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Flyers Gameday: 3-26-09 vs. Florida |
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PREVIEW
Fresh off rousing victories against the Penguins and Devils, the Flyers will look to further strengthen their grip on a home-ice spot in the playoffs when they take on the fading Florida Panthers tonight.
Florida has just one win in the last five games and are in danger of missing the playoffs. This is the type of game that has letdown potential, and the Flyers must bring the same focus and intensity to this game as they did to their last two tilts.
Jacques Martin took a major risk in demanding a king's ransom from teams trying to acquire Jay Bouwmeester at the deadline. If the Panthers come away with nothing -- missing the playoffs and losing Bouwmeester as a free agent -- the club's refusal to trade the defenseman could have a very damaging long-range impact.
The Flyers and Panthers have performed about equally well at even strength this season. The Flyers have scored 131 goals in 5-on-5 situations while allowing 128. Florida has scored 138 while giving up 131.
The big difference has been special teams play. With the Flyers' recent powerplay surge, they've climbed back into the NHL's top ranking at home (28.7% success) and 4th overall (22.5%) without allowing a shorthanded goal. Florida is 25th in the NHL on the man advantage (15.2%) and has allowed eight shorthanders.
On the penalty kill, the Flyers are 6th overall in the NHL (83.1%) and have scored a league-high 16 shorthanded goals. Florida is 11th overall (82.2%) and have scored six shorthanders.
For the most part, however, Florida has done a good job at staying out of the penalty box. The Panthers are the third least-penalized team in the NHL, while the Flyers are the league's most-penalized squad.
FLYERS LINES (subject to change)
Gagne - Giroux - Knuble
Hartnell - Carter - Briere
Carcillo - Richards - Lupul
Cote - Powe - Asham
Timonen - Parent
Coburn - Carle
Alberts - Jones
Biron
[Niittymäki]
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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