PREVIEW 10:05 AM EST
Unbeaten in four December games to date, the Flyers (17-7-3) will play tonight for the third time in four days when they take on the Tampa Bay Lightning (12-14-2) at the Wells Fargo Center. The game starts at 7 PM EST and will be broadcast locally on CSN Philly and nationally on NHL Network.
Tampa has had the Flyers' number recently, and has won four of five the last five meetings.
Tonight's game marks the second of four meetings between the teams this season.
On Nov. 9, the Flyers traveled to Tampa and were unable to hold onto a 1-0 lead they took into the third period. The Bolts prevailed in OT, 2-1. Scott Hartnell provided the lone Flyers tally, with a power play goal. Marc-Andre Bergeron countered with a PPG for Tampa and Brett Connolly won it in overtime.
The first game was most notable for the Flyers' refusal to skate into the 1-3-1 (or 0-4-1) neutral zone trap that Guy Boucher favors for his offensively talented team. The numerous stalemates in the first period -- in which Tampa refused to forecheck and the Flyers declined to attempt moving the puck out of defensive zone -- drew leaguewide attention for the next two days.
Philadelphia enters this came coming off an intense 3-2 home victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins. The win catapulted the Flyers from the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference to the top spot.
Tampa Bay, meanwhile, enters the game off a comeback shootout win over the New York Rangers. The victory snapped a five-game losing streak. The tilt was marked by former Flyer Steve Downie coming off the bench to join teammates in going after Artem Anisimov for the Russian forward's taunting celebration of a shorthanded goal. The NHL ruled that Downie came in on a post-goal line change and was not subject to the automatic 10-game suspension imposed for leaving the bench to join in an altercation.
Tampa will be without Martin St. Louis (facial and nasal fractures) for awhile. He was accidentally struck in the face by a shot at practice off the stick of teammate Dominic Moore (who scored the game-tying goal in Madison Square Garden on Thursday night).
Philly, meanwhile, will be missing Chris Pronger (LTIR, knee surgery, suspected concussion) indefinitely, along with rookie forward Brayden Schenn (concussion). Defensemen Andreas Lilja (LTIR, high ankle sprain) and Erik Gustafsson (LTIR, hand/wrist surgery) will also be out of the lineup for several more weeks.
In the Flyers' last game, the club got goals from Danny Briere and Wayne Simmonds as well as Hartnell. Ilya Bryzgalov played a strong game in net after an up-and-down performance the previous night in Buffalo. Per his policy, Peter Laviolette declined to identify tonight's starting goalie in advance of gameday.
PROJECTED STARTING LINEUPS (subject to change)
FLYERS
Hartnell - Giroux - Jagr
Read - Briere - Simmonds
JVR - Talbot - Voracek
Zolnierczyk - Couturier - Rinaldo
Timonen - Coburn
Carle - Mezaros/Bourdon
Bourdon/Marshall - Meszaros
Bryzgalov/ Bobrovsky
LIGHTNING
Downie - Stamkos - Malone
Pyatt - Lecavalier - Purcell
Tyrell - Thompson - Hall
Shannon - Moore - Jones
Hedman - Brewer
Gilroy - Bergeron
Gervais - Clark
Roloson
[Garon]
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