Dan Bylsma said Monday that he expects an "emotional" game between a Flyers team that is 2-5-3 in its last 10 games and a Sabres team looking to carry the momentum from their third-period comeback against Winnipeg on Saturday. Nilsson said he expects the same, but stressed the importance of his team not worrying too much about what the Flyers plan to do.
"I know they're going to come out hard," Nilsson said. "They had a little low period there, today they're going to come out hard. We have to expect that. They have some skilled guys … For us, we can't think too much about them, we need to focus on our own game because when we play the way we should and the way we need to, we're a really good team."
If the Winnipeg game is going to end up standing as the "turnaround game" it felt like for the Sabres, they'll need to start better against the Flyers than they did against the Jets. The Sabres have developed a knack for coming back in games at home, as they've done against Los Angeles, both New York teams and most recently Winnipeg, but they're still searching for a consistent 60-minute effort.
"It starts with how we start this game," alternate captain Ryan O'Reilly said. "It's really important that we come out with that same energy, that mindset where we're not thinking, we're playing. I think the last two games we got too much in our head, thinking, and you could see it.
"… Once we kind of get back to where we're out of our heads, we're playing hockey, we're competing, we're not over-thinking it, that's' what we have to establish right away. At this time of the season, we've seen every team. We have a good idea about what we're going to see. It's about getting competitive and winning battles right away and that's what we have to do."
The other key for the Sabres on Tuesday may be staying out the penalty box, which is what eventually sunk them in the first meeting in Philadelphia in October. All three of the Flyers' third-period goals in that game came on the power play.
While the Flyers' power play has been cold as of late - they're just 3-for-32 (9.4 percent) in their last 12 games - it still ranks ninth in the NHL this season at 21.5 percent.
"I think every game you go against the Flyers you've got to be concerned about their power play," Bylsma said. "Their numbers aren't as great as their power play is right now, still 21 percent and still a darn good power play, but that's got to be one of the most if not the most dangerous power play in the League and one you've always got to worry about when you play them."
