Flyers

Flyers-Ducks: Game 39 Preview

Kevin Durso Sports Editor

Published29 Dec 2019

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By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor

Alain Vigneault didn't mince words after the Flyers 6-1 loss to the Sharks on Saturday night to start a six-game road trip.

"It was a very bad game altogether," Vigneault said. "I've got nothing positive really to say about one player tonight. That hasn't happened to me very often this year."

The 6-1 defeat to the Sharks was surely a pitiful start to the road trip. The Flyers get right back on the ice on Sunday night to continue the six-game trip by facing the Anaheim Ducks.

Game time is at 8:30 p.m.

Team Leaders

Philadelphia Flyers	GP	G	A	P	Anaheim Ducks	GP	G	A	P
Travis Konecny	35	11	23	34	Jakob Silfverberg	37	13	13	26
Sean Couturier	38	9	20	29	Ryan Getzlaf	36	10	15	25
Jake Voracek	38	8	19	27	Rickard Rakell	36	10	15	25
Claude Giroux	38	11	15	26	Adam Henrique	38	12	8	20
James van Riemsdyk	38	12	11	23	Cam Fowler	38	8	12	20

Player to Watch
28 Claude Giroux	14 Adam Henrique
Last 5 Games: 1 G, 3 A, 4 P, +2	Last 5 Games: 3 G, 1 A, 4 P, -1

After a game where the Flyers could not draw positives, they really need to go into Anaheim with a response. It's on the leaders of the group to provide that, and Claude Giroux is right at the focus.

As the Ducks have gone through various injuries, Adam Henrique has landed on the top line and made the most of his time there. He has goals in three of the last four games since the Ducks loss in Philadelphia.

Projected Goalie Matchup
37 Brian Elliott	36 John Gibson
17 GP, 8-4-2, 3.02 GAA, .903 SV%	28 GP, 12-14-2, 2.88 GAA, .907 SV%

Brian Elliott gets the start in goal in another back-to-back for the Flyers. Elliott did get the win in his last start, despite allowing four goals to the Senators, in a shootout win in Ottawa.

John Gibson is expected to get the start in goal for the Ducks on Sunday night. Gibson has wins in back-to-back games after suffering a loss to the Flyers on Dec. 17, allowing three goals on 30 shots. In the two wins against the Islanders and Golden Knights, Gibson has allowed eight goals.

Flyers Projected Lineup

Injuries: Scott Laughton (groin, day-to-day), Michael Raffl (broken finger, out 4 weeks from Dec. 3), Nolan Patrick (migrane disorder, out indefinitely), Oskar Lindblom (Ewing's sarcoma, out for season)

Scratches: Robert Hagg (healthy), Chris Stewart (healthy)

Left Wing	Center	Right Wing
28 Claude Giroux	14 Sean Couturier	11 Travis Konecny
25 James van Riemsdyk	13 Kevin Hayes	49 Joel Farabee
62 Nicolas Aube-Kubel	48 Morgan Frost	93 Jake Voracek
10 Andy Andreoff	24 Mikhail Vorobyev	18 Tyler Pitlick
Defense
9 Ivan Provorov	15 Matt Niskanen
6 Travis Sanheim	61 Justin Braun
53 Shayne Gostisbehere	5 Phil Myers
Goalie
37 Brian Elliott	79 Carter Hart

Lineup Notes

There will be no morning skate with the Flyers having played in San Jose on Saturday, but there is a chance that both Scott Laughton and Michael Raffl could return to the lineup. Those decisions will become known closer to game time.

Ducks Projected Lineup

Injuries: Patrick Eaves, Ryan Kesler, Rickard Rakell, Troy Terry, Nick Ritchie

Scratches: Michael Del Zotto, Daniel Sprong

Left Wing	Center	Right Wing
14 Adam Henrique	15 Ryan Getzlaf	56 Sam Carrick
49 Max Jones	34 Sam Steel	25 Ondrej Kase
53 Maxime Comtois	48 Isac Lundestrom	33 Jakob Silfverberg
20 Nicolas Deslauriers	29 Devin Shore	24 Carter Rowney
Defense
47 Hampus Lindholm	42 Josh Manson
4 Cam Fowler	6 Erik Gudbranson
32 Jacob Larsson	5 Korbinian Holzer
Goalie
36 John Gibson	30 Ryan Miller

Game Notes

Power Play: Flyers (14th), Ducks (26th)
Penalty Kill: Flyers (T-6th), Ducks (23rd)
Recent History vs. Ducks
- Oct. 30, 2018 – Flyers 3, Ducks 2 (at ANA)
- Feb. 9, 2019 – Flyers 6, Ducks 2 (at PHI)
- Dec. 17, 2019 – Flyers 4, Ducks 1 (at PHI)
Flyers Leaders vs. Ducks
- Sean Couturier – 13 GP, 7 G, 8 A, 15 P
- Claude Giroux – 18 GP, 3 G, 15 A, 18 P
- James van Riemsdyk – 13 GP, 0 G, 9 A, 9 P
- Jake Voracek – 25 GP, 7 G, 10 A, 17 P
- Brian Elliott – 15 GP, 3-8-3, 3.23 GAA, .880 SV%
Milestone Watch
- Shayne Gostisbehere needs two points to reach 200 for his career.