The Flyers last-minute loss in Carolina brought their record to 4-8-1 on the season through 13 games. A few hours later, a San Jose win put them in a tie for last place in the league standings by points percentage.
To add to that, the Flyers have struggled to generate much in terms of shots in the last four games. The team has averaged 19 shots per game in that time, scoring eight goals total. For context, Thursday night’s opponent enters the game on a three-game losing streak and has more goals in that time than the Flyers do in the last four games. The Tampa Bay Lightning await with plenty of offensive firepower. And as they do, the Flyers will use Thursday’s game as a teaching moment for 19-year-old rookie Matvei Michkov, sitting out as a healthy scratch.
Game time is 7:30 p.m.
Team Leaders
| Philadelphia Flyers | GP | G | A | P | Tampa Bay Lightning | GP | G | A | P |
| Travis Konecny | 13 | 7 | 7 | 14 | Nikita Kucherov | 13 | 10 | 12 | 22 |
| Matvei Michkov | 13 | 4 | 6 | 10 | Brandon Hagel | 13 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
| Sean Couturier | 13 | 3 | 5 | 8 | Brayden Point | 12 | 8 | 5 | 13 |
| Owen Tippett | 13 | 2 | 6 | 8 | Jake Guentzel | 13 | 5 | 8 | 13 |
| Travis Sanheim | 13 | 3 | 3 | 6 | Victor Hedman | 13 | 3 | 10 | 13 |
Travis Konecny had a big game on Tuesday, scoring two goals and adding two assists for four points, snapping a three-game pointless streak.
Nikita Kucherov has a four-game points streak to continue his hot start to the season. He has multi-point games in three of the last four games, including six assists in that time.
Aleksei Kolosov is expected to start for the Flyers. Kolosov makes his second straight start after allowing five goals on 34 shots against Carolina on Tuesday. Kolosov has taken the loss in all three of his appearances in the NHL.
Andrei Vasilevskiy is expected to get the start for Tampa Bay. Vasilevskiy took the loss in his last start, allowing three goals on 23 shots against the Blues. That makes two straight losses for Vasilevskiy, who started the season with three straight wins, then three straight losses, then another three-game winning streak.
Projected Lineups
Flyers Scratches: Cam York (injury), Sam Ersson (injury), Ryan Poehling (injury), Matvei Michkov (healthy), Erik Johnson (healthy)
Lightning Scratches: Brayden Point (injury), Darren Raddysh (healthy)
Lineup Notes
- Flyers: Matvei Michkov will be a healthy scratch. Anthony Richard, called up for the injured Ryan Poehling, comes into the lineup. No other changes are expected.
- Lightning: No changes are expected to the Lightning lineup.
Game Notes
- Power Play: Flyers (20.0% – 15th), Lightning (18.6% – T-17th)
- Penalty Kill: Flyers (88.9% – 3rd), Lightning (73.8% – T-24th)
- Recent History vs. Lightning
- March 9, 2024 – Lightning 7, Flyers 0 (at TB)
- Feb. 27, 2024 – Flyers 6, Lightning 2 (at PHI)
- Jan. 23, 2024 – Lightning 6, Flyers 3 (at TB)
- Flyers Leaders vs. Lightning
- Morgan Frost: 7 GP, 1 G, 5 A, 6 P
- Travis Konecny: 18 GP, 7 G, 3 A, 10 P
- Sean Couturier: 31 GP, 5 G, 10 A, 15 P
- Milestone Watch
- Scott Laughton needs three goals to reach 100 for his career.
Where to Watch
- TV: ESPN+/Hulu
- Radio: Flyers Broadcast Network
