GAME 2: FLYERS VS. DEVILS
Sandwiched in between their season-opening journey to Europe and an upcoming three-game road trip to western Canada, Alain Vigneault's Philadelphia Flyers (1-0-0) have a brief pit stop in Philadelphia on Wednesday to take on John Hynes' New Jersey Devils (0-1-1). Game time for the Wells Fargo Center opener is 7:30 p.m. ET.
The game will be televised on NBC Sports Network. The radio broadcast is in on 97.5 The Fanatic with an online simulcast on
Flyers Radio 24/7.
Last season, the Flyers went 2-2-0 against the Devils. After this game, the teams will meet in Newark on Nov. 1, and Philadelphia on Feb. 6 before the season series concludes back at the Prudential Center on March 28.
FLYERS OUTLOOK
Before the opening faceoff drops at the Wells Fargo Center, the Flyers will have gone the five previous nights without a game. To minimize the effects of an overly long layoff, most of the team elected to skate on Monday, despite it being a CBA-mandated off-day for the team.
The only players not on the ice on Monday were Scott Laughton (wisdom teeth extraction) and Matt Niskanen (minor medical procedure). Everyone, including Laughton and Niskanen participated in practice on Tuesday. The team also announced a morning skate at the Wells Fargo Center on Wednesday. As the season moves along, Vigneault does not plan on holding many morning skates.
Last Friday, the Flyers never trailed and went on defeat the Chicago Blackhawks, 4-3, in the regular season opener at 02 Arena in Prague. Travis Konecny led the way offensively with two goals and an assist, while Oskar Lindblom and Michael Raffl chipped in one goal apiece.
Carter Hart earned the win in goal, stopping 28 of 31 shots. The 21-year-old will also get the start against New Jersey on Wednesday.
In Prague, the Flyers went 1-for-3 on the power play and 1-for-2 on the penalty kill. Philly dominated in the faceoff circle, winning 62.1 percent of the draw, led by Sean Couturier (12-for-16) and Claude Giroux (10-for-16).
The opener was a strong overall performance for Philadelphia but there is room for improvement. Puck management was an issue at times -- turnovers for both teams proved costly, and Philly had 17 of the game's charged giveaways. The closeout wasn't ideal for Philly when the score was 4-2, but after a wide-open Kane brought Chicago back within a goal, the Flyers managed the remainder of the game pretty well. The Flyers gave up two late-period goals in the game; something they'll need to clean up moving forward.
DEVILS OUTLOOK
The Devils sustained a disappointing opening night collapse last Friday at the Prudential Center.
The home side built a 4-0 lead over the Winnipeg Jets (who were playing the second game of a road back-to-back) over the first 33 minutes of the game. Blake Coleman tallied twice, and Nikita Gusev and Sami Vatanen scored once apiece.
In the final 12 seconds of the middle frame, Winnipeg finally got on the board and gained a spark of hope entering the third period. The Jets went on to come all the way back to tie the game at 4-4 to force OT. After a scoreless 3-on-3 sudden death, the Jets prevailed in a shootout, 5-4.
Corey Schneider got the start for the Devils but had to leave early in the third period due to cramping issues after stopping 19 of 21 shots. Mackenzie Blackwood had to come in cold, and absorbed two goals on nine shots before being the losing goalie in the shootout.
Schneider is expected to get the start against the Flyers on Wednesday.
Things didn't get better in the road opener in Buffalo on Saturday. The Sabres strafed the Devils for three power play goals on four man-advantage opportunities and built a 5-1 lead through two periods before going on to down the Devils, 7-2. Buffalo outshot New Jersey by a 36-20 margin.
Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac scored for New Jersey in a losing cause. Blackwood gave up seven goals on 36 shots.
In addition to Wednesday's game being the Flyers' home opener, it will also mark Wayne Simmonds' first return to Philadelphia since being traded to Nashville a few minutes before the 2019 NHL trade deadline expired. Additionally, the game will be Philly's first look at center Jack Hughes, the much-hyped first overall selection of the 2019 NHL Draft.
PROJECTED LINES (Subject to change)
FLYERS
28 Claude Giroux - 13 Kevin Hayes - 93 Jakub Voracek
23 Oskar Lindblom - 14 Sean Couturier - 11 Travis Konecny
25 James van Riemsdyk - 21 Scott Laughton- 81 Carsen Twarynski
82 Connor Bunnaman - 12 Michael Raffl- 18 Tyler Pitlick
9 Ivan Provorov - 61 Justin Braun
6 Travis Sanheim - 15 Matt Niskanen
53 Shayne Gostisbehere - 8 Robert Hägg
79 Carter Hart
[37 Brian Elliott]
Power Play 1: Giroux, Hayes, JVR, Voracek, Gostisbehere.
Power Play 2: Lindblom, Couturier, Konecny, Provorov, Niskanen
Scratches: 55 Sam Morin (healthy).
Injured non-roster: 19 Nolan Patrick (migraines), 3 Andy Welinski (lower body).
DEVILS
9 Taylor Hall - 13 Nico Hischier - 97 Nikita Gusev
63 Jesper Bratt - 19 Travis Zajac - 21 Kyle Palmieri
20 Blake Coleman - 86 Jack Hughes - 17 Wayne Simmonds
44 Miles Wood - 16 Kevin Rooney - 15 John Hayden
45 Sami Vatanen - 76 PK Subban
6 Andy Greene - 28 Damon Severson
8 Will Butcher - 5 Connor Carrick
35 Cory Schneider
[29 Mackenzie Blackwood]
Power Play 1: Hall, Zajac,Palmieri, Simmonds, Subban.
Power Play 2: Gusev, Hughes, Hischier, Gusev, Butcher.
Scratches: 90 Jesper Boqvist (healthy), 37 Pavel Zacha (healthy), 26 Mirco Mueller (healthy).
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