Preview: Seeing red

The Game : 7:00 p.m. EST on NBCSports Philadelphia, ESPN+/Hulu, and 93.3 WMMR

The vibes are weird, fam. The Flyers are on a three-game losing streak--though in their defense, two of those losses came against teams with the top two MVP candidates in Nathan MacKinnon and Nikita Kucherov, and the Flyers outplayed both the Avalanche and the Lightning for significant stretches--and their starting goaltender is on indefinite leave in a situation that\'s looking more sinister by the day.

By points alone, the Flyers (6-4-0 in their last 10) are still sitting at second place in the Metropolitan Division; unfortunately, the two teams behind them (Carolina and New Jersey) each have three games in hand, and the team ahead of them (the Rangers) has one game in hand. Philadelphia\'s been lucky that two out of those three teams have been underperforming recently, but even so, the Flyers playoff bid is hanging by a threat--they need some wins, bad.

They\'re going to have their work cut out for them against the Detroit Red Wings tonight.

The Wings were, for a while, looking like a team that was once again going to miss the playoffs--but they\'ve surged back since the Christmas break and are 7-2-1 in their last 10 games. They\'re holding down a wildcard spot at the moment and, with the Toronto Maple Leafs floundering, look like they\'ll be headed to the postseason. The Yzerplan bears fruit, at last!

On the season, the Flyers have split their series with the Red Wings with one win a piece: a 1-0 slugfest in favor of the Flyers, and a 7-6 barnburner that the Red Wings came away with. This is the last time the two teams will meet this year, and the Flyers need a win something awful--taking the series would be great.

Not much has changed since the Flyers and Wings played each other last, though Patrick Kane has missed time with injury--whether he\'s in tonight may be a gametime decision, but Kane certainly still seems to have that offensive magic as the Red Wings have the most goals-for in the Eastern Conference with 166. If Kane is in the lineup, the Flyers\' defense is going to have to come up big.

Players to Watch

Jamie Drysdale

Hey, everybody! The power play is fixed! Jamie Drysdale logged his first goal as a Flyer on the power play against the Lightning on Tuesday. That goal, almost unbelievably, was also the first power play goal of his career. His skating has been almost mind-boggling to watch; yes, other teams have elite skaters, but it\'s been so long since the Flyers have had a skater of this caliber. What\'s been impressive as well is the defensive side of Drysdale\'s game--he was billed as an offensive dynamo, and he\'s mostly delivered, but the details of his game are exceptional as well. Watch for him to continue generating offense and make a few smart stick checks.

Sam Ersson

It\'s a New Era-sson of Orange, as Sam Ersson is now the indisputable starting goaltender for the Philadelphia Flyers. We\'ve been pumping his tires a lot this season , and we\'re not the only ones , so now that he\'s expected to get the lion\'s share of starts, it\'s time to see what Ersson\'s truly got--and just how good he can get.

Jake Walman

Okay, so, this isn\'t the flashiest pick, but ya gotta hand it to the guy: elite cellies.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qt12WILK4vU

If he scores against the Flyers, you can bet he\'ll hit the Griddy against Gritty\'s team.

Projected Lineups

Philadelphia Flyers

Joel Farabee – Sean Couturier – Travis Konecny Olle Lycksell – Morgan Frost – Cam Atkinson Tyson Foerster – Scott Laughton - Garnet Hathaway Noah Cates - Ryan Poehling

Travis Sanheim - Jamie Drysdale Cam York – Sean Walker Nick Seeler – Rasmus Ristolainen Egor Zamula

Sam Ersson (Cal Petersen)

Detroit Red Wings

David Perron - Dylan Larkin - Lucas Raymond Alex DeBrincat - JT Compher - Robby Fabbri Michael Rasmussen - Andrew Copp - Christian Fischer Klim Kostin - Joe Veleno - Daniel Sprong

Jake Walman - Moritz Seider Olli Maatta - Jeff Petry Shayne Gostisbehere - Justin Holl

Alex Lyon (James Reimer)

Gameday Tunes

The only way to get out of a funk is a bit of funk. C\'mon, Flyers--get up offa that thing, and shake \'till you feel better!

https://open.spotify.com/track/5XeSAezNDk9tuw3viiCbZ3?si=412cccf1933b400a

Stats via Hockey Reference

Talking Points