The Flyers continue a stretch of five of their next seven games at home against the Islanders. (Photo by Amy Irvin/Flyers Faithful)
The Philadelphia Flyers busy schedule just got busier. With the postponement of last night's game against the Carolina Hurricanes the game is now Wednesday night at 6 p.m. The Flyers have games on Thursday and Saturday as well, turning the last half of the week into a jam-packed series of games.
The Flyers are looking to respond after a tough loss on Monday. Leading the Islanders, 3-1, in the third, the Flyers allowed two late goals and lost in the shootout.
The big story for the Flyers is that they may be without Jake Voracek. The good news is that Voracek was going to be a game-time decision on Tuesday. With the extra day off, the chances he plays may be better.
Don't expect many changes to the gameplans for either team. Look for Justin Peters against Steve Mason.
The Hurricanes are led by Eric Staal and Jordan Staal. Jeff Skinner, Alexander Semin and Nathan Gerbe are also top scoring options for the Hurricanes. Defensively, Andrej Sekera and Justin Faulk make up Carolina's top pair.
The Flyers top line could take a hit without Voracek, meaning a huge adjustment for Claude Giroux and Michael Raffl. Wayne Simmonds and Matt Read are also hot of late and could be important to the Flyers top two lines and power play moving forward.
Game Notes
- Power Play: Flyers (19th, 27th at home), Islanders (T-25th, 19th on road)
- Penalty Kill: Flyers (8th, 6th at home), Islanders (25th, 22nd on road)
- The Flyers have played the Hurricanes twice this season and lost both games. Their most recent loss was in early November, 2-1, in overtime. This is the first meeting between the two teams in Philadelphia.
- Milestone Watch: Wayne Simmonds needs one goal for 100 in his NHL career. Vincent Lecavalier needs seven points for 900 in his career. Matt Read needs six points for 100 in his career. Steve Downie is one assist away from 100 in his career.
Flyers scratches: Erik Gustafsson, Hal Gill, Jake Voracek, Zac Rinaldo
Flyers Projected Lineup
Line 1: Michael Raffl-Claude Giroux-Vincent Lecavalier
Line 2: Scott Hartnell-Brayden Schenn-Wayne Simmonds
Line 3: Matt Read-Sean Couturier-Steve Downie
Line 4: Jay Rosehill-Chris VandeVelde-Adam Hall
D-Pair 1: Kimmo Timonen-Braydon Coburn
D-Pair 2: Nick Grossmann-Mark Streit
D-Pair 3: Luke Schenn-Andrej Meszaros
Goalie: Steve Mason
Where to Watch
TV: TCN
Radio: 93.3 WMMR
Kevin Durso is the lead beat writer for Flyerdelphia. Follow him on twitter @KDursoPhilsNet.
