Philadelphia Flyers

Flyers Gameday: 3/26/17 @ PIT, Wrap: Blue Jackets Blank Flyers, 1-0
March 26, 2017, 7:38 AM ET [212 Comments]
Bill Meltzer
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger • NHL.com • RSS • Archive • CONTACT
PREVIEW: FLYERS @ PENGUINS

In the final game of a four-game road trip, Dave Hakstol's Philadelphia Flyers (34-32-8) take on Mike Sullivan's Pittsburgh Penguins (46-17-11). Game time at PPG Paints Arena is 7:00 p.m. ET. The game will be televised nationally on NBCSN.

This is the fourth of four meetings between the Metropolitan Division clubs this season. The Penguins claimed a 5-4 victory at the Wells Fargo Center on Oct. 26 and then won the Stadium Series game against the Flyers, 4-2, at Heinz Field on February 25. On March 15 at the Wells Fargo Center, the Flyers shut out the Penguins, 4-0.

Flyers Outlook

The Flyers are just 13-21-4 on the road this season. The team played well in Columbus on Saturday afternoon but could not muster a goal in a 1-0 loss.

Over his last 11 games, Sean Couturier has posted 10 points (three goals, seven assists). Linemate Brayden Schenn has posted six points (three goals, three assists) over the last seven games. On the injury front, Michael Raffl (lower-body injury) remains on injured reserve. Forward Nick Cousins is out with an upper-body issue.

For the Flyers, Sunday's game is their third in four nights and fourth game in six nights. Such games are often a struggle to find energy against weaker-on-paper teams, much less going up against the defending Stanley Cup champions. However, on that front, the Penguins are also playing for the third time in four nights and fourth in six. The only difference is that Pittsburgh played back-to-back games on Thursday and Friday and had a day off on Saturday.

Penguins Outlook

The Penguins have been lights-out on home ice, going 29-4-4 to date. The team settled for one point in a 4-3 home shootout loss to the New York Islanders on Friday, one night after taking one point away from a 2-1 road shootout loss against the Ottawa Senators.

Pittsburgh opens play on Sunday tied with Columbus for second place in the Metropolitan Division. Both teams have 103 points in 74 games. However, if the season ended today, the Blue Jackets would take the second seed and home ice advantage in a first-round series against Pittsburgh by virtue of the Blue Jackets' 46 regulation/OT wins to Pittsburgh's 43.

The Penguins have managed to take points away in nine of their last 10 games (6-1-3, with the lone regulation loss coming at the hands of the Flyers) despite being riddled with injuries, especially on the blueline.

Indeed, the team's injury report is more like an infirmary ward directory: Evgeni Malkin (shoulder) is questionable for Sunday's game, as is ex-Flyer forward Tom Sestito (upper body). Jake Guentzel (suspected concussion) is doubtful. Carl Hagelin (lower body) is out.

The blueline is banged up even worse, with half of its starters missing. Kris Letang (upper body) is in injured reserve, as is Olli Määttä. Ron Hainsey (upper body) is doubtful. Former Flyers defenseman Mark Streit, who has six points in 12 games since being acquired by the Penguins via three-way deal with Tampa Bay and the Flyers, has been playing through a lower body injury.

Projected lineups (Subject to change)

FLYERS

24 Matt Read - 28 Claude Giroux - 93 Jakub Voracek
40 Jordan Weal - 51 Valterri Filppula - 17 Wayne Simmonds
22 Dale Weise - 14 Sean Couturier - 10 Brayden Schenn
76 Chris VandeVelde - 78 Pierre-Édouard Bellemare - 11 Travis Konecny

9 Ivan Provorov - 47 Andrew MacDonald
23 Brandon Manning - 53 Shayne Gostisbehere
55 Nick Schultz - 3 Radko Gudas

35 Steve Mason / 30 Michal Neuvirth

Scratches: Michael Del Zotto or Nick Schultz (healthy), Roman Lyubimov (healthy), Michael Raffl (IR, lower body), Nick Cousins (upper body).

PENGUINS

72 Patric Hörnqvist - 87 Sidney Crosby - 43 Conor Sheary
17 Bryan Rust - 7 Matt Cullen - 81 Phil Kessel
14 Chris Kunitz - 13 Nick Bonino - 37 Carter Rowney
34 Tom Kuhnhackl - 40 Oskar Sundqvist - 45 Josh Archibald

2 Chad Ruhwedel - 28 Ian Cole
4 Justin Schultz - 8 Brian Dumoulin
32 Mark Streit - 24 Cameron Gaunce

30 Matt Murray / 29 Marc-Andre Fleury

Scratches: David Warsofsky (healthy, recalled on Saturday), Scott Wilson (healthy), Evgeni Malkin (questionable, shoulder), Tom Sestito (questionable, upper body), Jake Guentzel (doubtful, suspected concussion), Carl Hagelin (upper body), Kris Letang (IR, upper body), Olli Määttä (IR, hand surgery), Trevor Daley (IR, left knee surgery), Ron Hainsey (doubtful, upper body).

*********

WRAP: BLUE JACKETS BLANK FLYERS, 1-0

The often goal-starved Philadelphia Flyers had the better of play for most of the day but came away only with more frustration as they sustained a 1-0 road loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday afternoon. The loss pushed the Flyers, now nine points off the wildcard pace figuring their tiebreaker disadvantage, closer toward mathematical elimination with eight games left to play.

Sergei Bobrovsky, a strong candidate to win his second Vezina Trophy, had a rare uneven game the previous time the Blue Jackets played the Flyers. In that tilt, he allowed a couple of iffy goals counterbalanced by several brilliant saves. On Saturday, he brought his A+ game. Bobrovsky stopped all 36 shots fired on his net and made several 10-bell saves along the way to lift the Blue Jackets into second place (via tiebreaker) in the Atlantic Division.

Knowing they were running out of time for a late-season miracle, the Flyers played with appropriate urgency. They outworked John Tortorella's club for most of the game and held a 36-21 (11-5, 13-8, 12-8) shot edge and had nothing to show for it.

Michal Neuvirth got the start in goal for the Flyers. Seldom-used in March, he appeared a bit rusty early, seeing few shots and getting lucky twice in the first 25 minutes as pucks got through him but narrowly eluded the net. Thereafter, Neuvirth settled in and played very well in stopping 20 of 21 shots. The only goal of the game, scored by Alexander Wennberg at 13:11 of the second period was not at all on the goaltender.

The Wennberg goal sequence started with Wayne Simmonds breaking his stick in the defensive zone, and a failed clearing attempt moments later by Andrew MacDonald that was held in by Kyle Quincey. As Wennberg skated toward the net, Quincey wristed a shot toward Neuvirth. The Flyers goalie would likely have made a routine save but Wennberg arrived in time to get his stick out and severely deflect the puck with Neuvirth having no chance to adjust.

Neuvirth played brilliantly in the third period, making his best saves of the game and leaving out no rebounds, but the Flyers could not find a single goal to secure at least a point from the contest.

The Flyers went 0-for-3 on the power play and 2-for-2 on the penalty kill. Flyers defenseman Radko Gudas fought Boone Jenner in the second period and picked up an extra initial roughing penalty, for one of the two Columbus power plays.