Jake Voracek carries a five-game points streak into Tuesday's night's game against the Oilers. (Photo by Amy Irvin/38Photography)
The Flyers trip to Florida last week ended with two different losses, a hard-fought 4-3 defeat in Tampa and a listless loss to the Panthers.
This week, the Flyers enjoy the confines of home for three games. The first comes Tuesday night as they host the Edmonton Oilers. The opening face-off is set for 7 p.m.
The Flyers made several changes to the lineup over the last week and those changes continue entering this week. The most notable is the insertion of defenseman Carlo Colaiacovo, signed on Thursday night. Colaiacovo will play with Luke Schenn as the defensive pairing were shuffled.
Vincent Lecavalier returned on Saturday and, for now, remains on the second line. He was demoted to the second power-play unit as Brayden Schenn returns to the top unit. Colaiacovo also practiced on the second unit with Michael Del Zotto.
In the closing seconds of Saturday's 2-1 loss, Jake Voracek extended his points streak to five games, increasing his NHL-leading assist total to 13.
The Flyers will start Steve Mason in goal for the second straight game. Mason stopped 28 of 30 shots in a loss on Saturday. Mason is 0-4-1 on the season with a 3.55 GAA.
The Oilers will be short-handed on Tuesday in several ways. In their last game on Saturday, Taylor Hall suffered an MCL sprain that will keep him out for two-to-four weeks. Hall leads the Oilers with 10 points.
The Oilers will also be without defenseman Andrew Ference, who will begin serving a three-game suspension on Tuesday.
There is still plenty of talent on this Edmonton team with Jordan Eberle, David Perron and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. Eberle is second on the team in points with eight. Eberle and Perron are tied for the team lead in assist with five.
Defensively, Justin Schultz and Nikita Nikitin lead the Oilers on the blue line.
In goal, the Oilers will likely start Ben Scrivens. Scrivens has started nine of the Oilers 11 games this season. He has a 4-5-0 with a 3.01 GAA.
Game Notes
- Power Play: Flyers (14th, T-7th at home), Oilers (T-22nd, T-19th on road)
- Penalty Kill: Flyers (23rd, T-1st at home), Oilers (15th, 26th on road)
- The Flyers won both meetings against the Oilers last season. On Nov. 9, the Flyers claimed a 4-2 win at home. On Dec. 28, the Flyers took a 4-3 shootout win over the Oilers on the road.
- Milestone Watch: Luke Schenn needs one point to reach 100 for his career. R.J. Umberger needs one assist for 200 in his career.
Flyers scratches: Braydon Coburn, Andrew MacDonald, Blair Jones, Brandon Manning
Flyers Projected Lineup
Line 1: Michael Raffl-Claude Giroux-Jake Voracek
Line 2: R.J Umberger-Vincent Lecavalier-Wayne Simmonds
Line 3: Brayden Schenn-Sean Couturier-Matt Read
Line 4: Zac Rinaldo–Pierre-Edouard Bellemare-Chris VandeVelde
D-Pair 1: Nick Grossmann-Mark Streit
D-Pair 2: Michael Del Zotto-Nick Schultz
D-Pair 3: Carlo Colaiacovo-Luke Schenn
Goalie: Steve Mason
Where to Watch
TV: CSN
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Kevin Durso is the Managing Editor for Flyerdelphia. Follow him on twitter @KDursoPhilsNet.
