Returning home from a three-game road trip, John Tortorella's Philadelphia Flyers (15-10-3) will put their six-game point streak on the line as they face off with Spencer Carbery's Washington Capitals (14-8-3) on Thursday evening. Game time at Wells Fargo Center is 7:00 p.m. ET.
The game will be televised on NBCSP. The radio broadcast is on 97.5 The Fanatic with an online simulcast on Flyers Radio 24/7.
This is the first of three meetings this season between the Metro Division rivals. The teams will rematch at Capital One Arena in DC on March 14, with the season series concluding back at the Wells Fargo Center on April 16. Last season, the Flyers went 2-1-1 against Washington.
Entering Thursday's game, the Flyers are two points ahead of the Capitals in the Metropolitan Division standings but Washington holds three games in hand. The Flyers went 2-0-1 on their recent road trip, and are 4-0-2 over the last six games. The Capitals have won back-to-back games heading into Philly.
Here are five things to watch in Thursday's game:
1. Couturier Carrying a Six-Game Point Streak
On both sides of the puck, and across a gamut of different game situations, the Flyers sorely missed Sean Couturier while missing more than a season-and-a-half to undergo two separate back surgeries. Having him back in the lineup this season has been a key reason for the Flyers' surge to date.
The Flyers enter this game coming off a 3-2 overtime loss in Nashville on Tuesday. Philly controlled the majority of play for the first 47 minutes of the game. However, the Flyers had to battle back from a 2-0 deficit on the scoreboard to knot the game in the third period. Couturier played a central role in Philly's comeback.
In the final minute of the second period in Nashville, Couturier scored from a very tight angle to cut the gap to 2-1. In the third period, Couturier assisted on Travis Sanheim's eventual rebound goal that forged a 2-2 deadlock. Couturier also had two near goals on the power play.
Couturier brings a six-game point streak (2g, 4a) into Thursday's contest. Over the Flyers' last 13 games, Couturier has posted 11 points (4g,7a) to tie for the team lead with the club's overall scoring leader for the season, Travis Konecny. In that span, Couturier has logged very heavy ice time, avering 19:44 per game.
2. Look for Hart to Start
The Flyers opted to start Samuel Ersson in goal for Tuesday's game in Nashville. He didn't see much action for two-plus periods but was tested several times in the third period. Overall, Ersson stopped 19 of 22 shots in a losing cause.
On Thursday, look for Carter Hart to return to the net for Philadelphia.
Over the last calendar month, Hart has made nine starts. He's 5-3-1 in that span with a 2.34 goals against average and .923 save percentage. For the season as a whole, Hart has made 17 starts (9-6-1 record, 2.42 GAA, .919 save percentage,one shutout).
For Washington, Darcy Kuemper (14 GP, 6-6-2, 3.13 GAA, .892 SV%) is coming off a 32-save performance in a 4-2 road win on Sunday against the Chicago Blackhawks. One night earlier at Capital One Arena, Charlie Lindgren (10 GP, 6-2-1, 2.34 GAA, .931 SV%, two shutouts) blanked the New York Rangers with 31 saves on 31 shots in a 4-0 home victory.
3. Flyers power play vs. Capitals PK
The Flyers went 0-for-4 on the power play in Nashville but their actual play was better than the numbers suggest. Both Philadelphia power play units had stretches where they generated extensive attack time and had scoring chances. There were rebounds available, too (directly in the low slot in one case with Couturier) but the pucks eluded Flyers' sticks.
For the season overall, though, the power play has continued to be a struggle for the Flyers. Philly enters Thursday's game ranked 27th in the NHL at an 11.5 percent success (10-for-87). The Flyers have yielded just one shorthanded goal to date -- only Anaheim and Vancouver are completely unscathed in that department this season -- but they've had several recent close calls in games against Pittsburgh and Colorado.
The Capitals' penalty kill to date ranks 19th leaguewide at 79.8 percent success. Opposing power plays are 16-for-79. Washington has scored a pair of shorthanded goals: one apiece for Tom Wilson and Connor McMichael. Over their last 11 games, the Caps have gone 28-for-37 (75.7 percent) on the PK.
4. Flyers PK vs. Washington power play
The Flyers went 3-for-3 on the penalty kill against Nashville. They yielded a goal at 6-on-5 during a second-period delayed penalty and later scored a 5-on-5 goal just a few seconds after a penalty expired. Neither play, of course, will show up in special teams statistics.
Over their last 13 games, the Flyers rank No. 1 in the league on the penalty kill (40-for-42, 95.2 percent) with more shorthanded goals scored (three) than opposing power play goals allowed. For the season, the Flyers have scored seven shorthanded goals: Konecny has tallied three, Sean Walker has scored two, and Ryan Poehling and Scott Laughton have one apiece. Overall, the Flyers' PK ranks fifth in the NHL at 86.7 percent. Opposing power plays are 12-for-90 against the Flyers.
Although the team has been winning games -- and after many years of boasting one of the NHL's most lethal power plays -- the Capitals enter Thursday's game ranked dead last (32nd) in the NHL at 8.2 percent (6-for-73) on the power play this season. They've allowed one shorthanded goal. Over the last month (13 games), the Caps are 3-for-35 (8.6 percent). So far in December (five games), Washington has gone 1-for-14 (7.1 percent).
5. Behind Enemy Lines: Washington Capitals
The Capitals are 5-4-1 over the team's past 10 games. For the season, Washington brings a 6-4-1 road record into Thursday's tilt. In Sunday's 4-2 road win in Chicago, Nick Dowd tallied his third and fourth goals of the 2023-24 season. The Caps also received tallies from Anthony Mantha (7th) and Dylan Strome (11th). Beck Malenstyn contributed a pair of assists. Ex-Flyers winger Nicolas Aube-Kubel also chipped in a helper.
It is to nobody's surprise that veteran superstar Alex Ovechkin sits atop the Capitals' scoring leaderboard. However, he uncharacteristically has posted just five goals and 16 points this season. The Flyers hope the 38-year-old Ovechkin, who have two points (0g, 2a) in this last five games and who is 11 games removed from his most recent goal (Nov. 18 against Columbus), leaves Philadelphia after Thursday's game without having taken out his frustrations at their expense. For his career, Ovechkin has racked up 47 goals and 74 points in 71 regular season games against Philly. The Flyers and Carolina Hurricanes (47g, 99 points) share the unwanted distinction of being the opponents against whom Ovechkin has the most career goals.
Veteran power forward Wilson (9g, 6a, 63 PIM) and veteran offensive defenseman John Carlson (1g, 14a, 25:36 TOI average) are second and third, respectively, on the Washington scoring list this season. Playmaking center Evgeni Kuznetsov, a four-time 50-plus assist player and four-time 20-plus goal scorer, has posted just 11 points (5g, 6a) in 22 games played to date this season. Given the long-term leave of absence taken by Nicklas Bäckström, the team's massive struggle on the power play, and the production dips of Kuznetsov and even Ovechkin, it's rather surprising that the Caps would be in lower wildcard position if the regular season ended today. The Caps, in part, have done so because they've only yielded 48 goals at 5-on-5 so far this season (ranking 9th leaguewide). That has enabled the club to keep most games in striking distance.
When scoring first, the Caps are 7-0-2 this season (the Flyers are 13-1-0). When trailing first, which has happened 16 times, Washington is a respectable 7-8-1 (the Flyers are 2-9-3).
