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Flyers Gameday: 4/2/19 @ DAL |
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Game 80 Preview: FLYERS @ STARS
Interim head coach Scott Gordon's Philadelphia Flyers (37-34-8) are in Texas on Tuesday to play Jim Montgomery's Dallas Stars (41-31-7). Game time at the American Airlines Center is 8:30 p.m. ET.
The game will be televised on NBCSP. The radio broadcast can be found on 97.5 FM The Fanatic with an online simulcast at FlyersRadio247.com.
This is the second and final meeting of the season between the teams, and the lone game in Dallas. In a game that was a season turning point for both teams, the Flyers prevailed 2-1 at the Wells Fargo Center on January 10.
An excellent 37-save performance by rookie goaltender Carter Hart keyed the win for the Flyers. Hart flirted with the first shutout of his NHL career for 57-plus minutes. He was square to the shooters all night, tracking pucks extremely well and clean with most of his saves.
Hart got a piece of a late third-period Jamie Benn goal from the slot but not quite enough. He then slammed the door with Dallas pressing heavily for an equalizer. Hart's best saves came on a first period chance for Tyler Pitlick, a second period play where John Klingberg pinched in and had a great look from the slot and a third period stop on a Klingberg power play shot with Benn screening in front of him.
Anton Khudobin deserved a better fate as he stopped 20 of 22 shots in a losing cause. While not a high volume, he faced a very high difficulty, especially successive 2-on-1 and 3-on-1 saves on third period shorthanded chances for Couturier set up by Giroux and then a 2-on-0 breakaway in which he stopped Konecny off a pass from van Riemsdyk.
The Flyers got goals from Travis Konecny and by James van Riemsdyk on a delayed Dallas penalty. JVR, Radko Gudas, Claude Giroux, and Sean Couturier earned one assist apiece. Both Philly goals came in the second period.
For Philly, the game marked the end of a six-game losing streak and the start of a climb from the NHL basement to the cusp of the playoffs before falling off again in their most recent 10 games. For Dallas, the loss marked a low point. Afterwards, Montgomery publicly called out his team (one of several times that either the coach or the front office threw down a gauntlet) for not having enough players committed to making an impact.
Since that time, Dallas has righted its ship -- especially after the NHL All-Star break, and is on the brink of clinching a playoff spot.
Flyers Outlook
The Flyers are coming off a listless 3-0 home loss to the New York Rangers one day after they were mathematically eliminated from the playoffs in a regulation road loss in Carolina. The team is playing its penultimate road game of the season, with the final one to be played in St. Louis on Thursday against Craig Berube's Blues.
Cam Talbot will get the start in goal for the Flyers. Sam Morin is slated to start on the blueline in each of the final three games of the season with a rotation of which defenseman is scratch. It is possible that Robert Hägg will sit in Dallas. The other uncertain lineup spot after an off-day on Monday is whether Phil Varone or Justin Bailey will dress as the 12th forward.
Stars Outlook
Dallas enters the game needing one point to clinch a playoff spot in the Western Conference. The team came up a point short in a 3-2 shootout road loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday.
Goaltending and team defense have become the Stars' primary strengths; a big difference from the Lindy Ruff regime (two coaches ago, with a one-season return by Ken Hitchcock in between Ruff and Montgomery) when the Stars were an offensive juggernaut but struggled mightily to keep the puck of their own net.
Anton Khudobin will get the start in goal for Dallas on Tuesday. Injured veteran netminder Ben Bishop is likely to return for the final weekend of the regular season but is not yet available. Ditto rental forward acquisition Mats Zuccarello (broken arm suffered on Feb. 24). He's been skating and practiced in full on Monday but is not yet ready to play. Brett Ritchie (hand) is in a similar situation. Justin Dowling (upper body) skated on his own on Monday.
Projected Lines
FLYERS
25 James van Riemsdyk - 19 Nolan Patrick - 28 Claude Giroux
23 Oskar Lindblom - 14 Sean Couturier - 93 Jake Voracek
38 Ryan Hartman - 21 Scott Laughton - 11 Travis Konecny
12 Michael Raffl - 10 Corban Knight - 27 Justin Bailey
9 Ivan Provorov - 6 Travis Sanheim
53 Shayne Gostisbehere - 61 Phil Myers
5 Sam Morin - 8 Robert Hägg
33 Cam Talbot
[79 Carter Hart]
Scratches: 3 Radko Gudas (healthy), 44 Phil Varone (healthy), 47 Andrew MacDonald (healthy), 37 Brian Elliott (healthy), 30 Michal Neuvirth (IR, lower body).
Stars
13 Mattias Janmark - 91 Tyler Seguin - 47 Alexander Radulov
14 Jamie Benn - 24 Roope Hintz - 16 Jason Dickinson
17 Andrew Cogliano- 12 Radek Faksa - 15 Blake Comeau
43 Valeri Nichushkin -- 90 Jason Spezza -- 18 Tyler Pitlick
23 Esa Lindell - 3 John Klingberg
4 Miro Heiskanen - 45 Roman Polak
42 Taylor Fedun - 21 Ben Lovejoy
35 Anton Khudobin
[41 Landon Bow]
Scratches: 2 Jamie Oleksiak (healthy), 6 Julius Honka (healthy), 11 Martin Hanzal (IR, back), 25 Brett Ritchie (hand), 28 Stephen Johns (suspected post-concussion syndrome), 30 Ben Bishop (lower body), 33 Marc Methot (IR, left knee surgery), 36 Mats Zuccarello (broken arm), 37 Justin Dowling (upper body), 38 Joel L'Esperance (healthy).
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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