Game 45 Preview: Flyers look to rebound against Canucks

Claude Giroux looks to get the Flyers back on track Thursday night against the Canucks at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. (Photo by Kate Frese/Flyerdelphia)

Despite a strong sixty minute effort, the Philadelphia Flyers were unable to score last night against the Washington Capitals last night. They look to have a better result tonight at home as they welcome the Vancouver Canucks to the Wells Fargo Center.

This inter-conference matchup pits the struggling Flyers against a solid Canucks team in the middle of the playoff hunt in the Western conference.  Vancouver currently sits in the eighth position in the West while the Flyers are in desperate need of points as they sit outside the playoffs in 12^th spot in the East.

The Canucks are led by the Sedin twins, Daniel and Henrik, and Radim Vrbata, who leads the team with 16 goals.

Centers Nick Bonino and Brad Richardson add depth scoring to the Canucks lineup. Former Flyer Luca Sbisa and Alex Edler shore up the blue line for Vancouver.

In goal, Ryan Miller will start for Vancouver. Miller is 20-9-1 with a 2.48 GAA and .912 save percentage.

The Flyers, coming off a shutout loss on the road in Washington, will counter with a slightly different lineup. Scott Laughton was injured and is listed at day to day after a big hit from the Caps Matt Niskanen. Zac Rinaldo will be in the lineup instead.

In net tonight, Ray Emery gets the nod for the Flyers. Emery is 7-7-1 with a 3.21 GAA and .889 save percentage. Rob Zepp gets the night off after another strong outing in defeat.

Game Notes

• Power Play: Flyers (5^th, 1^st at home), Canucks (13^th, 19^th on road)
• Penalty Kill: Flyers (30^th, 24^th at home), Canucks (3^rd , 4^th on road)
• This is the first matchup of the season between the Flyers and Canucks. They will meet again on March 17^th in Vancouver.

Flyers scratches: none

Flyers Projected Lineup

Line 1: Brayden Schenn – Claude Giroux – Jakub Voracek

Line 2: Michael Raffl – Vincent Lecavalier – Wayne Simmonds

Line 3: R.J. Umberger – Sean Couturier – Matt Read

Line 4: Zac Rinaldo – Pierre-Edouard Bellemare – Chris VandeVelde

D-Pair 1: Mark Streit – Andrew MacDonald

D-Pair 2: Michael Del Zotto – Nick Schultz

D-Pair 3: Luke Schenn – Carlo Colaiacovo

Goalie: Ray Emery

Where to Watch
TV: CSN
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic 

Dain Stiles is a contributor for Flyerdelphia. Follow him on twitter @Phillyflu75.