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Flyers Gameday: 10/22/23 @ DAL; Phantoms Update |
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Update: 1:00 p.m. EDT
FLYERS LINEUP
11 Travis Konecny - 21 Scott Laughton - 71 Tyson Foerster
74 Owen Tippett- 14 Sean Couturier - 89 Cam Atkinson
86 Joel Farabee - 27 Noah Cates - 10 Bobby Brink
44 Nic Deslauriers- 25 Ryan Poehling- 19 Garnet Hathaway
8 Cam York-6 Travis Sanheim
5 Egor Zamula - 26 Sean Walker
36 Emil Andrae-24 Nick Seeler
33 Samuel Ersson
[32 Felix Sandström]
Dallas backup goaltender Scott Wedgewood will get the start for the Stars.
Preview: Flyers @ Dallas
The Philadelphia Flyers (3-1-0) are in Texas on Saturday to take on the Dallas Stars (2-0-1) at the American Airlines Center. Game time is 8:00 p.m. EDT.
The Flyers are coming off a 4-1 home win over the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday evening. Cam Atkinson scored two goals, while Joel Farabee and Sean Walker (shorthanded) notched one apiece. Carter Hart (22 saves) was quietly excellent in earning the win in net.
The Flyers did not hold a practice on Friday. They will have a morning skate in Dallas at 12:30 p.m. EDT on Saturday.
It is unclear whether Morgan Frost will get back into the lineup after Tortorella made him a healthy scratch the previous two games. Bobby Brink has played very well and deserves to stay in the lineup. Fellow rookie Tyson Foerster hasn't been bad, but hasn't stood out (in training camp, the preseason or the young regular season to date) to nearly the same degree that he did in his eight-game NHL recall last season.
On the blueline, there will be at least one lineup change in Dallas. Marc Staal suffered an upper-body injury in the Edmonton game and will miss four to six weeks. Rasmus Ristolainen appears to be very close to being activated from IR. It would not be a surprise if the two switched places on Saturday: Staal to IR, backdated, and Ristolainen activated to the roster.
Additionally, it would not be at all surprising if Egor Zamula slots back into the lineup and Emil Andrae exits. Frankly, it was a questionable decision to sit Zamula after the Vancouver game. Overall, his games in Columbus and against the Canucks were superior to what Andrae contributed in Ottawa (his NHL debut) or against the Oliers. If Tortorella is determined to continue rotating the two players and not having both in the lineup on the same night yet, the edge should go right now to Zamula.
It also would not a surprise if the Flyers make a change in goal for this game. Hart has played very well through four games. This is simply a matter of getting some work for Samuel Ersson, who last played in the penultimate game of the preseason.
On the Dallas side, the seemingly ageless Joe Pavelski is off to another strong start (2g, 1a). The Stars have spread around the offense so far but have not really gotten rolling yet. They've scored a combined six goals in regulation/overtime through three games but came away with five of six possible points.
It's only a matter of time, for example, until Jason Robertson -- coming off back-to-back seasons of 40+ goals -- starts putting pucks in the net. Robertson, who has done plenty of damage to the Flyers in the twice-per-season meetings of previous seasons, has one assist and no goals yet through three games.
I will add lineups to the preview blog later today.
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Phantoms Defeat Springfield, Head to Hartford
The Lehigh Valley Phantoms (2-1-0) came back from an early 2-0 deficit to skate to a 5-2 victory over the Springfield Thunderbirds on Friday evening. The Phantoms are now headed to Connecticut to play the Hartford Wolf Pack on Saturday evening before returning to Allentown for a return match with Springfield on Sunday afternoon.
In Friday's game, second-year Phantom Olle Lycksell racked up a hat trick, Alexis Gendron scored his second AHL goal in his second regular season game as a pro, and veteran captain Garrett Wilson scored a deflection power play goal that served as a turning point in the game. Tanner Laczynski and rookie Samu Tuomaala collected two assists apiece, and Elliot Desnoyers earned his first point of the season as he created the sequence that led to Lycksell's first goal.
Coming off a rough outing on opening night, Cal Petersen produced a strong performance (30 saves) in Springfield. He'd have liked to have back an Adam Gaudette short-side goal -- the first of two tallies by Gaudette in the first period -- but Petersen was otherwise excellent. He was outstanding once the Phantoms took the lead, and the victory was well-deserved.
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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