(Kate Frese/Sports Talk Philly)
By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor
Playing without the services of Michal Neuvirth started for the Flyers just over two weeks ago when they hosted the Ottawa Senators. That was the start of the turnaround for Steve Mason, who despite playing well in that game, allowed a late goal that forced overtime and a shootout, where the Senators claimed the extra point.
Mason was at his best in the Flyers last game against Boston on Tuesday, and he'll be between the pipes again on Thursday night as the Flyers face the Senators.
The opening faceoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
Flyers Leaders | GP | G | A | P | Senators Leaders | GP | G | A | P |
Wayne Simmonds | 24 | 11 | 11 | 22 | Erik Karlsson | 23 | 4 | 15 | 19 |
Jake Voracek | 24 | 8 | 12 | 20 | Mike Hoffman | 21 | 7 | 9 | 16 |
Claude Giroux | 24 | 5 | 15 | 20 | Mark Stone | 22 | 7 | 8 | 15 |
Brayden Schenn | 21 | 3 | 11 | 14 | Kyle Turris | 23 | 10 | 4 | 14 |
Travis Konecny | 24 | 4 | 9 | 13 | Ryan Dzingel | 23 | 5 | 6 | 11 |
Player to Watch | |
93 Jake Voracek | 68 Mike Hoffman |
Last 5 Games: 1 G, 2 A, 3 P, E | Last 5 Games: 4 G, 5 A, 9 P, +5 |
Goalie Matchup | |
35 Steve Mason | 1 Mike Condon |
6-8-3, 2.96 GAA, .898 SV% | 2-1-0, 1.76 GAA, .943 SV% |
After making 45 saves and adding three more stops in a shootout, Steve Mason gets the call in goal again for the Flyers. Mason has been much better since taking over as the Flyers No. 1 goalie with Neuvirth out, a stretch that started against the Senators two weeks ago.
This is a rare start for an Ottawa goalie not named Craig Anderson. Mike Condon makes just his fourth start of the season. He's played well in his four previous games, posting two wins, a 1.76 GAA and .943 save percentage.
Flyers Projected Lineup
Scratches: Scott Laughton, Nick Schultz, Brandon Manning, Boyd Gordon, Sean Couturier, Michal Neuvirth
Left Wing | Center | Right Wing |
12 Michael Raffl | 28 Claude Giroux | 93 Jake Voracek |
11 Travis Konecny | 10 Brayden Schenn | 17 Wayne Simmonds |
24 Matt Read | 78 Pierre-Edouard Bellemare | 22 Dale Weise |
76 Chris VandeVelde | 25 Nick Cousins | 13 Roman Lyubimov |
Defense | ||
15 Michael Del Zotto | 32 Mark Streit | |
47 Andrew MacDonald | 53 Shayne Gostisbehere | |
9 Ivan Provorov | 3 Radko Gudas | |
Goalie | ||
35 Steve Mason |
Game Notes
- Power Play: Flyers (2nd, 2nd on road), Senators (26th, 25th at home)
- Penalty Kill: Flyers (T-21st, 19th on road), Senators (13th, 26th at home)
- Recent History vs. Senators
- Nov. 15, 2016 - The Senators defeated the Flyers, 3-2, in a shootout. The Flyers opened the scoring with Nick Cousins getting the game's first goal at 5:14 of the first. Mark Stone scored the equalizer just over seven minutes into the second, but the Flyers regained the lead when Michael Raffl scored on a rebound with less than seven minutes to play in the middle period. That lead held up until the final two minutes of the game when Kyle Turris scored on a wraparound to tie the game with 1:59 to play. That forced overtime and eventually a shootout, when Erik Karlsson won the game with a goal in the fifth round.
- Flyers leaders vs. Senators
- Wayne Simmonds - 19 games, 9 goals, 7 assists, 16 points
- Jake Voracek - 20 games, 8 goals, 7 assists, 15 points
- Claude Giroux – 28 games, 4 goals, 13 assists, 17 points
- Steve Mason - 14 games, 8-4-2, 2.11 GAA, .931 Sv%
- Milestone Watch
- Claude Giroux needs one assist to pass Rod Brind'Amour for 7th all-time in Flyers history.
- Andrew MacDonald needs two assists to reach 100 for his career.
Where to Watch
TV: CSN
Radio: 97.5 WMMR