Philadelphia Flyers forward Michael Raffl will return to the lineup after missing the past eight games with an upper-body injury. "It was a long two weeks," Raffl said. "Very excited to get back." Coach Dave Hakstol said Raffl will start the game at left wing on a line with center Claude Giroux and right wing Wayne Simmonds. "[Raffl] is a big body (6-foot, 200 pounds) that's a straight-line presence," Hakstol said. "He's going to do some of the dirty work in terms of puck possession and some of the down-low work. Along with that, he's a guy that we need to go to the net and be around the blue paint." With Raffl in, Dale Weise will be a healthy scratch. Weise, who signed a four-year contract July 1, has one assist and five shots on goal in eight games. "It's tough to take him out of the lineup because he had the break with the suspension," Hakstol said. "We haven't been able to get him into a rhythm. He's not going to be out of our lineup very often, but today, just evaluating, it's an opportunity for Michael to go in and do some good things for our team." Hakstol said goalie Michal Neuvirth will start for the second straight game. He made 22 saves in a 4-3 overtime win against the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday. "I wouldn't say his last two 60-minute performances have been 100 percent clean, but they've been pretty good and he's made key saves at key times," Hakstol said.
