Following a last-minute loss on Long Island, the Philadelphia Flyers will be right back in action on Tuesday night as a different collection of skaters take the ice in Beantown for the last preseason road contest on the schedule.
Rookie skaters Matvei Michkov and Jett Luchanko will be in the lineup at TD Garden. The young forwards will be joined by many of the NHL vets the Flyers have to offer such as Captain Sean Couturier in what should essentially be a look at a projected opening night roster in Vancouver on 10/11/2024.
Philadelphia Flyers
Before rolling out the “Jump to Conclusions” mat, there is no guarantee that Jett Luchanko will be on the initial roster once the regular season roster is finalized. However, the fact that the 18-year-old forward will see more game action indicates that John Tortorella might be willing to keep the young pivot with the hockey club. Far from a finished product, the rookie has used his blazing speed and precise playmaking skills to stick around the 2024 Flyers Traning Camp until the very end.
Per Charlie O’Connor, Luchanko is expected to center the 3rd line tonight. If Jett makes the Flyers roster, that would be the most likely landing spot in the Flyers lineup for the 2024 1st-round draft pick.
That other Flyers rookie, Matvei Michkov, leads the Philadelphia Flyers with 3 goals and 6 points in the preseason. According to CBS Sports, Michkov is tied for second in preseason points with Patrick Giles, a member of the Florida Panthers organization. Winger Samuel Honzek of the Calgary Flames tops the list with 7 points in his preseason outings in the Western Conference.
Michkov’s three goals are tied for second place behind Columbus’ Adam Fantilli who had 4 goals this preseason. Fantilli was selected 3rd overall in the 2023 NHL Draft while Michkov was selected four picks with the 7th overall selection.
Goalies Ivan Fedotov and Eetu Makiniemi traveled with the team to Boston, Massachusetts. Fedotov played the first half of the game last night in Long Island. He allowed three goals before being replaced by Alexei Kolosov in a planned move midway through the hockey game.
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins (1-2) enter Tuesday’s contests facing a lot of uncertainty entering the 2024 season. Boston ended last season with perhaps the best goalie tandem in the league with Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark. Less than two weeks ahead of opening night, Boston appears set to start the new campaign without either starting goaltender. Ullmark was shipped off to Ottawa in an offseason trade, while Swayman is engaged in a contract dispute.
On Monday, Bruins president Cam Neely commented to the media that Swayman has “64 million reasons” to play. According to ESPN, the representatives for the 25-year-old goalie claim they never received that offer from Boston management and need to re-evaluate their next step. This is some messy negotiating, folks!
Boston brings an NHL-caliber defense tonight featuring Brandon Carlo, Hampus Lindholm, and Charlie McAvoy into the preseason fight against Philly. The current starting goalie for the Bruins, Jonas Korpisalo, will not play. Brandon Bussi and Michael DiPietro will be the netminders in Boston.
How To Watch
The Philadelphia Flyers have streamed all preseason games on their official website. For road preseason contests, Philly had used the in-game arena feed to showcase the on-ice action. Get ready for a heavy dose of that Boston accent as the Bruins try to stop Matvei Michkov from filling the net tonight. Michkov scored two goals, including the game-winner in overtime, when these two squads battled last Saturday in a 3-2 Flyers win.
Following tonight’s contest, Philadelphia will have only one more preseason game remaining. The Flyers will host the New Jersey Devils on Thursday night in the final tune-up matchup before the NHL regular season begins late next week for Philadelphia.
Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
