(Photo: Kate Frese)
By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor 
The start of a demanding weekend on the Flyers schedule did not start off well with a 5-2 loss to Washington at home on Thursday night. Now the Flyers have to take to the road and find a way to win against two tough opponents to keep their playoff hopes alive.
It starts on Friday against the Toronto Maple Leafs, a team that Flyers have not faced since Nov. 24, two days before Ron Hextall was fired as GM.
Game time is at 7 p.m.
Team Leaders
| Philadelphia Flyers | GP | G | A | P | Toronto Maple Leafs | GP | G | A | P |
| Claude Giroux | 70 | 20 | 53 | 73 | Mitch Marner | 70 | 24 | 60 | 84 |
| Sean Couturier | 68 | 28 | 37 | 65 | John Tavares | 70 | 39 | 38 | 77 |
| Jake Voracek | 66 | 18 | 43 | 61 | Morgan Rielly | 70 | 19 | 48 | 67 |
| Travis Konecny | 70 | 22 | 22 | 44 | Auston Matthews | 56 | 32 | 31 | 63 |
| James van Riemsdyk | 54 | 21 | 17 | 38 | Kasperi Kapanen | 68 | 19 | 23 | 42 |
| Player to Watch | |
| 93 Jake Voracek | 34 Auston Matthews |
| Last 5 Games: 3 G, 6 A, 9 P, +4 | Last 5 Games: 2 G, 1 A, 3 P, -1 |
| Goalie Matchup | |
| 37 Brian Elliott | 31 Frederik Andersen |
| 23 GP, 11-8-1, 2.59 GAA, .916 SV% | 52 GP, 33-14-4, 2.68 GAA, .920 SV% |
Outside of a rough start against Washington last Wednesday, Brian Elliott has been solid in goal. He made 20 saves in a win on Monday over Ottawa and has wins in three of his last four games.
Frederik Andersen's last start was not a good one, allowing four goals on 14 shots to Chicago in the first period before being pulled. Andersen was also pulled in his previous start before that, allowing four goals on 19 shots to the Lightning. Prior to those last two starts, Andersen had won six of seven starts.
Flyers Projected Lineup
Injuries: Michal Neuvirth
Scratches: Justin Bailey, Andrew MacDonald, Cam Talbot, Sam Morin
| Left Wing | Center | Right Wing |
| 23 Oskar Lindblom | 14 Sean Couturier | 28 Claude Giroux |
| 25 James van Riemsdyk | 19 Nolan Patrick | 93 Jake Voracek |
| 12 Michael Raffl | 21 Scott Laughton | 11 Travis Konecny |
| 44 Phil Varone | 10 Corban Knight | 38 Ryan Hartman |
| Defense | ||
| 9 Ivan Provorov | 6 Travis Sanheim | |
| 53 Shayne Gostisbehere | 61 Phil Myers | |
| 8 Robert Hagg | 3 Radko Gudas | |
| Goalie | ||
| 37 Brian Elliott |
Lineup Notes
Jake Voracek returns from suspension, which means Justin Bailey will sit as the extra forward. The rest of the lineup remains the same.
Maple Leafs Projected Lineup
Injuries: Kasperi Kapanen, Jake Gardiner, Travis Dermott
Scratches: Zach Hyman, Igor Ozhiganov
| Left Wing | Center | Right Wing |
| 12 Patrick Marleau | 91 John Tavares | 16 Mitch Marner |
| 18 Andreas Johnsson | 34 Auston Matthews | 29 William Nylander |
| 42 Trevor Moore | 43 Nazem Kadri | 28 Connor Brown |
| 63 Tyler Ennis | 33 Frederik Gauthier | 19 Nic Petan |
| Defense | ||
| 44 Morgan Rielly | 2 Ron Hainsey | |
| 8 Jake Muzzin | 22 Nikita Zaitsev | |
| 52 Martin Marincin | 3 Justin Holl | |
| Goalie | ||
| 31 Frederik Andersen |
Game Notes
- Power Play: Flyers (23rd, 28th on road), Maple Leafs (7th, 4th at home)
- Penalty Kill: Flyers (26th, 24th on road), Maple Leafs (T-18th, 18th at home)
- Recent History vs. Maple Leafs
- Oct. 28, 2017 – Flyers 4, Maple Leafs 2 (at TOR)
- Dec. 12, 2018 – Flyers 4, Maple Leafs 2 (at PHI)
- Jan. 18, 2018 – Flyers 3, Maple Leafs 2 (F/OT) (at PHI)
- Nov. 24, 2018 – Maple Leafs 6, Flyers 0 (at TOR)
- Flyers Leaders vs. Maple Leafs
- Claude Giroux – 32 GP, 11 G, 19 A, 30 P
- Scott Laughton – 8 GP, 2 G, 4 A, 6 P
- Travis Konecny – 7 GP, 2 G, 3 A, 5 P
- Jake Voracek – 24 GP, 5 G, 12 A, 17 P
- Brian Elliott – 17 GP, 8-6-1, 2.63 GAA, .908 SV%
Where to Watch
TV: NBC Sports Philadelphia+
Radio: 93.3 WMMR
