Flyers

Round Robin Game 1 Preview: Flyers-Bruins

By
Kevin Durso
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Kevin Durso Sports Editor

I have been writing for Sports Talk Philly since 2011. Currently editor and lead writer of Philadelphia Flyers coverage. Co-host of the YWT Podcast. I also am Flyers insider for 97.3 ESPN-FM in South Jersey. I graduated from Cabrini University in 2014.

All posts by Kevin Durso
Sports Editor

Published02 Aug 2020

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By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor Round Robin Game 1 Preview: Flyers-Bruins

After one tune-up for each of the 24 teams in the hub cities, the games finally count. For the Flyers, there are three more opportunities to figure out a successful formula for the first round of the playoffs. 

With that in mind, each of the next three games comes against a team that is safe through the qualifiers and comes with the opportunity to move up in the seeding and potentially get the designation of being the home team throughout the playoffs. 

It begins against the Boston Bruins, a team that was on a hot streak and running away with the President's Trophy at the time of the pause. It becomes the first test for the Flyers to see where they stand as the playoffs approach.

Game time is 3 p.m.

Team Leaders (Regular Season Stats)

Philadelphia Flyers GP G A P Boston Bruins GP G A P
Travis Konecny 66 24 37 61 David Pastrnak 70 48 47 95
Sean Couturier 69 22 37 59 Brad Marchand 70 28 59 87
Jake Voracek 69 12 44 56 Patrice Bergeron 61 31 25 56
Claude Giroux 69 21 32 53 Torey Krug 61 9 40 49
Kevin Hayes  69 23 18 41 David Krejci 61 13 30 43
 
Player to Watch
11 Travis Konecny 63 Brad Marchand
Last 5 Games: N/A Last 5 Games: N/A
 
For one, you need to have players bring a lot of energy to these games, and Travis Konecny can be that energy guy. In the exhibition game, you also saw his skill on full display with a great lead pass that set up Scott Laughton for the winning goal. The two will be on the same line for Sunday's game.
 
In a 4-1 exhibition loss to Columbus, Brad Marchand left the game and did not return. He was a full participant in practice and will play on Sunday, but there is a possibility his minutes could be limited depending on how he performs. He will be worth watching to see if the possible injury affects him in any way.
 
Projected Goalie Matchup (Regular Season Stats)
79 Carter Hart 41 Jaroslav Halak
43 GP, 24-13-3, 2.42 GAA, .914 SV% 31 GP, 18-6-6, 2.39 GAA, .919 SV%

Carter Hart got the start on Tuesday and made 11 saves on 12 shots through two periods. He will get the full game against Boston, making his fourth start against the Bruins this season.

Jaroslav Halak gets the start for the Bruins on Sunday with Tuukka Rask still not feeling well. Head coach Bruce Cassidy updated Rask's status on Sunday morning, saying that while Rask is feeling better, he is still unfit to play and will not dress for the game. Halak stopped all 10 shots he faced in Boston's 4-1 exhibition loss to Columbus on Thursday.

Flyers Projected Lineup

Left Wing Center Right Wing
28 Claude Giroux 14 Sean Couturier 93 Jake Voracek
21 Scott Laughton 13 Kevin Hayes 11 Travis Konecny
25 James van Riemsdyk 38 Derek Grant 62 Nicolas Aube-Kubel
12 Michael Raffl 44 Nate Thompson 18 Tyler Pitlick
Defense    
9 Ivan Provorov 15 Matt Niskanen  
6 Travis Sanheim 5 Phil Myers  
8 Robert Hagg 61 Justin Braun  
Goalie    
79 Carter Hart 37 Brian Elliott  

Bruins Projected Lineup

Left Wing Center Right Wing
63 Brad Marchand 37 Patrice Bergeron 88 David Pastrnak
74 Jake DeBrusk 46 David Krejci 68 Jack Studnicka
83 Karson Kuhlman 13 Charlie Coyle 10 Anders Bjork
20 Joakim Nordstrom 52 Sean Kuraly 14 Chris Wagner
Defense    
33 Zdeno Chara 73 Charlie McAvoy  
47 Torey Krug 25 Brandon Carlo  
48 Matt Grzelcyk 79 Jeremy Lauzon  
Goalie    
41 Jaroslav Halak 80 Dan Vladar  

Game Notes

  • Power Play: Flyers (14th), Bruins (2nd)
  • Penalty Kill: Flyers (11th), Bruins (3rd)
  • Recent History vs. Bruins
    • Nov. 10, 2019 – Flyers 3, Bruins 2 (F/SO) (at BOS)
    • Jan. 13, 2020 – Flyers 6, Bruins 5 (F/SO) (at PHI)
    • March 10, 2020 – Bruins 2, Flyers 0 (at PHI)
  • Flyers Leaders vs. Bruins
    • Jake Voracek – 31 GP, 6 G, 21 A, 27 P
    • Claude Giroux – 39 GP, 10 G, 19 A, 29 P
    • James van Riemsdyk – 36 GP, 14 G, 12 A, 26 P
    • Carter Hart – 5 GP, 4-1-0, 2.71 GAA, .910 SV%

Where to Watch
TV: NBC
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic/97.3 ESPN

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