(Kate Frese/Sports Talk Philly)
By Rob Riches, Sports Talk Philly contributor 
Though the Flyers closed out their four-game road trip in spirited fashion, they still find themselves on the outside looking in, and playoff elimination is still looming on the horizon. That still doesn't change the fact that the games need to be played, though, and the chance to play spoiler is another opportunity.
The Orange and Black kick off a three-game home slate against the Ottawa Senators, for their final game of the year against a non-Metro Division squad. Sitting just three points out of the division lead in the Atlantic, the Senators come in with something to play for and a playoff berth all but wrapped up.
Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m.
| Flyers Leaders | GP | G | A | P | Senators Leaders | GP | G | A | P |
| Jake Voracek | 75 | 19 | 38 | 57 | Erik Karlsson | 74 | 14 | 53 | 67 |
| Claude Giroux | 75 | 14 | 41 | 55 | Mike Hoffman | 67 | 22 | 33 | 55 |
| Wayne Simmonds | 75 | 29 | 20 | 49 | Mark Stone | 73 | 21 | 28 | 49 |
| Brayden Schenn | 72 | 22 | 27 | 49 | Kyle Turris | 71 | 25 | 24 | 49 |
| Valtteri Filppula | 72 | 9 | 29 | 38 | Derick Brassard | 74 | 13 | 24 | 37 |
| Player to Watch | |
| 40 Jordan Weal | 68 Mike Hoffman |
| Last 5 Games: 2 G, 1 A, 3 P, -1 | Last 5 Games: 1 G, 5 A, 6 P, +3 |
Jordan Weal kicked off the Flyers' offensive outburst on Sunday, and also added an assist on Valtteri Filppula's goal in the second period. Weal has continued his pleasantly-surprising offensive stretch for the Orange and Black, and figures to stick back on the second line.
One of the Sens' sharper offensive weapons, Mike Hoffman enters tonight's game with a six-game point streak. In eight career games against the Flyers, Hoffman's been productive, with five goals and seven points.
| Goalie Matchup | |
| 35 Steve Mason | 41 Craig Anderson |
| 23-21-7, 2.72 GAA, .906 SV% | 22-10-2, 2.32 GAA, .927 SV% |
Steve Mason figures to return between the pipes for the Orange and Black. He turned away 25 of 27 saves in his last outing on Sunday.
Craig Anderson is pegged to make his second-consecutive start for Les Sénateurs, after making 21 saves on 24 shots in a 3-1 loss to Montreal on Saturday. The cagey veteran was just named as the team's nominee for the Masterton Trophy on Monday, after missing a large chunk of the season to be by his wife's side in her battle with cancer.
Flyers Projected Lineup
Scratches: Roman Lyubimov, Michael Del Zotto, Nick Cousins (upper-body injury, day-to-day), Michael Raffl (lower-body injury, out 6-8 weeks)
| Left Wing | Center | Right Wing |
| 24 Matt Read | 28 Claude Giroux | 93 Jake Voracek |
| 40 Jordan Weal | 51 Valtteri Filppula | 17 Wayne Simmonds |
| 10 Brayden Schenn | 14 Sean Couturier | 22 Dale Weise |
| 76 Chris VandeVelde | 78 Pierre-Edouard Bellemare | 11 Travis Konecny |
| Defense | ||
| 9 Ivan Provorov | 47 Andrew MacDonald | |
| 53 Shayne Gostisbehere | 55 Nick Schultz | |
| 23 Brandon Manning | 3 Radko Gudas | |
| Goalie | ||
| 35 Steve Mason |
Game Notes
- Power Play: Flyers (14th, 14th at home), Senators (T-9th, 11th on road)
- Penalty Kill: Flyers (22nd, T-24th at home), Senators (10th, 8th on road)
- Recent History vs. Senators
- Dec. 1, 2016 - Mike Hoffman and Ryan Dzingel had given the Senators an early 2-0 lead, but Claude Giroux and Michael Del Zotto tied the game within one minute in the second period. Not content with just one goal, though, Giroux buried the overtime winner just 40 seconds into the extra period for a 3-2 Flyers win. Steve Mason turned aside 19 of 21 shots, while Mike Condon finished with 29 saves on 32 shots.
- Nov. 15, 2016 – Both Nick Cousins and Mark Stone traded goals, and though Michael Raffl put the Flyers ahead in the second, Kyle Turris struck with 1:59 left in regulation to tie the game. Nobody found twine in overtime, and after a five-round shootout, Erik Karlsson delivered the winner on the only goal for the extra point. Steve Mason recorded 24 saves, and Craig Anderson stopped 33 of 35 shots.
- Milestone Watch
- Claude Giroux remains two goals away from 15th all-time in Flyers history.
Where to Watch
TV: TCN
Radio: 93.3 WMMR
