Today may be Valentines' Day, but there will be no love between the Flyers and New York Rangers in their season finale tonight.
“I’m laughing,” Simmonds said. “I’m going to go play a hockey game." …“That’s fine,” he said. “I’m going to take care of myself. Doesn't really matter to me. I’m going to play hockey. I’m going to get two points."
| Flyers Leaders | GP | G | A | P | Rangers Leaders | GP | G | A | P |
| Claude Giroux | 54 | 16 | 29 | 45 | Mats Zuccarello | 55 | 19 | 22 | 41 |
| Jake Voracek | 54 | 8 | 34 | 42 | Derick Brassard | 54 | 18 | 22 | 40 |
| Wayne Simmonds | 54 | 19 | 16 | 35 | Rick Nash | 45 | 12 | 21 | 33 |
| Brayden Schenn | 52 | 14 | 15 | 29 | Keith Yandle | 55 | 4 | 26 | 30 |
| Shayne Gostisbehere | 36 | 10 | 20 | 28 | J.T. Miller | 55 | 17 | 13 | 30 |
| Player to Watch | |
| 53 Shayne Gostisbehere | 36 Mats Zuccarello |
| Last 5 Games: 2 G, 4 A, 6 P, E | Last 5 Games: 1 G, 5 A, 6 P, +4 |
Shayne Gostisbehere has already set both the franchise record for longest points streak for a rookie, and NHL record for longest points streak by a rookie defenseman (a record that had been in place since 1977-78). He's shown no signs of slowing down, and will look to continue that record.
| Goalie Matchup | |
| 35 Steve Mason | 30 Henrik Lundqvist |
| 13-14-7, 2.65 GAA, .917 SV% | 27-14-4, 2.32 GAA, .923 SV% |
Steve Mason gets the nod in goal yet again, after a day off on Saturday. He stopped 26 of 28 pucks in his last meeting against the Rangers on Feb. 6.
Henrik Lundqvist faces the Orange and Black for the fourth time this season. He's posted a 1.85 GAA and .946 save percentage in those games.
Flyers Projected Lineup:
Scratches: Brandon Manning, Sean Couturier, Michael Del Zotto, Jordan Weal
| Left Wing | Center | Right Wing |
| 93 Jake Voracek | 28 Claude Giroux | 17 Wayne Simmonds |
| 12 Michael Raffl | 52 Nick Cousins | 10 Brayden Schenn |
| 24 Matt Read | 21 Scott Laughton | 20 R.J. Umberger |
| 76 Chris VandeVelde | 78 Pierre-Edouard Bellemare | 25 Ryan White |
| Defense | ||
| 47 Andew MacDonald | 53 Shayne Gostisbehere | |
| 55 Nick Schultz | 32 Mark Streit | |
| 82 Evgeny Medvedev | 3 Radko Gudas | |
| Goalie | ||
| 35 Steve Mason |
With the loss of Michael Del Zotto in Saturday's loss to the Devils, the Flyers recalled Andrew MacDonald from the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. He will join Shayne Gostisbehere on the first pairing.
Game Notes
- Power Play: Flyers (20th, 16th on road), Rangers (25th, 14th at home)
- Penalty Kill: Flyers (25th, 17th on road), Rangers (26th, 9th at home)
- Recent History vs. Rangers:
- Feb. 6, 2016 — Shayne Gostisbehere and Ryan White each scored for the Orange and Black, but Keith Yandle's goal with 12.9 seconds to go sent the game to overtime, where the Rangers won in a shootout. Steve Mason and Henrik Lundqvist each made 26 saves on 28 shots.
- Jan. 16, 2016 – Brayden Schenn gave the Flyers an early 1-0 lead, but J.T. Miller and Chris Kreider put the Rangers up 2-1. Wayne Simmonds tied the game at 10:33 of the third, and forced another overtime. Steve Mason stopped 29 of 21 pucks, while Henrik Lundqvist made 34 saves on 36 shots.
- Nov. 28, 2016 — Steve Mason turned away all 24 shots he faced for his first shutout of the season, while Wayne Simmonds scored two goals. Sean Couturier also scored, snapping a 14-game goalless drought. The win was also the Flyers' first regular-season win at Madison Square Garden since Feb. 20, 2011.
- Milestone Watch:
- Mark Streit: 4 points to reach 400 for career
- Jake Voracek: 7 goals to reach 100 as a Flyer
Where to Watch
TV: NBCSN
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Rob Riches is a contributor to Flyerdelphia and Sports Talk Philly. Follow him on Twitter @Riches61
