Another game, another crucial two points for the Philadelphia Flyers to earn and be well on their way to securing a playoff spot. Every single game is as big as possible through the remaining week of the regular season — this is what it’s all about. And now, it’s the Flyers visiting the floundering Detroit Red Wings.
Puck drop: 7:00 p.m.
How to watch/listen:
📺: ESPN+/HULU
📻: 93.3 WMMR
Pregame reading
- Trevor Zegras was once known as a more individualistic player. Now, as he is playing the biggest games of his career so far and performing well, he’s shedding that reputation with the Flyers. [BSH]
- Is Dan Vladar having the best season of a Flyers goaltender in the last 10 years? [BSH]
- Flyers getting a little busy. They signed prospect Jack Berglund to his entry-level contract earlier Thursday and he’s down with the Phantoms for the rest of the season. [BSH]
Pregame watching
By the numbers
Philadelphia Flyers – 40-26-12 (3rd in Metro)
Goals: Owen Tippett (28)
Assists: Trevor Zegras (40)
Points: Travis Konecny (66)
Detroit Red Wings – 40-29-9 (6th in Atlantic)
Goals: Alex DeBrincat (39)
Assists: Lucas Raymond (48)
Points: Alex DeBrincat (82)
Projected lineups
Tyson Foerster — Trevor Zegras — Owen Tippett
Travis Konecny — Christian Dvorak — Porter Martone
Alex Bump — Noah Cates — Matvei Michkov
Denver Barkey — Luke Glendening — Sean Couturier
Travis Sanheim — Rasmus Ristolainen
Cam York — Jamie Drysdale
Nick Seeler — Emil Andrae
Dan Vladar
(Sam Ersson)
Emmitt Finnie — Dylan Larkin — Lucas Raymond
Alex DeBrincat — Andrew Copp — Patrick Kane
Marco Kasper — J.T. Compher — David Perron
James van Riemsdyk — Michael Rasmussen — Carter Mazur
Simon Edvinsson — Moritz Seider
Ben Chiarot — Justin Faulk
Albert Johansson — Axel Sandin-Pellikka
John Gibson
(Cam Talbot)
Storylines to watch
Flyers just need to do the same thing
Notably, the Flyers and Red Wings have been colliding over the last few weeks in ultimate showdowns to win a playoff spot. Philadelphia has the upper hand overall, currently sitting pretty in a not-so-comfortable spot as Detroit wallows down in the depths with a miniscule percentage to end up breaking their postseason drought.
The last time these two teams met on April 2, it was the Red Wings that had the 4-2 win but it was really the Flyers that had the upper hand for almost the entire game. By the end of it, the Flyers had almost double the amount of shot attempts and scoring chances than the Red Wings at 5-on-5 and it was the likes of Porter Martone and Trevor Zegras that just walked all over the visitors. Now, they just need to do almost the exact same thing and the result should be in the Flyers’ favor.
How the Flyers’ playoff odds will be affected
With so few games remaining and teams still hot on the Flyers’ trail as they were able to jump them all and grab a playoff spot, they still need to get some points to end up securing one and ending the playoff drought.
Thanks to MoneyPuck, we can see what the new playoff odds will be depending on the result:
Yeah, we can’t have the Flyers’ odds sink below 50 percent again just because of a loss to the Red Wings of all teams. All they need to do is get two points. In regulation or in overtime or in a shootout — it doesn’t matter, just get the two points to get the advantage over the teams below them. If they do, we can be comfortable expecting playoffs, unless a disastrous fall from grace happens and every team below them starts winning again.
Who will step up?
We just saw Tyson Foerster and Trevor Zegras each score a brace to get a well-deserved win over the Devils this week. Porter Martone was the overtime here against the Bruins. Matvei Michkov had a stellar game on Long Island over the weekend. Who will be Thursday night’s hero that is able to put their own stamp on this game and have us all dreaming of more success in the coming weeks?
It could be any one of those players who have come up big in the last several games, or maybe someone new. Owen Tippett? Alex Bump scores a couple? Travis Konecny takes his turn to put the team’s offense on his back?
All that matters is if someone does it.
