FLYERS-BLACKHAWKS GAME PREVIEW (9:15 AM EST)
Facing an extremely difficult challenge as they bring their six-game road trip to a close, the Philadelphia Flyers (13-14-3) are in the Windy City tonight to take on the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks (22-6-5). Game time is 8:00 p.m. EST. The match will be televised nationally in the US on NBC Sports Network and in Canada on TSN2.
This is the first of two meetings between the teams this season. The clubs will rematch at the Wells Fargo Center on March 18.
The two teams have played each other twice since the 2010 Stanley Cup Finals. On Jan. 23, 2011 in Chicago, the Flyers captured a 4-1 win. On Jan. 4, 2012 in Philadelphia, the Flyers won 5-4 in regulation.
Win or lose tonight, the Flyers won't have any time to dwell on the outcome. Tomorrow night, they return to Philadelphia to take on the Montreal Canadiens.
FLYERS OUTLOOK
The Flyers are 2-2-1 in the first five games of the road trip. They are coming off a 5-4 shootout loss in Ottawa. In the seesaw game against the Senators, the Flyers held leads of 1-0 and 3-2 and battled back from 2-1 and 4-3 deficits.
Philly has yielded 11 regulation goals over the last three games; not a positive trend as they prepare to take on the highest-scoring team in the NHL. Although the Flyers have played well in stretches, they have been outplayed for longer stretches in each of the last two games.
It is imperative for the Flyers to keep their feet moving and have strong puck support tonight. The Blackhawks attack with speed and defend with speed as well. Their defense moves the puck as rapidly as any team in the League, and frequently pinches up on the play (almost always with good support behind them).
The most penalized team in the NHL, the Flyers bring the NHL's 10th-ranked penalty kill (84.0 percent) into tonight's game against Chicago's 5th-ranked power play (22.9 percent). Despite their generally solid PK work, Philly would do well to avoid playing with fire against the Hawks' collection of dangerous offensive players.
On the power play end of special teams, the Flyers bring the 20th-ranked power play (17.1 percent) into the game. Penalty killing has been one of the few weak spots for the Hawks this season. Chicago ranks 28th in the NHL at just 74.7 percent efficiency overall and an abysmal 69.8 percent on home ice. On the flip side, Chicago is the 4th least-penalized team in the NHL thus far.
Former Blackhawks goaltender Ray Emery is likely to get the start in goal tonight for the Flyers. Emery last played in Minnesota, singlehandedly keeping the game scoreless for two periods before a pair of costly breakdowns in front of him ended up in goals early in the third period of a 2-0 loss.
Vincent Lecavalier (non-displaced fracture in his lower back) remains out of the Flyers lineup. His second-line substitute, rookie winger Michael Raffl is coming off his first NHL goal and first multi-point game.
BLACKHAWKS OUTLOOK
The Blackhawks dismantled the host Dallas Stars by a 6-2 count at the American Airlines Center last night. Chicago displayed tremendous two-way speed and a deadly transitional game, while also dominating the territorial game. The Hawks pretty much coasted through the third period with the outcome long since decided in the opening 40 minutes.
Chicago brings a 10-2-4 home record into tonight's game and has accumulated the most points (49) of any team in the NHL this season. The Blackhawks are 8-0-2 against Eastern Conference opponents to date, including a 3-0-0 mark against Metropolitan Division teams.
If the Flyers hold any on-paper advantages over the Blackhawks, this is it: the Hawks played a road game last night, while Philly had the night off.
There are not many weaknesses on this Blackhawks team, apart from its spotty penalty killing percentage. One area where there is some vulnerability is that, because their defensemen handle the puck a lot, they also turn over their share of pucks. There may be some bang-bang opportunities for Philly tonight, but probably not many. It should also be noted that the Hawks block a lot of shots and are a very good backchecking club.
Number one goaltender Corey Crawford remains sidelined for the Hawks. Last night in Dallas, Antti Raanta showed tremendous flexibility in several scrambles around the net.
PROJECTED LINEUPS (Subject to change)
FLYERS
19 Scott Hartnell - 28 Claude Giroux - 92 Jakub Voracek
12 Michael Raffl - 10 Brayden Schenn - 17 Wayne Simmonds
24 Matt Read - 14 Sean Couturier - 9 Steve Downie
15 Tye McGinn or 37 Jay Rosehill - 18 Adam Hall - 36 Zac Rinaldo
44 Kimmo Timonen - 5 Braydon Coburn
8 Nicklas Grossmann - 32 Mark Streit
41 Andrej Meszaros - 22 Luke Schenn
29 Ray Emery
[35 Steve Mason]
Potential Scratches: Tye McGinn or Jay Rosehill (healthy), Vincent Lecavalier (back injury), Erik Gustafsson (healthy), Hal Gill (healthy), Chris Pronger (LTIR, post-concussion syndrome).
BLACKHAWKS
10 Patrick Sharp - 19 Jonathan Toews - 81 Marian Hossa
23 Kris Versteeg - 26 Michal Handzus - 88 Patrick Kane
20 Brandon Saad - 65 Andrew Shaw - 11 Jeremy Morin
52 Brandon Bollig - 16 Marcus Kruger - 28 Ben Smith
2 Duncan Keith - 7 Brent Seabrook
4 Niklas Hjalmarsson - 27 Johnny Oduya
8 Nick Leddy - 6 Michael Kostka
31 Antti Raanta / 40 Kent Simpson
Possible scratches: Sheldon Brookbank (healthy), Michal Rozsival (healthy), Corey Crawford (groin), Nikolai Khabibulin (IR, lower body), Bryan Bickell (IR, knee).
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