Game 43 Preview: Flyers look to keep points coming in Detroit

Flyers Leaders	GP	G	A	P	Red Wings Leaders	GP	G	A	P
Claude Giroux	42	12	22	34	Dylan Larkin	43	14	16	30
Jake Voracek	42	5	25	30	Henrik Zetterberg	44	7	23	30
Wayne Simmonds	42	12	12	24	Tomas Tatar	44	14	13	27
Brayden Schenn	40	10	12	22	Gustav Nyquist	44	13	12	25
Sean Couturier	36	9	12	21	Justin Abdelkader	44	13	9	22

 

Player to Watch
93 Jake Voracek	71 Dylan Larkin
Last 5 Games: 1 G, 4 A, 5 P, +1	Last 5 Games: 1 G, 3 A, 4 P, +2

 

He's been a renewed player since rejoining the top line and lately, Jake Voracek's energy level is reflective of the Flyers chances to make up some ground in the playoff hunt. He certainly took over Wednesday's game as did his linemates. Look for the top line and Voracek to be a key factor in Detroit.

 

This is the Red Wings rookie phenom. Dylan Larkin has been all over the place to this point in the season and is establishing a very bright future with the Red Wings in his rookie season. Leading the team with 14 goals and 30 points, the 19-year-old is an added weapon to the Datsyuks and Zetterbergs that Detroit is already known for.

 

Goalie Matchup
30 Michal Neuvirth	34 Petr Mrazek
9-5-2, 2.12 GAA, .934 SV%	16-8-3, 2.15 GAA, .930 SV%

Michal Neuvirth starts are coming more sporadically with Steve Mason heating up, but in a back-to-back situation, he's in against Detroit. After suffering a tough loss, making 30 saves in Los Angeles in a 2-1 defeat, Neuvirth won his last start, stopping 21 of 24 shots against the Canadiens on Jan. 5.

Petr Mrazek is the definition of a hot goalie right now. He has won five straight games, allowing seven goals in that time. 

Flyers Projected Lineup

Scratches: Brandon Manning, Jordan Weal

Left Wing	Center	Right Wing
93 Jake Voracek	28 Claude Giroux	17 Wayne Simmonds
12 Michael Raffl	14 Sean Couturier	10 Brayden Schenn
24 Matt Read	21 Scott Laughton	20 R.J. Umberger
76 Chris VandeVelde	78 Pierre-Edouard Bellemare	25 Ryan White
Defense
15 Michael Del Zotto	3 Radko Gudas
55 Nick Schultz	32 Mark Streit
53 Shayne Gostisbehere	82 Evgeny Medvedev
Goalie
30 Michal Neuvirth

The Flyers will dress the same lineup as Saturday with the only change coming in goal.

Game Notes

• Power Play: Flyers (29th, 16th on road), Red Wings (16th, 28th at home)
• Penalty Kill: Flyers (24th, 20th on road), Red Wings (23rd, 16th at home) 
• Recent History vs. Red Wings
  • Oct. 25, 2014 – The Flyers claimed a 4-2 win over the Red Wings in Philadelphia. Nick Grossmann and Brayden Schenn each scored goals and Michael Raffl added a pair of goals in the win. Ray Emery made 35 saves for the win. Riley Sheahan and Pavel Datsyuk scored for Detroit.
  • Nov. 26, 2014 – The Red Wings claimed a 5-2 victory in Detroit. Claude Giroux and Jake Voracek scored for the Flyers. Steve Mason allowed three goals on 14 shots before being relieved by Emery for the remainder of the game. Stephen Weiss, Tomas Jurco, Henrik Zetterberg and two goals from Pavel Datsyuk helped lead Detroit. 
  • March 14, 2015 – The Flyers picked up a big 7-2 win over Detroit at home. Six goal-scorers – Wayne Simmonds, Nick Grossmann, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, Matt Read, Zac Rinaldo and Brayden Schenn, who had two – carried the Flyers. Steve Mason made 31 saves. Justin Abdelkader and Erik Cole scored for the Red Wings.
• Flyers leaders vs. Red Wings
• Claude Giroux - 11 games, 5 goals, 9 assists, 14 points
• Michael Raffl - 6 games, 2 goals, 4 assists, 6 points
• Mark Streit – 11 games, 1 goal, 10 assists, 11 points
• Michal Neuvirth - 6 games, 2-3-1, 3.57 GAA, .899 SV%
• Milestone Watch
  • Mark Streit: 5 points to reach 400 for career

Where to Watch
TV: NBCSN
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic

Kevin Durso is managing editor for Flyerdelphia. Follow him on Twitter @Kevin_Durso.