GAME NOTES
METRO & WILD CARD RACE
M1 - WSH: 84 pts - 18 games left / 1 vs Flyers
M2 - PIT: 80 pts - 20 games left / 1 vs Flyers
M3 - PHI: 79 pts - 19 games left
WC1 - NYI: 78 pts - 19 games left / 1 vs Flyers
WC2 - CBJ: 76 pts - 17 games left
CAR: 74 pts - 20 games left / 1 vs Flyers
NYR: 74 pts - 19 games left / 3 vs Flyers
FLA: 72 pts - 18 games left
QUICK STATS
Season Series: 1-0-0
All-Time Record: 298gp (129-123-37-9)
Leading Scorer:
PHI - Travis Konecny: 57-pts (22g-35a)
NYR - Artemi Panarin: 87-pts (32g-55a)
1. WE'RE HOT
The Flyers continue their climb up the Metro and East standings as they come in with a four-game winning streak and look to match their season high five-game streak from Nov. 25-Dec. 3... The Flyers have scored four or more goals in each of the games and, since Jan. 7, they've earned points in 16 of 21 games, going 14-5-2, which ranks fourth among all NHL teams... Also in that span, the Flyers 76 goals are third in the league, but first in goals per-game (3.62), and T-6th sixth in the NHL in fewest goals allowed (76) and sixth in goals allowed per-game (2.67)... A win tonight, combined with a Penguins loss (at Anaheim) will move the Flyers into second place in the Metro Division.
2. THEY'RE HOT
If there's one team that's hotter than the Flyers, it's the Rangers... The Blueshirts have won five in-a-row and have outscored their opponent, 23 to 12, in the process... They have also earned wins in nine of their last 10 games, leading the NHL in the last 10, with a 9-1-0 record... Since Jan. 7, the Rangers have the most wins (16) and are third in the league with 32 points, going 16-6-0, and have climbed from T-25th in the NHL, 13th in the Eastern Conference to T-13th in the NHL and T-9th in the Eastern Conference... A win, combined with a Columbus (vs. Minnesota) and Carolina (vs. Colorado) loss, would moved them into a wild card spot.
3. HERE AND THERE
Tonight also pits one of the best home teams in the NHL against the hottest road team in the league... The Flyers are riding a four-game home-winning streak and lead the NHL in home-winning percentage at .774 and tied for the most wins on home ice (22), while yielding the fewest goals per-game at home (2.06)... The Rangers have won nine consecutive games on the road entering tonight, including a 5-2 win at Montreal last night, and are T-5th in the NHL for most wins on the road (18)... They have outscored their opponent, 29-15 during the nine game road streak and rank fourth in the NHL for the most overall goals per-game on the road (3.29).
4. HOME AND HOME
Tonight is the 299th all-time meeting between the two rivals, and also kicks off a home-and-home series that wraps up in New York on Sunday afternoon in a nationally televised game on NBC... It's the second meeting of the season after the Flyers earned a 5-1 win on Dec. 23, which was also their seventh win against the Rangers in their last eight meetings - they have gone 7-1-0 and outscored the Blueshirts, 28-13, in that span... Tonight is just the fourth time all season that a "rested" Flyers team will be playing an opponent who is playing the second of a back-to-back.
5. PLAYERS TO WATCH
FLYERS (LW: #11 - Travis Konecny)
Konecny has retaken the Flyers scoring lead with 57 points and is coming off this third three-point game in his last four contests, recording 10 points (3g-7a) in his last five games... In a career-year, February has been his best month, recording 14 points (5g-9a) in 12 games.
RANGERS (LW: #10 - Artemi Panarin)
Panarin is riding an 11-game point streak entering tonight, posting 16 points (5g-11a), which is his second point streak of 11 or more games after he recorded a 12-game streak earlier (Oct. 24-Nov. 20)... Panarin is tied for third in the NHL's scoring race with 87 points, but leads all players in the NHL in even-strength points (66) and ranks second in the league in plus-minus (+37).
