|
Flyers Gameday: 2/3/18 vs. OTT; Phantoms & NA Prospect Updates |
|
|
|
|
|
GAME 52 PREVIEW: FLYERS VS. SENATORS
Dave Hakstol's Philadelphia Flyers (24-19-8) return to action on Saturday afternoon, hosting Guy Boucher's Ottawa Senators (16-24-9) at the Wells Fargo Center. Game time is 1:00 p.m. ET. The game will be locally televised on NBCSNP.
This is the second of three meetings between the teams this season, and the lone game in Philadelphia. The season series concludes in Ottawa on Feb. 24.
Back on Oct. 26, the Flyers sustained a galling 5-4 regulation loss in Ottawa.
A horrific first period by the Flyers, filled with turnovers and breakdowns, sporadic goaltending play and a pair of disallowed third period goals combined to send the Philadelphia Flyers down to defeat.
The Flyers dug themselves a 3-0 hole in the first period and never quite drew even despite playing much better over the final 40 minutes as they got their skating legs moving.
Philadelphia reduced the gap to 3-2 in the second period only to go to the second intermission trailing 4-2. The deficit grew to 5-2 before the Flyers scored two goals that counted and two that were disallowed.
Dion Phaneuf (power play), Mark Borowiecki, J-G Pageau(shorthanded), Mark Stone and Tom Pyatt scored goals for Ottawa. Jakub Voracek (one goal, one assist), Travis Konecny (one goal, one assist), Ivan Provorov (one goal, one assist) and Sean Couturier (one goal, two assists) scored for the Flyers.
Michal Neuvirth made some tough and important saves in the latter portion of the game but was leaky for much of the game as the Flyers collectively dug a deep hole for themselves. He finished with 23 saves on 28 shots. Craig Anderson stopped 36 of 40. The Flyers' 40 shots on goal were among 70 total shot attempts; 21 of which were blocked.
The Flyers had two goals disallowed in the third period. One was debatable either way, the other was egregious.
At 11:38 of the third period, a Brandon Manning point shot found its way into the net and was initially ruled a good goal. Upon challenge by Ottawa, however, the goal was overturned for goaltender interference by Jordan Weal. The officials ruled there was incidental contact in the blue paint initiated by Anderson as he was in the act of establishing his position in the crease and, although Weal promptly vacated the crease, the officials believed he did not have fair opportunity to get re-set and attempt a save.
A more frustrating ruling took place with 56 seconds left on the third period clock. Replays showed that Couturier jammed a loose puck -- which was moving the entire time -- completely over the goal line before Anderson's glove (over the line at the time the puck entered it) pulled it back. Ruled no goal initially, the officials decided to ignore the replay evidence of a moving puck that crossed the line and in which the blowing of the whistle was irrelevant to the goal being scored-- which Rule 38.4 explicitly states is a valid situation for using replay to overturn an "intent to blow the whistle" no-goal decision.
As a result, the Flyers came away with zero points instead of at least one.
FLYERS OUTLOOK
The Flyers are playing for the third time in less than four nights. The team did not practice on Friday. Losers of three straight games in regulation -- the last two in disheartening fashion, especially on Thursday against the New Jersey Devils in Newark -- the Flyers are narrowly clinging to the lower wildcard seed in the Eastern Conference but need to get back on the winning track immediately.
A nearly season-long problem, except during the first two weeks of November, has been the Flyers' inability to successfully kill penalties. Over the last three games, with starting goaltender Brian Elliott sidelined with a lower-body injury, leaky goaltending has sprung up as a second key problem.
Neuvirth had a so-so start against Tampa Bay in the final game before the All-Star break and followed it up with a terrible second and third period (until getting pulled) in Washington in the first game after the break. Neuvirth had been ill over the break and had missed a practice while recuperating. He claimed after the Caps game that he felt drained of all energy after the first period.
Rookie goaltender Alex Lyon, who mopped up the remainder of the Capitals game for his NHL debut, got the start in Newark. The 25-year-old Yale University product battled hard and was aggressive in coming up with a couple of good saves but was leaky overall. The Flyers let a 3-2 lead slip away and went down to a 4-3 regulation loss that was capped off by a deflection goal by Nico Hischier that squeezed through the five-hole in the final 1:27 of the game.
Both halves of the Flyers defense pairing of Radko Gudas and Brandon Manning have struggled mightily of late. Meanwhile, the club's penalty killing issues have been particularly acute of late when the lead-footed Jori Lehterä and the struggling Valtteri Filppula have been the forward duo on the ice.
Rookie forward Taylor Leier returned to the Flyers' lineup on Thursday after a lengthy spell as a healthy scratch. Unless there is a decision to go back to the oft-scratched Dale Weise, it looks like Leier will stay in the lineup for awhile. Rookie winger Tyrell Goulbourne was reassigned to the AHL's Lehigh Valley Phantoms on Friday.
Elliott was on the ice on Friday. The hope is that the veteran goalie, who remains on injured reserve, can be ready to play by Tuesday.
Travis Konecny saw a five-game goal streak and six-game point streak come to an end in the Devils game. Sean Couturier, pointless without a shot on goal against New Jersey, has not scored a goal in six games. Claude Giroux, who has continued to rack up assists at a prolific rate but has just two goals since Dec. 14, ended a nine-game goalless stretch with a 5-on-3 power play goal against the Devils.
Giroux (power play, 15th goal of the season), Wayne Simmonds (power play, 17th) and Shayne Gostisbehere (10th) scored for the Flyers against the Devils. Jakub Voracek (49th and 50th assists of the season), Simmonds (15th assist), Gostisbehere (25th assist), Valtteri Filppula (12th assist) and Taylor Leier (4th assist) chipped in helpers.
For the season, the Flyers have scored 2.88 goals per game (16th in the NHL) and have a team 2.88 GAA (T-16th). At five-on-five, the Flyers have scored 89 goals (21st) and yielded 81 (4th fewest in the league).
On the power play, the Flyers rank 8th at 21.4 percent (37-for-173) with eight shorthanded goals yielded (tied for second most). On the penalty kill, the Flyers rank tied for 29th (116-for-157, 73.9 percent). The Flyers have scored two shorthanded goals; one apiece for Scott Laughton and Wayne Simmonds.
SENATORS OUTLOOK
A playoff team a year ago, the Senators have been a mess this season both off and on the ice. The club has dropped seven of its last 10 games and had lost six in a row but come into this game off a 2-1 home overtime win against the Anaheim Ducks.
Superstar defenseman Erik Karlsson (5th goal of the season) tallied a power play goal at the 32-second mark of OT to win the game. Veteran winger Bobby Ryan broke a scoreless deadlock in the third period with a power play goal of his own; his 7th overall of the season. Karlsson also picked up his 29th assist of the season on the play. Goalie Mike Condon nearly nursed the 1-0 lead to a shutout before Ryan Kesler forced OT with a goal at 19:06 of the third period. Condon went on to earn the win and second-star honors with 30 saves on 31 shots.
Ryan (hand injury) is not expected to play in Philadelphia. On a brighter note for the Senators,
Mark Stone, while on injured reserve with a knee injury, is getting close to being ready to play. He's questionable to doubtful for Saturday's game but the injury is reportedly not as serious as initially feared. Stone leads the Senators in scoring this season with 44 points (18 goals, 26 assists) in 44 games played.
Averaging 2.57 goals per game, the Senators rank 25th offensively across the NHL. The club brings a team 3.35 goals against average into this game, ranking 29th. At five-on-five, Ottawa has scored 84 goals (26th) and given up 107 (5th most).
On the power play, the Senators have scuffled at 16.0 percent efficiency (25-for-156) to rank 28th. The team has given up four shorthanded goals. On the penalty kill, Ottawa ranks 25th at 75.0 percent success (108-for-144). The Sens have scored four shorthanded goals: one apiece by Stone, Pageau (against the Flyers), Tom Pyatt and Nate Thompson.
PROJECTED LINEUPS
FLYERS
28 Claude Giroux - 14 Sean Couturier - 11 Travis Konecny
93 Jakub Voracek - 19 Nolan Patrick - 17 Wayne Simmonds
40 Jordan Weal - 21 Scott Laughton - 12 Michael Raffl
20 Taylor Leier - 51 Valtteri Filppula - 15 Jori Lehterä
9 Ivan Provorov - 53 Shayne Gostisbehere
47 Andrew MacDonald -3 Robert Hägg
23 Brandon Manning - 3 Radko Gudas
30 Michal Neuvirth
[49 Alex Lyon]
Scratches: 22 Dale Weise (healthy), 39 Mark Alt (healthy), 37 Brian Elliott (IR, lower body).
SENATORS
68 Mike Hoffman - 95 Matt Duchene - 36 Colin White
18 Ryan Dzingel - 19 Derick Brassard - 49 Chris DiDomenico
15 Zack Smith - 44 Jean-Gabriel Pageau - 10 Tom Pyatt
56 Magnus Pääjärvi - 17 Nate Thompson - 14 Alexandre Burrows
29 Johnny Oduya - 65 Erik Karlsson
2 Dion Phaneuf - 5 Cody Ceci
74 Mark Borowiecki - 72 Thomas Chabot
41 Craig Anderson / 1 Mike Condon
Scratches: 33 Fredrick Claesson (healthy), 9 Bobby Ryan (hand), 6 Chris Wideman (IR, torn hamstring),40 Gabriel Dumont (IR), 61 Mark Stone (IR, knee, doubtful for Saturday).
*************
PHANTOMS SKATE PAST CHARLOTTE, 3-2
The Lehigh Valley Phantoms shook off a poor first period on Friday night and went to earn a 3-2 win over the Charlotte Checkers at the PPL Center. It was an important victory in a divisional game with Flyers general manager Ron Hextall in attendance.
The win kept the Phantoms two points ahead of the Wilkes Barre/ Scranton Penguins (who still hold three games in hand and first place in the Atlantic Division via the AHL's points percentage method of keeping the standings) and four points ahead of the Providence Bruins. Charlotte is now 10 points behind the Phantoms.
The biggest reason for the Phantoms victory was the play in net of minor league veteran goalie John Muse. With Alex Lyon on Flyers recall, the 29-year-old Muse got called up from the ECHL's Reading Royals and got the start on Friday over Dustin Tokarski.
The Phantoms got outshot 40-26 overall, including 13-6 in the first period, but Muse limited the damage to a Valentin Zykov power play goal midway through the first period until the Phantoms could get going.
Second period goals by veteran All-Star defenseman T.J. Brennan (10th of the season) and, in the final minute of the stanza, by Chris Conner (10th), sent the Phantoms to the locker room with a 2-1 lead. Shots were 12-11 in Charlotte's favor.
The Brennan goal, scored at 12:49, saw the offensive defenseman pinch in on the right side as the Phantoms won a forechecking battle. Taking a feed from Nicolas Aube-Kubel (16th assist of the season), Brennan ripped a one-timer past Charlotte goalie Alex Nedeljkovic to tie the game at 1-1. Greg Carey (11th assist) collected a secondary assist.
The goal made Brennan the only defenseman in American Hockey League history to record eight different seasons with double-digit goals. He's done it in nine pro seasons.
At 19:22 of the second period, the Phantoms took advantage of some self-made puck luck. Conner carried the puck up the right wing and put the puck at the net. The puck deflected in off a defender's skate to give Lehigh Valley the lead. Assists went to Cole Bardeau (7th) and Travis Sanheim (2nd since his demotion from the Flyers). Bardreau was initially credited with the goal but did not touch the puck on after Conner shot it.
In the third period, Charlotte brought renewed pressure, and outshot Lehigh Valley by a 15-9 margin. The Checkers tied the game at 2-2 with a Warren Foegele breakaway goal at 7:35.
With time ticking down to three minutes left in the third period, Cole Bardeau (3rd goal of the season) re-directed a Radel Fazleev shot into the net to put the Phantoms ahead to stay. The assists went to Fazleev (11th) and Reece Willcox (7th).
The Phantoms went 0-for-4 on the power play and 2-for-3 on the penalty kill.
Rookie left winger Oskar Lindblom, a participant in the AHL All-Star Game, finished without a point or shot on goal. He was part of the penalty killing quartet on the ice for the Zykov goal. Rookie defenseman Philippe Myers had four shots on goal and finished at plus-one but took a high-sticking penalty as time expired in the first period. Meanwhile, second-year pro Sanheim was plus-two with two shots on goal. Rookie center Mikhail Vorobyev, skating on the same line with Lindblom, did not record a point or a shot on goal.
On the injury front, Samuel Morin remains sidelined. He got reinjured (his fourth injury-related stretch of the season out of the lineup) in the Phantoms' recent outdoor game in Hershey and has not skated since that time. Rookie defenseman Mark Friedman was a healthy scratch.
The Phantoms face an even bigger test on Saturday, going on the road to take on the Penguins in a showdown for first place in the division. Tokarski will be in goal.
Lehigh Valley's starting lineup combos on Friday were as follows:
19 Radel Fazleev - 21 Mike Vecchione -16 Nicolas Aube-Kubel
28 Oskar Lindblom - 15 Mikhail Vorobyev - 24 Matt Read
10 Greg Carey - 9 Cole Bardreau - 22 Chris Conner
12 Tyrell Goulbourne - 11 Steve Swaveley -13 Colin McDonald
43 T.J. Brennan - 44 Reece Willcox
6 Travis Sanheim - 5 Philippe Myers
8 Will O'Neill - 20 Max Lamarche
1 John Muse
[35 Dustin Tokarski]
Scratches: 3 Samuel Morin (injury), 14 Corban Knight (injury), 18 Danick Martel (injury), 26 Phil Varone (AHL veteran), 37 Mark Friedman (healthy), 26 Alex Krushelnyski (healthy).
********
JUNIOR/COLLEGIATE PROSPECTS: FRIDAY HIGHLIGHTS
* OHL: Morgan Frost scored the game-winning goal in overtime to give the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds a 4-3 win after the team was unable to protect a 3-0 lead over the Saginaw Spirit entering the third period. The OHL-leading team had been significantly outplayed for much of the game despite building a cushion on the scoreboard.
In OT, play continued after a Frost wraparound attempt. After the puck went back into the Geyhounds' zone, Frost fed the puck ahead up the right side to Boris Katchouk, who sniped a shot high to the short side. However, replays showed that Frost's initial wraparound shot went over the goal line, ending the game. Katchouk's goal sequence on the continuation was pretty but superfluous.
Earlier in the game, Frost picked up a secondary assist on a Taylor Raddysh goal that gave the Hounds a 3-0 lead late in the second period. The tally was scored shortly after the expiration of a Soo power play. Frost simply passed the puck to Tim Gettinger along the side boards. Most of the work was done by Raddysh on this one, finding a shooting line and wiring home a shot.
Frost finished the night with three shots on goal, 14-for-22 on faceoffs and at plus-one (+2, -1). He took a second period interference penalty that was canceled out halfway through by a too-many-men-on-the-ice penalty for Saginaw. The Greyhounds scored on the 4-on-4 to make it a 2-0 lead and then Raddysh scored after 5-on-5 play resumed following a minute-long Greyhounds power play.
Frost's updated season totals and Ontario Hockey League rankings: 84 points (1st), 30 goals (5th), 54 assists (T-1st), +54 (1st).
The Greyhounds (42-5-3) will enjoy an off-day on Saturday. On Sunday, they will play host at the Essar Centre to the Erie Otters (15-26-9).
* WHL: Carter Hart stopped 29 of 31 shots to collect second-star honors as his Everett Silvertips earned a 3-2 road win over the Kelowna Rockets. Hart flirted with his seventh shutout of the season for 49 minutes before he was finally solved. Hart also collected a secondary assist on a power play goal that gave Everett a 3-0 lead.
Kyle Topping broke up Hart's shutout bid at 9:00 of the third period. On a setup out of the corner from Kole Lind, Topping found the net. Flyers WHL overager prospect Carsen Twarynski later added his 33rd goal of the season for the Rockets on a Lind rebound but their team was unable to find an equalizer. Hart made a crucial final save on Dillon Dube in the final 10 seconds on a wrister from the right circle.
Hart's updated season stats: 20-4-2 record, 1.55 GAA (1st), .952 SV% (1st), 6 SO (1st).
Twarynski's updated stats: 44 GP, 32 G (T-11th) , 22 A, 55 PTS.
The U.S. Division leading Silvertips (33-17-3) and British Columbia Division leading Rockets (32-15-4) will rematch on Saturday. This time, the scene shifts to Everett.
* QMJHL: Flyers 2016 first-round pick German Rubtsov's roller coaster 2017-18 season continued as he missed Friday night's game between his Acadie-Bathurst Titan and Cape Breton (a 7-2 romp for the Titan) with an undisclosed injury. Acadie-Bathurst is on the road on Saturday to take on the Halifax Mooseheads. For the season, Rubtsov has a somewhat disappointing 34 points (12 goals, 22 assists) in 35 games, including 23 points (nine goals, 14 assists) in 24 games since coming over to the Titan in a trade with Chicoutimi.
* QMJHL: Flyers 2016 second-round pick Pascal Laberge did not record a point in the Quebec Remparts' 2-1 home win over the Baie-Comeau Drakkar. He attempted three shots on goal and had one scoring chance. Laberge had a good night on faceoffs, going 6-for-7 and was also credited with four hits. For the season, Laberge has 31 points in 47 games (11 goals, 20 assists) including five goals and 11 points in 16 games since coming over to Quebec in a trade with Victoriaville.
* OHL: In a game pitting Isaac Ratcliffe's Guelph Storm head-to-head with Maksim Sushko's Owen Sound Attack, Ratcliffe (one goal, one assist, six shots on goal) took second-star honors and Sushko (one goal, one assist, plus two) got a third-star nod in Owen Sound's 6-4 win over the host Storm.
The Storm trailed 4-1 in the third period before rallying back to briefly tie the game. Off a left circle was faceoff win, Ratcliffe blasted a slapshot home from high in the attack zone to cut gap to 4-3. Ratcliffe then made a nice setup pass to Alexey Toropchenko to knot the game at 4-4.
Sushko, who sniped a goal in the first period, later got the only assist on Igor Chibrikov's goal that put the Attack back ahead to stay at 17:12 of the third period.
Ratcliffe's updated stats: 48 GP, 28 G, (8 PPG, 2 SHG), 18 A, 46 PTS, -8
Sushko's updated stats: 40 GP, 23 G (4 PPG, 4 SHG), 17 A, 40 PTS, +4
Guelph (24-21-4) is idle on Saturday before visiting the North Bay Battalion on Sunday afternoon. Owen Sound (22-19-7) hosts the Kitchener Rangers on Saturday.
* OHL: In a game pitting Matthew Strome (0 points, 2 shots, minus-two) and the Hamilton Bulldogs against Connor Bunnaman (0 points, minus-one, three shots, 12-for-15 on faceoffs) and the Kitchener Rangers, the host Rangers prevailed by a 4-3 count.
Strome's updated stats: 48 GP, 28 G (8 PPG, 1 SHG), 21 A, 49 PTS, -2.
Bunnaman's updated stats: 48 GP, 19 G (6 PPG. 1 SHG), 38 PTS, -1.
The streaky Strome, who recently rattled off points in six of seven games (five goals, two assists) has since been held without a point in the last four games. Bunnaman, an even more streaky offensive player who struggled to produce for much of January after a hot November and December, is pointless in his last three games.
Still leading the Eastern Conference by an 11-point margin over Niagara, Hamilton (32-12-6) hosts the Mississauga Steelheads (23-25-1) on Saturday. Kitchener (34-14-2) is on the road on Saturday against Owen Sound.
* OHL: The lowly Flint Firebirds tripped up the visiting Sarnia Sting in overtime, 3-2. Flyers 2016 sixth-round pick Anthony Salinitri put the Sting ahead, 2-1, early in the third period but Flint rallied back to force overtime and then win the game over Derian Hatcher's club. Neck-and-neck with Frost for the OHL scoring title, Jordan Kyrou was held off the scoresheet on this night.
Salinitri's updated stats: 51 GP, 21 G (5 PPG, 2 SHG), 23 A, 44 PTS, -4.
Sarnia (35-12-4) is locked in a battle with Kitchener for second place in the Western Conference, as the league-leading Soo Greyhounds (13 points ahead of Sarnia, 17 ahead of Kitchener) are very unlikely to be caught in the regular season. On Saturday, the Sting host the fourth-place London Knights (26-19-4).
* NCAA: Tanner Laczynski chipped in an assist and had three shots on goal as his Ohio State Buckeyes (18-5-4) dispatched the visiting Michigan State Spartans (9-17-1) by a 4-2 count. The teams rematch on Saturday night at Ohio State.
For the season, sophomore right winger Laczynski has posted 37 points (12 goals, 25 assists) in 27 games played. The 20-year-old's 1.37 points-per-game average ranks 8th nationally across all NCAA Division I circuits.
* NCAA: In a game that featured three Flyers prospects, the Michigan Wolverines (13-12-2) prevailed over the visiting Wisconsin Badgers (13-13-4) in a 5-3 final. The teams will rematch on Saturday.
For Michigan, junior center Cooper Marody (who had been slumping a bit of late) scored a goal on his line shot on net while junior left winger Brendan Warren did not record a point but had three shots on goal. Wisconsin freshman defenseman Wyatt Kalynuk posted five shots on goal but was kept off the scoresheet.
Marody now has 32 points (10 goals, 22 assists) in 27 games played; his 1.19 points per game average ranks in a tie for 15th nationally after having briefly led the nation in that category prior to a post-Christmas dip in production. Warren has seven goals and 12 points in 27 games. Kalynuk has produced 20 points (two goals, 18 assists) as a 20-year-old freshman.
* NCAA: Senior defenseman David Drake posted a pair of assists as the UConn Huskies (12-16-2) upset visiting Boston College. The win was UConn's fourth in a row on the heels of a five-game losing streak. On Saturday, the team visits Brown. For the season, 6-foot-6 defensive defenseman Drake has six assists in 30 games.
* NCAA: Clarkson fell to host Quinnipiac, 4-1. Senior defenseman Terrance Amorosa chipped in an assist and an even plus-minus in a losing cause. For the season, the 23-year-old has six goals and 22 points in 27 games. Clarkson is on the road to play Princeton on Saturday.
* USHL: Flyers 2017 fifth-round pick Noah Cates scored a pair of goals and had four shots on net as his Omaha Lancers blew out the Central Illinois Flying Aces, 8-1. After a slow start to his first full USHL season, Cates is now up to 11 goals and 27 points in 35 games.
* USHL: Flyers 2015 third-round pick Matej Tomek stopped 16 of 17 shots as the Waterloo Blackhawks beat the Tri-City Storm, 4-1. For season, Tomek improved to 9-6-1 with a 2.38 GAA and .908 save percentage.
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
Join the Discussion:
»