Philadelphia Flyers

Quick Hits: World Championship Semifinals Flyers Preview
May 20, 2017, 6:56 AM ET [28 Comments]
Bill Meltzer
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SEVEN FLYERS IN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP SEMIS

The IIHF World Championship Semifinals take place on Saturday morning and early afternoon (eastern U.S. time). Seven Philadelphia Flyers players will be in action for three of the four still-competing national teams with a trip to the gold medal game at stake.

At 9:15 a.m. EDT, Team Canada takes on Russia. At 1:15 p.m. EDT, Finland plays Sweden. Both games will be televised on NHL Network.

Canadian team captain Claude Giroux has six points (two goals, four assists) in the eight games played to date, has 23 shots on goal, is a plus-five and has won 58.5 percent of his faceoffs. Wayne Simmonds has two assists and 15 shots on goal. Brayden Schenn, whose ice time was minimal in the quarterfinals, has one goal in the tourney. Sean Couturier, playing his accustomed shutdown defensive role, has one assist in six games and has won 58.5 percent of his draws. Travis Konency, who has played portions of the tournament on a dominant "kid line" with Toronto's Mitch Marner and Tampa Bay's Brayden Point, has collected seven assists and is plus-six. Flyers general manager Ron Hextall serves as Canada's GM, while Flyers head coach Dave Hakstol is an assistant to Tampa Bay's Jon Cooper behind the bench.

For Russia, defenseman Ivan Provorov has played on the second and third pairings at different stages of the prelims and quarterfinals. He collected assists in the first three games of round robin play, representing his points output for the tourney to date. He has been whistled for three minor penalties, one of which was quite marginal. The 20-year-old blueliner is plus-one for the tourney and has put eight shots on goal.

As is often the case with Team Finland, the squad relies on the whole being greater than the sum of the individual parts. Coming off a shutout win over Team USA in the quarterfinals, the Finns could be gelling at the right time after an up-and-down performance in group play. Serving as an alternate captain, Valtteri Filppula centers the Finns' top line. In eight games to date, he has chipped in two goals (including a game-winner) and four points. He is minus-two and has been called for five minor penalties. An ex-Flyer, veteran defenseman Lasse Kukkonen, serves as Finland's captain.

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UPCOMING EVENTS

The Flyers Alumni will be very active this summer, taking part in three major events. Below is more information each:

2017 Flyers Alumni Golf Invitational benefiting the Flyers Alumni Association, Flyers Charities and BLOCS. The event will take place at DuPont Country Club in Wilmington on June 26.

Flyers Charity Classic on July 16. Jointly organized by the Flyers and the Flyers Alumni. Participants can sign up for any of four events -- a 5k run/walk from the Wells Fargo Center to the Navy Yard and back, a 10k family bike ride (Wells Fargo Center to Art Museum and back) or individual bike ride (same route), a 50k scenic bike ride through Philadelphia or a 100k bike route. Participating Flyers Alumni include Brad Marsh (team captain), Bernie Parent (team captain), Tim Kerr (team captain), Paul Holmgren, Bob Clarke, Ian Laperriere and Joe Watson. The public can join the teams captained by Flyers Alumni (such as Brad's Ides of Marsh team), captain or join another team or participate individually. More information on teams involving the Flyers Alumni will be coming soon.

2017 Flyers Alumni Fantasy Camp in Atlantic City on Aug. 18-21, benefiting the Flyers Alumni Association and Flyers Charities. Participants will stay at the Tropicana Hotel and Casino and the on-ice activities will be at the Skate Zone in Atlantic City (transportation will be provided). Participating Alumni instructor/coaches include Hockey Hall of Famers Mark Howe and Bernie Parent, Danny Briere, Dave Poulin, Brian Boucher, Brad Marsh, Bob Kelly, Ian Laperriere, and Joe Watson.