get the most out of what he’s been given to work with. Several of Detroit’s impact prospects are still a glimmer in the distance, in terms of NHL readiness; they may be enough to push the team further when they arrive but, in the present day, this roster lacks the extra gear necessary to be a respectable playoff contender.
The good news for Detroit (and bad news for the Flyers, we suppose) is that the Eastern Conference is a mess: the New York Rangers are in free fall, the New York Islanders and Pittsburgh Penguins are aging into irrelevance, and the Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning are showing cracks in a way they haven’t in previous years. If the Red Wings string a couple wins together, they could unseat the Flyers from a wild card spot with relative ease–so could either Buffalo or Ottawa, for that matter, though the Sabres’ 11-game losing streak would make that difficult. For those hoping for a Flyers playoff berth this season, tonight’s game borders on a must-win.
Storylines to Watch
Closing out games
This is a problem that’s reared its ugly head a couple times this season: the Flyers are not great at playing with the lead.
They may defend well enough with a lead, but they refuse to put the screws on the opposition. This was most apparent in last week’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets: the Flyers had a 5-1 lead in the third period, but the Blue Jackets managed to score two goals and get themselves back in the mix. It didn’t bite the Flyers that time, but they’re playing a dangerous game; if they’re ahead against the Red Wings tonight, look for them to keep the pressure on and keep Detroit from finding a way back into the game.
Special teams haven’t been so special lately
The Flyers’ power play is all the way down at 27th in the league, operating at just over 16-percent. That’s disappointing after the hot start, but some regression was expected and, keep in mind, it’s still an improvement over last year’s abysmal 12.2-percent. Is it improvement enough to keep power play coach Rocky Thompson employed? That remains to be seen.
More concerning is the penalty kill, which is 14th in the league and clicking at a hair over 80-percent–just barely better than the Montreal Canadiens and a shade behind the Vancouver Canucks. The power kill was a major part of the 2023-24 Flyers identity, when they finished fourth in the league and scored a bunch of shorthanded goals. That hasn’t been as consistent this season, but here’s hoping Scott Laughton’s shorty against the Red Wings last week is a sign things are turning around. What better time to pot another one than tonight?
Matvei Michkov: Point drought?
It’s been two games since our last Michkov point (though not for lack of trying). He’s only gone more than two games without a point once this season: a four-game stretch at the end of October. That’s kind of a crazy stat to think about, considering he just turned 20. Watch for Michkov to cut the point drought at two games once again, though no promises he hits a lacrosse goal.
Projected Lineups
Philadelphia Flyers
Joel Farabee – Sean Couturier – Travis Konecny
Owen Tippett – Morgan Frost – Matvei Michkov
Tyson Foerster – Noah Cates – Bobby Brink
Scott Laughton – Ryan Poehling – Garnet Hathaway
Cam York – Travis Sanheim
Egor Zamula – Rasmus Ristolainen
Nick Seeler – Jamie Drysdale
Sam Ersson
(Aleksei Kolosov)
Detroit Red Wings
Vladimir Tarasenko – Dylan Larkin – Lucas Raymond
Alex DeBrincat – Andrew Copp – Patrick Kane
Michael Rasmussen – JT Compher – Tyler Motte
Joe Veleno – Marco Kasper – Jonatan Berggren
Simon Edvinsson – Moritz Seider
Ben Chiarot – Jeff Petry
Erik Gustafsson – Justin Holl
Ville Husso
(Jack Campbell)
Gameday Tunes
It’s the wonderful Kelly Hinkle’s birthday today, so today’s song is from our benevolent overlord’s favorite band. Happy Birthday, Kelly!
