Flyers to close out 2023 with matchup in Calgary

The Game : 8:00 p.m. EST on NBCSports Philadelphia, ESPN+, and 97.5 The Fanatic

Happy New Year, folks! We\'re back again for the last Flyers game of 2023, and what a year it\'s been. For all of the ups and downs we\'ve been through, we\'re thrilled to be here on the other side of it, where things look to trending up a bit. And the reward we\'ve gotten for making it here? A Flyers After Dark edition that\'s actually not all that extra late.

The Flyers are closing out the calendar year out in Calgary, meeting the Flames for the first time this season. Last time out, for anyone who missed it, the Flyers lost a tough one in overtime -- an overtime period that they were frankly pretty lucky to get to in the first place, as we saw them really running out of gas as the game wore on. And this was understandable, given that game being the second half of a back-to-back situation, and with the team having done a whole bunch of traveling leading up to it, but it was still a bit of a tough result to see.

The Flyers will have to contend with a Flames team who will be trying to keep their own losing streak from reaching three games. It\'s been a tough season for the Flames, and they\'re in a spot that we know well around here -- they\'ve struggled a good bit (they have just four wins in their last 10 games), having fallen out of the playoff picture in the Pacific, but haven\'t been bad enough to fall into the basement of the league standings and put themselves in real contention for a top-3 pick. So it goes.

And all of that said, that means that the outcome of this game is pretty tough to predict -- a team like the Flames, with where they\'re at, could just as easily make for a tough matchup against the Flyers as they could get outworked and overrun by them. So we\'ll see how this one goes.

Players to Watch

Travis Konecy

The Flyers\' offense was pretty limited for much of Friday\'s game, but the one player who was able to get himself on the board was Konecny. And he\'s a player to watch for tonight for a couple of reasons -- on the one hand, he\'s really been going through it as of late, as he\'s dealt with a bit of an illness this week, taken some big hits, as well as made a few big shot blocks, so the first thing we\'re watching for is that he\'s still well enough to suit up for this one in the first place. But, despite all of that, his offensive game has been clicking well for him, and assuming he does get in for this game, his energy and impact are going to be critical if the Flyers want to get back this thing back on the rails.

Owen Tippett

Sticking with that same thread, the Flyers are going to need a bit more production tonight than they got in their last game, and Tippett seems primed to be a big part of that. Though he didn\'t get himself on the board in their last showing, he put up a total of nine individual shot attempts, and five scoring chances, leading the team by a pretty comfortable margin. He really seemed to be knocking on the door against the Kraken, and if he keeps putting in that kind of effort, it won\'t be long before things start breaking for him again. Could that be tonight? Here\'s hoping.

Nazem Kadri

On the Flames side, if there\'s going to be anyone who\'s primed to give the Flyers some trouble, it\'s Kadri. The Flames\' leading scorer on the season, with nine goals and 25 points in 35 games played, he\'s been pretty consistent for them, but he\'s also hit a bit of a cool spell. In his last five games, he has just one assist, and he\'ll be looking to step up, bust his slump, and end the year on a high note.

Projected Lineups

Philadelphia Flyers

Owen Tippett – Sean Couturier – Travis Konecny Tyson Foerster – Morgan Frost – Cam Atkinson Joel Farabee – Ryan Poehling – Bobby Brink Nic Deslauriers – Scott Laughton – Garnet Hathaway

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

Carter Hart (Sam Ersson)

Calgary Flames

Jonathan Huberdeau - Elias Lindholm - Yegor Sharangovich Connor Zary - Nazem Kadri - Martin Pospisil Andrew Mangiapane - Mikael Backlund - Blake Coleman A.J. Greer - Adam Ruzicka - Dillon Dube

Noah Hanifin - Chris Tanev Dennis Gilbert - Rasmus Andersson Jordan Oesterle - MacKenzie Weegar

Jacob Markstrom (Dan Vladar)

Gameday Tunes

What else could today\'s gamely tune be? Here\'s my favorite fun little New Year\'s related track.

https://open.spotify.com/track/6UyBuJBwrVrwFBSQ3n8ooG?si=7502e7bc53ee4984

Talking Points