"You'll maybe see some creative combinations at times, and with who is going and feeling well and who is having a good game and taking advantage of opportunities, they may see a little more action tonight."
Philly Faltering - Jeff Gordon took over the coaching reins from Dave Hakstol in mid-December for the Flyers, and soon afterwards, Philadelphia took off on a lengthy second-half tear. The Flyers were 12-15-4 under Hakstol, and they are 24-16-4 since Gordon took over.
The last time Philadelphia visited Washington on Jan. 8, the Caps prevailed 5-3, leaving the Flyers with a 15-22-6 record, just one point ahead of Ottawa for the fewest points in the league at that juncture.
Since then, the Flyers are 21-10-2, and they took a good run at sneaking into a wild card spot. But Saturday's home ice loss to the New York Islanders leaves them in a tough spot, trailing eighth-place Montreal by seven points with just seven games remaining. Philadelphia may have just run out of gas; it is 2-4-0 in its last six with one of those victories coming in a shootout.
"They played [Saturday]," says Reirden of the Flyers. "The result didn't go their way. I expect them to be upset about it. They had a pretty godo chance to try to get some points from that game, having watched it. They didn't leave with it, so they're going to have a little anger to their game with this being one of their last opportunities to make a final push.
"So we need to be prepared for that, and make sure we get off to a good start here in a 12:30 game."
In The Nets - Braden Holtby gets the start in goal for Washington, taking his fourth crack at his 28th win of the season. After consecutive losses to the Lightning, Holtby made 25 saves in a 2-1 setback to the Wild on Friday. He has scuffled some in afternoon action this season, posting a 2-4-0 mark in seven starts with a 3.76 GAA and an .881 save pct.
Holtby has won each of his two starts against the Flyers this season, and owns an 11-4-8 record against Philadelphia in his career, along with two shutouts, a 2.52 GAA and a .915 save pct.
For the Flyers, we are expecting to see Bryan Elliott today, as rookie sensation Carter Hart had the crease yesterday in Philly against the Islanders. Since the All-Star break, Elliott is 5-2-1 with a 3.09 GAA and a .913 save pct. in 10 appearances.
Philly has deployed a league record eight goaltenders this season, and the Caps have seen four different Flyers goalies in the three previous meetings between the two teams. They scored four goals on 19 shots against Elliott in just over 24 minutes on March 6, and he will be the only one of the four to start twice against Washington this season. Mike McKenna and Hart started the other two games for Philadelphia against the Capitals.
Lifetime against the Caps, Elliott is 8-6-0 with a 3.24 GAA and an .890 save pct. in 16 appearances.