Last night, the Philadelphia Flyers had their seven-game point streak snapped by the Buffalo Sabres. Despite managing a season high in shots on goal, a hat trick from Alex Tuch gave the Sabres much-needed points in their chase for the second wildcard spot.
Tonight, the Flyers begin a four-game road trip against the Pittsburgh Penguins. On the second half of a back-to-back, the Flyers have little time to reset if they hope to help spoil a Pittsburgh playoff push.
It’ll be the third and final matchup between the Flyers and Penguins this season. Down, 0-2-0 in the season series, the Flyers were defeated by the Penguins, 5-1, in their most recent meeting on March 11th.
Pittsburgh Penguins (37-29-10)
The Pittsburgh Penguins are one point out of the second wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference. The Florida Panthers made the leap after destroying the Columbus Blue Jackets. Desperately chasing a wildcard berth, the Penguins need every possible point in order to make the playoffs for a seventeenth consecutive season.
Sidney Crosby (31G, 55A) always rises to the occasion versus the Philadelphia Flyers. On March 11th, he scored the game-winner on the powerplay. In his career versus the Flyers, Crosby amassed 122 points (53G, 69A) in 83 games played.
Bryan Rust (18G, 26A) notched three points (2G, 1A) in a loss to the Boston Bruins. With Crosby, Rust has the ability to become a difference-maker.
Here’s the potential lineup for the Pittsburgh Penguins:
Guentzel-Crosby-Rust
Zucker-Malkin-Rakell
Heinen-Poehling-Granlund
O’Connor-Carter-Archibald
Dumoulin-Letang
Joseph-Petry
Friedman-Ruhwedel
DeSmith
(Jarry)
Philadelphia Flyers (29-33-13)
Playing a disciplined game will go a long way for the Philadelphia Flyers. Their last two efforts weren’t disciplined. On the road against the Ottawa Senators, they weren’t able to control the puck. At home, versus the Buffalo Sabres, they couldn’t help their goaltender on defense. The Pittsburgh Penguins will have their way with the Flyers if the trend keeps going. Philadelphia is outscored by the Penguins, 9-2, in two of three games in 2022-2023.
Morgan Frost (18G, 23A) comes into Pittsburgh with a hot hand. His two goals last night add to his point total (4G, 2A) in the last five games. On the top line with Joel Farabee and Owen Tippett, Frost continues to impress, finding consistent chemistry and confidence.
Travis Konecny (28G, 27A) returned to the lineup and tallied a goal. Out since February 20th with an upper-body injury, Konecny wasted no time getting back into a rhythm. In his career against the Penguins, Konecny has 21 points (10G, 11A) in 25 games played.
Here’s the projected lineup for the Philadelphia Flyers:
Farabee-Frost-Tippett
Konecny-Cates-Allison
van Riemsdyk-Hayes-Lemieux
Deslauriers-Laughton-Braun
Provorov-York
Sanheim-Ristolainen
Seeler-DeAngelo
Ersson
(Sandstrom)
Place Your Bets
Philadelphia Flyers moneyline (+210)
Pittsburgh Penguins moneyline (-250)
Sidney Crosby anytime goal (+120)
Morgan Frost over .5pts (+135)
Game Information
You can watch the Philadelphia Flyers visit the Pittsburgh Penguins on NBC Sports Philadelphia. The radio broadcast will be available on 93.3 WMMR and Flyers Radio 24/7. The puck drops at 6pm at the PPG Paints Arena.
(AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
