GAME 3 PREVIEW: FLYERS VS. SHARKS
Playing their home opener of the 2018-19 regular season, Dave Hakstol's Philadelphia Flyers (1-1-0) host Peter DeBoer's San Jose Sharks (1-2-0) at the Wells Fargo Center on Tuesday evening. Game time is 7:00 p.m. EDT.
The game will be televised on NBCSP. The radio broadcast is available on 97.5 AM The Fanatic with an online simulcast available on FlyersRadio247.com.
This is the first of two meetings this season between the interconference teams. Last season, the clubs split their two games, with the road team prevailing both times. On Oct. 14, 2017, a Wayne Simmonds hat trick spurred the Flyers to a 5-3 opening night win in San Jose.On Nov. 28, 2017, the Sharks skated to a 3-1 win at the Wells Fargo Center.
Flyers Outlook
The Flyers earned a 5-2 opening night win in Vegas last Thursday and then dropped a 5-2 decision in Colorado on Saturday. After an off-day on Sunday, the team
practiced on Monday at the Skate Zone in Voorhees.
The team will be without left winger James van Riemsdyk for five to six weeks. The veteran forward sustained a lower-body injury when he was hit by a clearing attempt by Colorado's Mark Barbiero in the first period of Saturday's game. Jordan Weal, a healthy scratch in the first two games, will dress in JVR's spot on third-line left wing. Oskar Lindblom will take over van Riemsdyk's netfront role on the second power play unit.
A third period line combination change on Saturday -- moving Jakub Voracek to Sean Couturier's line and Travis Konecny's to Nolan Patrick's -- held over at practice on Monday and will be employed to start the game on Tuesday. Hakstol indicated that he's hoping to get a little more from both lines, so he flipped their right wingers and will see how that goes.
Patrick is still looking for his first point since a Game 4 assist in the playoff series against Pittsburgh this past April. He did not record a goal or assist during the preseason this September and does not have a point through the first two goals of the brand-new campaign.
Through two games, the Flyers are 1-for-7 on the power play with a shorthanded goal allowed. They are 6-for-7 on the penalty kill.
Brian Elliott had had two strong starts to begin the season, although his stat line from the Colorado game looks pedestrian. Elliott will get tabbed to start the home opener on the front end of a home/road back-to-back set. On Wednesday in Ottawa, Calvin Pickard may get his first start as a Flyer.
Sharks Outlook
The Sharks are playing the second half of back-to-back games. They are coming off a 4-0 shutout loss to the New York Islanders in a Columbus Day matinee. The game was scoreless until late in the second period, but the Islanders pulled away in the third period.
San Jose is playing the second game of a four-game east coast road trip. They will be in Madison Square Garden on Thursday to take on the New York Rangers before the trip concludes in Newark against the New Jersey Devils on Sunday.
In Monday's loss to the Islanders, Martin Jones stopped 26 of 29 shots in a losing cause before a late empty-netter tacked on an extra goal for New York. Robin Lehner stopped all 35 shots he faced. New York also blocked 23 shot attempts and the Sharks missed the net on nine others.
With the Sharks playing on a back-to-back and Jones having started all three games to date, Aaron Dell could get the start in Philadelphia. San Jose will not hold a morning skate on Tuesday.
Evander Kane scored goals in back-to-back games before the Sharks were blanked by the Islanders.
The Sharks are missing ageless star center Joe Thornton. The veteran is on injured reserve with what might be an infection in his right knee. Tests revealed no structural damage. Joe Pavelski centered the top line in New York on Monday. Rourke Chartier dressed for the first time, centering the fourth line.
Despite San Jose's rocky first week to the regular season, the team presents a unique challenge in that the team has two of the NHL's preeminent offensive defensemen in Erik Karlsson and Brent Burns. After Monday's practice, Sean Couturier and Wayne Simmonds said there is a two-fold key to combating that weapon: Flyers forwards have to help out defensively and, the more Karlsson and Burns are forced to play defense, the less they can subsequently attack before ending their shifts.
Sooner or later, the Sharks power play will get rolling. Through the first three games, they are 0-for-6. The penalty kill is 6-for-8 with a shorthanded goal scored. The Sharks were 3-for-4 on the PK against the Islanders and 0-for-4 on the power play.
PROJECTED LINES (subject to change)
FLYERS
28 Claude Giroux - 14 Sean Couturier -93 Jakub Voracek
23 Oskar Lindblom -19 Nolan Patrick -11 Travis Konecny
40 Jordan Weal - 24 Mikhail Vorobyev - 17 Wayne Simmonds
21 Scott Laughton -15 Jori Lehterä -12 Michael Raffl:
9 Ivan Provorov - 53 Shayne Gostisbehere
8 Robert Hägg - 47 Andrew MacDonald
6 Travis Sanheim - 3 Radko Gudas
37 Brian Elliott
[33 Calvin Pickard]
Scratches: 22 Dale Weise (healthy), 26 Christian Folin (healthy), 25 James van Riemsdyk (IR, lower body), 30 Michal Neuvirth (IR, lower body), 49 Alex Lyon (IR, lower body), 38 Corban Knight (IR, upper body), 5 Sam Morin (ACL surgery).
SHARKS (based on Monday lineup @ NYI)
28 Timo Meier- 8 Joe Pavelski - 68 Melker Karlsson
48 Tomas Hertl -39 Logan Couture - 62 Kevin Labanc
9 Evander Kane - 40 Antti Suomela - 27 Joonas Donskoi
10 Marcus Sörensen - 14 Dylan Gambrell - 23 Barclay Goodrow
47 Joakim Ryan - 88 Brent Burns
44 Marc-Edouard Vlasic - 65 Erik Karlsson
4 Brenden Dillon - 61 Justin Braun
30 Aaron Dell
[31 Martin Jones]
Scratches: 72 Tim Heed, 51 Radim Simek (healthy), 19 Joe Thornton (IR right knee injury/infection).
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