Photo Credit: Chris Maher/Flyers Nitty Gritty
It’s been 11 days since the Flyers last played a game.
Yes, it’s really been that long.
That all ends tonight though when the Flyers embark on a four-game road trip starting with a late night matchup with the NHL’s latest expansion team, the Seattle Kraken.
As the Orange and Black get set to return to game action, lets take a look at a few key headlines ahead of tonight’s game between the Philadelphia Flyers (12-12-5) and the Seattle Kraken (10-17-3). Puck drop is slated for just a little after 10 p.m. ET.
A Fairly New Opponent
Tonight marks only the second ever meeting between the Flyers and the Kraken. It’s also the Flyers first time playing in Climate Pledge Arena, home of the Kraken.
Back in October, the Flyers took care of business against Seattle beating them by a final score of 6-1. Derick Brassard led the way for the Flyers registering three points that night. He scored a goal and assisted on one other.
Claude Giroux, Travis Konecny, Ryan Ellis, Justin Braun and Joel Farabee also lit the lamp for the Orange and Black on their way to a blowout win.
Carter Hart was close to perfect that night. He stopped 23 of 24 shots and the offense took care of the rest.
The Flyers head into tonight having won four of their last fives games and having secured at least a point in five straight games. Its their longest point streak of the season.
As for Seattle, they’ve lost five of their last six games and haven’t played a game since Dec. 18 due to concerns surrounding Covid-19.
Claude Giroux leads the Flyers in both points (25) as well as assists (14). He’s second on the team in goals (11) behind only Cam Atkinson who has 12 goals on the season.
Jordan Eberle has the led the way for Seattle this season. He leads the Kraken in points (21) and is tied for the team lead in goals with Jared McCann with 12 goals on the season.
Covid Strikes Again
The Flyers will be shorthanded as they begin their four-game road trip out West. The corona virus has crept into the Flyers locker room and will leave interim head coach Mike Yeo with a bit of juggling to do.
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Here is the full list of Flyers’ players out for tonight’s game versus the Kraken due to Covid-19 protocols:
Forwards:
- Sean Couturier
- Derick Brassard
- Scott Laughton
Defenseman:
- Ryan Ellis
Goaltenders:
- Carter Hart
With the Flyers without their top center and their number one goaltender, they’ll be left with no choice but to take on Seattle shorthanded.
Here were the lines and pairings that Mike Yeo put together at practice yesterday per The Athletic’s Charlie O’ Connor:
First Line: Farabee-Hayes-Konecny
Second Line: Lindblom-Giroux-Atkinson
Third Line: JvR-Frost-Mayhew
Fourth Line: Willman-Brown-MacEwen
Defensive Pairings:
Provorov-Braun
Sanheim-Ristolainen
Yandle-Connauton
The Kraken are also dealing with their own issues regarding the coronavirus pandemic. They’ll resume play without forwards Ryan Donato and Mason Appleton as well as defenseman Adam Larsson and Vince Dunn due to Covid-19 protocols.
Jones In Net
With Carter Hart out tonight due to being placed on the Covid-19 protocol list, Martin Jones will get the nod between the pipes tonight for the Flyers.
Jones, who signed a one-year, $2 million contract with the Flyers this past offseason, is 5-4-1 in 11 games played this season. He holds a 3.33 goals-against average and a .907 save percentage.
In his last start, the 31-year-old goaltender played just okay stopping 28 of 31 shots fired his way 11 days ago versus the Ottawa Senators. The Flyers hung on to beat Ottawa by a final score of 4-3 in overtime.
Felix Sandstrom will serve as the backup to Jones tonight with Hart out. He’s never played in an NHL game.
Giroux on the Brink of Another Milestone
In his last game versus the Senators, Giroux tied Flyers icon Bill Barber for the second most points in Flyers franchise history with 883. With one more point, the Flyers captain will take over sole possession of second place in all-time points in Flyers franchise history with 884.
Giroux has some work to do in order to catch the Flyers’ all-time leader in points. Bobby Clarke holds that title at the moment with 1,210 points.
The 33-year-old Flyers captain is also in reach of 600 career assists. He currently sits at 599 career assists, just one short of the big 600.
Giroux is set to center the second line tonight for the Flyers with Oskar Lindblom and Cam Atkinson on the wings.
