5 THINGS: Flyers vs. Wild
John Tortorella's Philadelphia Flyers (26-32-12) are home on Thursday evening to take on Dean Evason's Minnesota Wild (41-22-8)
GAME NOTES
The game will be nationally televised on ESPN. The radio broadcast is on 97.5 The Fanatic with an online simulcast on Flyers Radio 24/7.
This is the second and final meeting of the season between the inter-conference clubs, and the lone game in Philadelphia. On Jan. 26 in St. Paul, the Wild prevailed in overtime, 3-2, in a fight-filled game. Noah Cates and Tony DeAngelo (18:32 of the third period) scored for the Flyers in regulation while Matt Boldy tallied twice for the Wild. Mats Zuccarello ended the game as he scored on an end-to-end rush at 2:08 of OT. Boldy assisted on the game-winner.
Tonight's game is the fifth of the Flyers' current seven-game homestand. The team is 2-1-1 to date on the homestand and 3-5-2 over the last 10 games. On Tuesday, the Flyers defeated the visiting Florida Panthers by a 6-3 score.
Travis Sanheim notched two goals (6th and 7th of the season) in Tuesday's game. Joel Farabee (12th), Scott Laughton (16th), Ivan Provorov (5th) and Morgan Frost (14th, ENG) also scored. Carter Hart played brilliantly in stopping 41 of 44 shots on goal.
1. Flyers offense surging during homestand
It's no secret that goals have been hard for the Flyers to come by overall this season (2.66 GPG, ranked 29th) and especially in their 19 games since the All-Star break (2.32 GPG, ranked last in the NHL). The ongoing absence of leading scorer Travis Konecny due to an upper-body injury (12 games and counting) has been a major issue.
That said, the Flyers have scored plenty during the current homestand: a combined 19 goals over the last four games (4.75 GPG) with five-plus goals scored in each of the last three.
For the most part, it's been the Flyers contingent of players age 24 or younger who've led the way offensively during the current homestand.
Against Buffalo last Friday, Owen Tippett notched the first hat trick of his NHL career and also cracked the 20-goal milestone for the first season of his still-young NHL career (notching goals 19, 20 and 21). In the same game, Joel Farabee finally ended a nightmarish 26-game goalless drought; a huge weight off the player's shoulders although he downplayed the goal's significance in the postgame dressing room media scrum.
On Saturday against Carolina, the Flyers received multi-point efforts from Tyson Foerster (1st career NHL goal, 2nd career assist), Cates (5-on-3 power play goal, one assist), Tippett (one primary assist and one secondary assist), and Frost (two nicely executed primary assists). Twenty-seven-year-old Brendan Lemieux supplemented the younger forwards' contributions with a goal and the secondary assist on Foerster's goal.
In Tuesday's game against Carolina, the Flyers received multi-point games from Sanheim (2g), Farabee (1g, 1a), Frost (1g, 1a), Tyson Foerster (2a), Noah Cates (2a), and Egor Zamula (2a). Provorov (1g), Laughton (1g), Brendan Lemieux (1a, 17 PIM), and Tony DeAngelo (1a) chipped in one point apiece as 10 different Philly players got on the scoresheet.
On Tuesday against Florida, the two main stories from an offensive standpoint were the effective activation of defensemen into the offensive attack and the night being another match in which young Flyers' forwards played a leading role.
Playing through a minor injury, Tippett (who took a maintenance day on Monday after initially coming out for the start of practice) did not seem to have his usual extra gear and did not get on the scoresheet. However, he was plus-three in the Florida game with two shots on goal, five shot attempts (two missed the net, one blocked) and two credited hits.
Since breaking his goal slump in the Buffalo game, Farabee has now tallied a goal in three straight games. He'll look to make it four in a row tonight against the Wild. For the season, Farabee has 12 goals and 30 points while dressing in all 70 games.
On a full-season basis, the top end of the Flyers' scoring leaderboard mostly features veteran players. Konecny, who celebrated his 26th birthday on March 11, paces the club with 54 points in just 52 games played. TK has a team-high 27 goals and is tied for second on the club with 27 assists.
Kevin Hayes, age 30, leads the Flyers in assists with 34, and is still second on the team in overall scoring with 51 points (17g, 34a) in 69 games played. However, much the NHL All-Star Game selection's production took place before the All-Star break: 10 points in games in October (1g, 9a), 14 points in 15 games in November (7g, 7a) and, after a dip in December, 15 points in 14 games (6g, 9a) in January. Since the All-Star break, Hayes has posted a modest six points (2g, 4a) in the club's last 19 games.
Scott Laughton's 38 points (16g, 22a) are good for fourth on the team in scoring this season; one point behind Tippett (21g, 18a). "Laughts" is followed by 27-year-old offensive defenseman Tony DeAngelo (10g, 27a, 37 points).
However, when one looks at the way the season has trended as it has gone along, what emerges is a picture of the younger contingent on the Flyers' roster taking on a bigger share of responsibilities as the season has progressed. This has been especially true since the Flyers ended a 10-game winless streak in November that stretched into a spell with just two wins in 15 games.
Since then, over the Flyers' last 43 games, Konecny still leads the team in scoring (17 goals, 31 points in 31 GP). However, the team leaderboard in that span is increasingly composed of the team's younger players: Frost (11g, 18a, 29 points) is tied with Laughton (13g, 19a) for second on the team in points. Tippett (14g, 14a, 28 points) is just one point behind Frost and Laughton. Cates (8g, 14a, 22 points) is a single point behind Hayes and DeAngelo from Dec. 9 onward. Meanwhile, despite having to work through offensive droughts, both Farabee (7g, 9a, 16 points) and defenseman Cam York (1g, 13a, 14 points) have their names within the team's top 10 point-getters in that span.
The trend is even more pronounced since the All-Star break. Despite the team-wide scoring woes, there are signs of hope in terms of young players taking on larger roles: Over the last 19 games, Tippett leads the Flyers in scoring with 11 points (7g, 4a). Frost is second with 10 points (4g, 6a). Cates (3g, 6a) is tied with Laughton (4g, 5a) for third in points. Meanwhile, Foerster has five points (1g, 4a) through his first six games in the NHL. Farabee has the aforementioned current three-game goal streak.
It's a start. By no means are these eye-popping numbers. There's a lot of room for improvement and further growth, which will be desperately needed moving forward. Looking below the surface, however, there is a definite youth movement afoot and the younger players are showing at least glimpses of promise to bear heavier burdens moving forward beyond this season.
2. Wild game could be a grind
Despite the Flyers' recent surge of goals and a similarly unexpected recent offensive upswing for the Wild despite being without star offensive player Kirill Kaprizov (see "Behind enemy lines" in the last section of tonight's preview), there is a good chance this game could be a low-scoring and physically grueling contest.
Games with lots of hitting and shot-blocking are more characteristic of the Flyers under Tortorella than games where Philly generates frequent chances off the rush or transitional plays. The coach has often said "we need to grind", and that's likely to be the message against a Minnesota club that is normally quite good at taking time and space away from the opposition.
The first game this season between the Flyers and Wild was a feisty and hard-hitting contest. The game featured four fights: three in the first period, one in the second.
It remains to be seen if emotions will run quite as high this time around but there are candidates on both sides to light the fuse. Flyers newcomer Lemieux has been scoring since his arrival in Philadelphia but he is still, first and foremost, an agitator who stirs the pot. Likewise, ex-Flyers forward Ryan Hartman (12g, 18a, 30 points) is someone who is not a stranger to getting the other team riled up at him. Ditto undersized shift-disturber Mason Shaw, who fought Philly's Wade Allison the last time the clubs met.
Nicolas Deslauriers (tied for the NHL lead with 11 fights this season) and Ryan Reaves (six fights) have already dropped the gloves with each other once this season. Marcus Foligno (six fights) and Nick Seeler (four fights) are also far from shy about doing battle.
Foligno broke now-former Flyer Zack MacEwen's jaw in a bout right off a faceoff in the January 26 game. It turned out to be MacEwen's final game as a Flyer. There were no hard feelings about it afterwards, but it's a reminder that there's always risk involved when there's fisticuffs.
3. Situational play comparison: Flyers vs. Wild
Only the Boston Bruins (96) and Carolina Hurricanes (116) have allowed fewer opposing 5-on-5 goals this season than the Wild (117) this season. Minnesota also doesn't score a lot at 5-on-5 (123 goals, tied for 29th) but they are still on the positive side of the ledger as a team, entering tonight's game at plus-seven as a team. The Flyers check in at minus-11 (130 goals scored versus 141 yielded).
The Flyers remain ranked last in the NHL on the power play this season (15.4 percent) but very recent improvements shown during the current homestand have lifted the season percentage on home ice to 19.0 percent (19-for-100). Minnesota's penalty kill ranks 13th overall (80.5 percent) and 12th on the road (80.2 percent). The Wild have scored nine shorthanded goals this season (ranked 5th).
Minnesota power play overall ranks 13th in the NHL (22.2 percent) but has been more effective on home ice (26.1 percent, ranked 7th) than on the road (80.2 percent) this season. The Flyers have allowed at least one opposing power play goal in seven straight games; a streak they'll want to break against the Wild. Overall, the Flyers have dropped to 28th in the NHL on the PK at 73.8 percent but have scored 11 shorthanded goals (third most in the NHL). It should be noted that the Flyers' PK looked better in Tuesday's game against Florida, coming within one second of successfully killing off a 6-on-3/ 6-on-4 with the net empty at the other side in the third period. With one second remaining, Florida cut a 5-2 deficit to 5-3.
In the previous meeting with the Wild, a late goal by DeAngelo with the Flyers attacking 6-on-5 (Hart pulled for an extra attacker) forced overtime. This was one of the five goals the Flyers have scored at 6-on-5 this season either during a delayed penalty or a late-game comeback bid. Thirteen of the 17 opposing empty net goals this season have come with the Flyers skating 6-on-5. The other four opposing ENGs have come with the Flyers on the power play, skating 6-on-4. The Wild have scored 14 empty net goals this season and allowed 11. Frost's ENG against Florida was the ninth Philly has tallied this season.
From a 5-on-5 puck possession standpoint, the Wild rank 18th in team shot attempt differential at 5-on-5 (50.27 percent Corsi) and tied for 14th in expected goals differential (50.82 percent). The Flyers are 25th in team Corsi (47.02 percent) and 25th in expected goals (46.98 percent).
4. Flyers line play
Since the All-Star break, the Flyers have rarely featured identical starting lineup combinations from one game to the next. However, as long as the Flyers elect to once again go with an 11-forward, 7-defensemen lineup, it's possible the starting lines could repeat from Tuesday's game and then be periodically tweaked in-game.
If so, forwards Tanner Laczynski and Kieffer Bellows and defenseman Justin Braun will be healthy scratches again. The Flyers had their annual team photo day on Wednesday at the Wells Fargo Center. There will not be a morning skate today.
Potential Flyers starting lineup (subject to change, Tuesday's starting combos)
86 Joel Farabee - 49 Noah Cates - 74 Owen Tippett
21 Brendan Lemieux - 48 Morgan Frost - 52 Tyson Foerster
25 James van Riemsdyk . 13 Kevin Hayes - 57 Wade Allison
44 Nicolas Deslauriers - 21 Scott Laughton - xxxxx
9 Ivan Provorov - 45 Cam York
6 Travis Sanheim - 55 Rasmus Ristolainen
24 Nick Seeler - 77 Tony DeAngelo
54 Egor Zamula
79 Carter Hart
[32 Felix Sandström]
5. Behind enemy lines: Minnesota Wild
The Wild have been hot of late, going 7-1-2 over the last 10 games. They come to town looking for their third straight win. If the season ended today, the Wild would be in second place in the Central Division, tied in points with the Dallas Stars (90 points through 71 games) but behind the tie-breaking regulation wins category (31 to 29).
Tonight's game marks the end of a short, two-game trip to the east coast. On Tuesday, the Wild defeated the host New Jersey Devils in overtime, 2-1. The game was scoreless for two periods before Mason Shaw (7th) and New Jersey's Timo Meier traded off goals. With 1.3 seconds remaining in overtime, Boldy scored a breakaway goal (23rd) to win the game for the Wild. Filip Gustavsson earned the win with 47 saves on 48 shots.
Boldy has eight points (5g, 3a) over the last five games. For the season, Kirill Kaprizov leads the Wild with 39 goals and 74 points in 64 games. Kaprizov suffered a lower-body injury on March 8 against Winnipeg that will keep him out three to four weeks from the time of the injury. In Kaprizov's absence, however, Boldy and other Minnesota players have stepped up their games.
Since March 9, the Wild have scored 26 goals in six games: a 4.33 goals-per-game average for a team that, overall, ranks 24th offensively in the NHL with a 2.89 GPG average for the season. Since the All-Star break, the Wild rank 28th in the league at 2.52 goals per game.
As such, the Wild's recent goal surge after Kaprizov went down has been as unexpected as it is welcomed. Normally, it's the Wild's team defense and solid goaltending that have spurred the club's record this season. Tuesday's game against the Devils was closer to the Wild's season averages, although Minnesota faced many more shots on goal in that contest than the norm (30.7, tied for 11th fewest).
For the season, the Wild rank third-best in the NHL with a 2.65 team goals against average. Since the All-Star break, Minnesota has a 2.26 team GAA to rank 2nd best leaguewide in that span.
Although the Wild have their share of skill, they are a team that is perfectly willing to grind it out in a physical game such as the previous meeting with the Flyers back in late January. Minnesota ranks 10th in the NHL with 506 credited hits (the Flyers are 11th) and is 5th in blocked shots per game (16.86 average). The Flyers are second leaguewide in blocked shots per 60 (18.07).
Zuccarello, who was a seldom-used 23-year-old rookie under Tortorella when the undrafted Norwegian forward broke into the NHL in the early 2010s, is now 35 years old. The veteran forward is second on the Wild with 63 points (22 goals, 41 assists) in 69 games.
Key veteran defenseman Jared Spurgeon missed Tuesday's game due to illness. He could return against the Flyers.
In goal, Marc-Andre Fleury has appeared in 41 games this season (23-13-3, 2.83 GAA, .908 save percentage, two shutouts). Gustavsson has played in 33 games (18-9-5, 2.04 GAA, .932 SV%, three shutouts).
Assuming Spurgeon is good to go for tonight's game, below is a potential starting lineup (subject to change) against the Flyers;
17 Marcus Foligno - 38 Ryan Hartman - 36 Mats Zuccarello
90 Marcus Johansson - 14 Joel Eriksson Ek - 12 Matt Boldy
21 Brandon Duhaime - 89 Frederick Gaudreau - 70 Oskar Sundqvist
15 Mason Shaw - 26 Connor Dewar - 75 Ryan Reaves
5 Jake Middleton - 46 Jared Spurgeon
25 Jonas Brodin - 24 Matt Dumba
3 John Klingberg - 33 Alex Goligoski
29 Marc-Andre Fleury
32 Filip Gustavsson
