The Sabres went 1-1-1 on its Western Canadian Road Trip where they played the Edmonton Oilers, Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks. Kyle Okposo missed the Sabres’ season opener due to a lower body injury, but returned to the lineup against the Oilers. Okposo had an immediate impact as he helped to lead the Sabres to a win over the Oilers with a goal and an assist. He will need to help fill the gap in the offense with Jack Eichel out of the lineup. Buffalo lost to Calgary in overtime and then lost to the Canucks in regulation.
The Sabres’ special teams are off to a decent start. The power play has scored four goals in 21 opportunities (19.0%). They are 3-for-16 on the power play while on the road, and have one power play goal in five opportunities at home. The penalty kill has only allowed one power play goal against in 14 chances (92.8%). Their power play ranks in the top 15 of the league, while the penalty kill is in the top 10 of the NHL.
Dallas Stars
The Stars are dealing with the injury bug early in the season. Patrick Sharp is out with concussion-like symptoms after he got hit in a game against the Los Angeles Kings. Jiri Hudler was placed on injured reserve because he is dealing with an illness. Mattias Janmark had to have offseason knee surgery and is expected to miss five to six months. Cody Eakin is out of the lineup because of a knee injury and Patrick Eaves missed the game against the Blue Jackets because of a lower body injury.
Dallas also announced that they will continue to wear a purple Hockey Fights Cancer sticker on the back of their helmets for the remainder of the season. The team will wear the stickers in honor of its play-by-play man, Dave Strader, who was diagnosed with cancer in the offseason. The NHL founded the Hockey Fights Cancer initiative in 1998 to raise money and awareness for cancer. Every NHL team has a Hockey Fights Cancer night at its home arena, and the Stars was on Thursday night against the Kings.
Philadelphia Flyers
The Flyers got Brayden Schenn back from suspension and received word that they’ll be without Dale Weise for the next three games. Weise served the first game of his suspension on Saturday night when the Flyers took on the Hurricanes. He was suspended for an illegal check to the head of Anaheim Ducks defenseman, Korbinian Holzer. Weise left his feet and hit Holzer in the head. There was no penalty called by the officials during the game, but the League reviewed the hit and felt it warranted supplemental discipline.
Philadelphia finally got its first win at home after losing the home opener to Anaheim. They beat the Hurricanes 6-3 and scored four goals in the second period. Matt Read has five goals in five games as he is looking to bounce back from two subpar seasons. Ivan Provorov had his first career multipoint game in the NHL. Philadelphia only has one first period goal in five games this season, and have gotten off to slow starts in all five of their games.
Tampa Bay Lightning
The Tampa Bay Lightning have gotten off to some slow starts early in games this week. They gave up the first goal in two of three games played. The Bolts let the Florida Panthers score the first goal, but came back to tie the game with 5.5 seconds left in regulation courtesy of Steven Stamkos. Brayden Point scored the game winning goal in the shootout. Tampa Bay suffered its first loss of the season against the Colorado Avalanche, but bounced back the next game to beat the Senators.
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Maple Leafs went out and acquired its starting goalie for what they believed was the present and the future, but Frederik Andersen hasn’t had the best start to the season. Yes, the Maple Leafs are a young team and haven’t been playing its best in front of Andersen, but the goalie has let in some soft goals. He needs to tighten up and not allow those because he is playing behind a young team who will give up chances. Andersen’s going to have to be better and improve because the Leafs will need him to steal some games for them.
The Leafs have had trouble holding onto leads so far this year. The team is young, but the defense also needs to be a little better especially Matt Hunwick, who has been struggling. They blew a 4-0 lead against the Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday night and eventually lost in overtime when rookie Patrik Laine scored the game-winning goal to complete his hat trick. Then on Thursday night they had a 2-1 lead over the Minnesota Wild heading into the third period, but lost 3-2. Finally, on Saturday night they gave up a 4-2 third period lead and lost to the Chicago Blackhawks in a shootout.
For Boston, Thursday night’s game was the true beginning of the 2016-17 NHL season—the home opener for the Boston Bruins, who played host to the New Jersey Devils. As with any home opener, introductions of the entire 2016-17 team were made with each player skating out to the blue line as they were announced. While they didn’t skate, injured players Adam McQuaid, Kevan Miller, and Frank Vatrano were also announced and present by the bench.
The energy was already palpable with the entire roster and all of the coaching and support staff having been announced, but it ramped up almost 100% as Bobby Orr and Milt Schmidt were revealed and Orr wheeled Schmidt right out to the center of the ice for the ceremonial puck drop. Even the Devils captain, Andy Greene was pretty excited about the opportunity to shake hands with these two hockey legends.
Bobby Orr and Milt Schmidt Ceremonial Puck Drop (Photo: Alan Sullivan)
Newly minted Bruin David Backes, who seems to be happily embracing his position with the Black and Gold—notching seven hits during the night’s game—shared his thoughts on the two icons.
“It was cool to see them coming on the ice and it looked like Uncle Milt [Schmidt] was maybe even a little emotional at center ice enjoying the spotlight that he deserves,” Backes said after the game. “And with Bobby Orr and 50 years since his debut a couple days ago, great history and great to have those guys a part of opening night, in this building.”
There was a lot of north and south hockey played for forty minutes with nothing to show for it, other than outstanding performances from the netminders—Tuukka Rask for the Bruins and Massachusetts native Cory Schneider for the Devils. Some watching the game wanted lots of goal scoring, but when studying the geometry of the plays and seeing the confidence with which the Bruins were playing, it was a good game from puck drop.
“You know I think the way that Jersey plays, and they make you play, it’s maybe not the most exciting game to be watching but the people who are hockey purists I think, it was tight checking,” Backes described. “It was maybe 3-on-2s back and forth for a small period of time but the majority of it was good positional, sound hockey and you just figured that the first time somebody made a mistake it was going to end up in the back of the net.”
As has happened so far this season for Boston, they ended up playing from behind, when Kyle Palmieri scored from the circle on the power play 4:14 into the third period. Like their road games against Columbus and Winnipeg, the Bruins would respond, as Brad Marchand got a snap shot off, threading it between the legs of Greene and past Schneider to tie the game just five and a half minutes later. Though there was just over ten minutes remaining in regulation, it’s safe to say that many expected the game to go to overtime, however, Patrice Bergeron, who was playing in his first game of the season, decided to get the go ahead goal with just 1:15 left on the clock.
Patrice Bergeron (Photo: Alan Sullivan)
Bergeron had been slotted back in as center on his line with Marchand and David Pastrnak. While he’d been healing, and forced to watch the team’s road games from his home, Backes had tried to fill the skates of that center position—doing a pretty good job of it, given the points that line garnered throughout the road trip. They gelled so well, that Bergeron was asked about Backes stepping in.
“Yeah, I thought I was going to maybe be the anchor there tonight,” he joked. ”So they were amazing the first three games and yeah, I guess I was trying to come in and try to do the job as much as possible.”
Of course, it was Bergeron, so perhaps no one should have been surprised when he notched that go-ahead goal. He was also just as impressive in the face offs, winning 54% of his (13 out of 24).
However, there was still plenty of time for the Devils, who would not only pull their goalie, but would end up with a 6-on-4 opportunity when Backes was whistled for roughing while the clock showed 50 seconds remaining in regulation. It’s not until a hockey game is hinging on the clock counting down that one gets a true understanding of just how long 50 seconds can be.
Perhaps it was just meant to be. More likely the improved play of most of the Bruins from last season is a better explanation for them hanging on and getting the win. They still have some things to work on, having gone 1 for 14 on the power play (0 for 4 on the night). The man advantage has not been such yet with Boston in their first four games and is definitely something they will want to improve.
“[We] get the win and we’ll put it in the bank,” summed up Backes. “We’ll enjoy it the rest of the night and then we’ve got more business to get to Saturday.”
And Saturday’s game brings the Montreal Canadiens to town, with a healthy Carey Price likely to start in net, for the first of a classic, long-standing, traditional hockey rivalry.
Thursday night the Boston Bruins will play their home opener of the 2016-17 season at TD Garden. Last season, home ice was anything but an advantage to the Black and Gold, making for a frustrating year for their fans.
The Bruins come into this first home game of the season bringing a 2-1-0 record from their three-game road trip. They will be the first to admit that their efforts against the Toronto Maple Leafs, to whom they lost, were no where near what they needed to be, but from a bonding experience, this small road trip may reap rewards in the remaining games in October, giving them perhaps a boost to build from at home.
Torey Krug
“It’s a big thing, because now, you know, we don’t have to play at home and put on a show for our fans,” Torey Krug told me of starting the season on the road. “We can get away from Boston for a bit where you’re going to dinner with the guys on the team and you’re spending time in the hotel. Hanging out in the locker room a little bit more, so, it’s a big time for the team to come together and build that camaraderie and that chemistry. It’s important to start on the road, and hopefully it will be beneficial to us.”
I couldn’t help asking Krug though what it was about playing in front of their fans that made them feel they had to “put on a show.” Had they ever just thought about going out and simply playing a game?
“Yeah, we talk about it all the time, you know, being back at home for home stands, that you don’t have to put on a show. That it’s just about going out and playing hockey the way that we know,” he shared. “It’s just for whatever reason, it’s one of those things in sports that you can’t explain.”
I’ll be the first to admit that there is a palpable energy that fills the arena in anticipation of the team stepping on the ice. And as the Bruins rush out of their tunnel pouring forth in that single line to begin their laps before the game, the crowd’s electricity crackles, finally breaking free into raucous clapping and cheering.
“When the fans get excited, when there’s a play like a two-on-one or something, you try to make a pretty play, [whereas] when you’re on the road you might just go down and shoot it and it ends up scoring a goal,” Krug tried to articulate. “There’s little things you just can’t explain, but for awhile we were so good at home and the last couple of years it’s definitely taken a dip. But we look to get back to using it to our advantage and making sure that when teams come to the Garden that it’s a tough night for them.”
That first opportunity presents itself Thursday night as the New Jersey Devils come in having gone 1-1-1 so far in their opening three games—losing on the road in overtime to the Florida Panthers and in regulation to the Tampa Bay Lightning before getting a win at home against the Anaheim Ducks.
The Bruins will be looking to garner the two points and from everything that has been said in the last couple of days it looks probable that Patrice Bergeron will be back in the lineup, which is always a bonus for the guys in black and gold.
Last night the Florida Panthers were handed their first loss of the 2016-17 season in a shootout against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Panthers had the chance to return to Sunrise with their first 3-0 start in franchise history, but last minutelast 5.5-second heroics from Steven Stamkos sent the game into overtime. The Panthers escaped overtime despite going down a man, putting their well-practiced penalty kill on display once again this season.
And then came the shootout. It was weird.
After 2.5 rounds, Lightning goalie Ben Bishop was ready to seal his team’s victory with a save against Vincent Trocheck. But despite Trocheck briefly losing control of the puck, Bishop never technically made a save.
Trocheck is no stranger to controversy over goals that could-have-been, but this time, he scored a goal that might-not-have-been. In fact, this one was ruled no goal on the ice, and as the Lightning were celebrating their victory, Trocheck argued his case.
“The puck must be kept in motion towards the opponent’s goal line and once it is shot, the play shall be considered complete. No goal can be scored on a rebound of any kind (an exception being the puck off the goal post or crossbar, then the goalkeeper and then directly into the goal), and any time the puck crosses the goal line or comes to a complete stop, the shot shall be considered complete.”
But that aforementioned clarity in the rulebook seems to crumble a bit in its application to this particular shootout attempt. As I watched the game in real time, I thought there was absolutely no way the initial ruling would be overturned. It looked to me, and to all of Amalie Arena, that once Trocheck fumbled his own deke, the attempt was over and his subsequent shot into the net was just a desperate play in frustration of losing. Upon further review, however, the shot and protest of Trocheck turned out to be a display of his cool nerve and practical hockey IQ, whether or not you agree with the call.
The puck must be kept in motion towards the opponent’s goal line and once it is shot, the play shall be considered complete.
I can’t honestly claim to know what the right call is here. Plenty of people think Toronto got it wrong, as the puck was no longer in motion towards the opponent’s goal line. But on the other hand, the puck was continuously kept in some type of motion and Trocheck didn’t actually shoot until after he gathered the lost puck, only then fulfilling the “complete play” portion of the rule.
Trocheck obviously thought he had scored to extend the shootout, and his challenge of the no-goal call on the ice was rewarded. Whether or not it was the right call depends on your interpretation of the rule, and maybe a little bit on what color jersey you were wearing last night.
I feel like this is one of the weirdest scenarios we’ve seen in a shootout, and I’ve dubbed it the Schrödinger’s cat of shootout attempts, as it seems to be both a good goal and not a goal at the same time.
In the end it didn’t matter, as Tampa Bay went on to clinch the win in the shootout anyway. For which I am thankful. Not because my team lost, but because the Panthers don’t need any bad karma moving forward this year.
Vancouver Canucks and UBC Thunderbirds present ‘Canucks on Campus’ to raise funds for UBC’s hockey program
Vancouver, BC — On the same night that UBC goalie Matt Hewitt dresses for the Canucks, UBC and the Vancouver Canucks announced a special fundraiser for varsity hockey. On November 12th at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre the Vancouver Canucks will hold a practice for all hockey fans in support of UBC Thunderbirds Hockey. UBC event tickets will also be redeemable for a ticket to a Vancouver Canucks game this season at Rogers Arena.
Following the practice select members of the Canucks and UBC Thunderbirds will participate in a
skills challenge. This event will further the great friendship between these two hockey programs.
“This partnership is providing an incredible opportunity to raise funds for UBC Thunderbird Hockey and have a very exciting event on UBC Campus,” says UBC Senior Athletic Director Gilles Lepine. “We will give hockey fans a chance to see the professionals do their work behind the scenes and it will be the opportunity of a lifetime for our Thunderbirds to share the ice with their heroes.”
When: 11 AM – November 12th, 2016
Where: Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sport Centre
Buy Tickets Here: http://www.ticketmaster.ca/
Tickets start at $35 plus fees for UBC students and $45 plus fees for UBC alumni, staff/faculty, and
public with partial proceeds going to support the UBC Thunderbirds varsity hockey programs.
The Tampa Bay Lightning have started games off slow this year, but have come from behind to win games too.
The Lightning will face in-state rival Florida Panthers and the new and the Colorado Avalanche this week at home before heading on the road for the first time this season. They will face the Senators in Ottawa. The Bolts will need to get off to better starts, if they want to have a productive week.
The Panthers visit the Lightning on Tuesday night, and this will be a matchup of undefeated teams. The teams have each won both games that they’ve played. Florida will need to capitalize on its power play chances and stay out of the penalty box since Tampa Bay has dangerous power play units. The two power play units include the likes of Nikita Kucherov,Jonathan Drouin, Victor Hedman and Steven Stamkos among others. If they get the lead then they’ll need to protect it since the Bolts have proven they can come back in games. The key factor to winning the game for Florida will be former Lightning player, Jonathan Marchessault, who has four points so far this season.
The Bolts will need to get off to a better start and come out playing with some energy. They will need to limit their mistakes with the puck including turning the puck over. It would be helpful if Tampa Bay could get the first goal of the game and build off it that momentum since the Panthers haven’t given up much. The Bolts will need to be patient with the puck, but also ready to go from puck drop since this is a rivalry game. They’ll also want to get Kucherov going especially early in the game.
The Avalanche are off to a good start in the early season. The Avs are scoring goals, but giving up some too. Tampa Bay will need to stay out of the penalty box because Colorado has had some success on the power play early on. When on the power play, the Bolts will need to capitalize since the penalty kill is one of the Avs’ weakest parts of it game so far. The Lightning will also need to keep an eye on Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog along with Erik Johnson and Tyson Barrie, who can pitch in on the offensive side of the puck and shut down top players.
The Bolts will close out the week by playing its first road game of the week on Saturday in Ottawa. The Lightning need to take advantage of the not-so-stellar defense that the Senators have. Tampa Bay will need to get shots to the net and give the goalies a hard time trying to see the puck. The Lightning will need to keep an eye on defenseman Erik Karlsson when he’s on the ice because the can act as a fourth forward and jump up into the play.
The Dallas Stars will look to get back in the win column after blowing a 2-0 lead on Saturday night against the Colorado Avalanche.
The Stars will play on the road against the Nashville Predators, and then come home for two games. Dallas will take on the Los Angeles Kings and the Columbus Blue Jackets and will have the home ice advantage. The key for the Stars is goaltending, which has been less than spectacular in the first two games of the season. Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen will need to make the routine save and a couple of highlight reel saves for the Stars to have a chance at winning some games.
The Predators are a balanced team that can beat you with the offense or the defense. Nashville has one of the best defensive corps in the NHL, if not the best. The Preds will need to put some pressure on the defense of the Stars and force them to turn the puck over. If Nashville should get behind in the game then just keep pushing because Dallas will give up some goals, and they’ll have a chance to get back in the game. The most important key for the Preds is to get some shots towards Dallas’ net.
Dallas will have a tough time matching up since Nashville is a balanced team. The Stars will also need to keep the turnovers to a minimum and watch out for the defense because they can chip in on the offensive side of the puck. Dallas needs to stay out of the penalty box since the Preds already have four power play goals. The team will also need to get some bodies in front of the goalies to make life harder for them.
On Thursday night, the Stars return home to take on the Los Angeles Kings. It has been a struggle offensively for the Kings to start off the year. They aren’t getting enough shots to the net, and are giving up way to many chances to the opposing team. It hasn’t helped that they are missing top goaltender, Jonathan Quick, who is out due to an injury. If the Kings can manage to get the first goal then it could help their confidence and they can build on the goals from there.
Dallas needs to get the first goal to keep the home crowd in the game. They will need to keep the Kings second chances down to a minimum because even thought Los Angeles is struggling, a goal or two could help them break out of its offensive slump. If the Stars can manage to get a lead then keep attacking, but play smart with the puck and keep the turnovers down to a minimum. The goalies need to step up and find a way to stop some pucks from getting into the net.
The Stars end the week with a game on Saturday against the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Blue Jackets are off to another bad start and on all accounts. They can’t score goals and are allowing too many. They have only five players with more than one point and three others that have only one point. Columbus will need to keep Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin in check or its going to be a long night. The one bright spot for the Blue Jackets so far this year has been the special teams.
Dallas will need to stay out of the penalty box since the power play is somewhat of a bright spot for CBJ through the first week of the season. The Stars will need to get in on the forecheck, force turnovers and create chances. This could be a trap game for the Stars so they want to make sure that they come out with energy from the drop of the puck, and play with it for the rest of the game.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have had quite an opening week to the 2016-17 NHL season. They have honored the past, played a few games with the present team, and have gotten a glimpse into the future with the young kids on the roster.
The Maple Leafs will be tested this week with having to play three games away from the ACC. On Wednesday night, they will take on the Winnipeg Jets, then head to Minnesota to face the Wild on Thursday night, and finish up the week playing the Blackhawks in Chicago. It isn’t exactly the easiest schedule, but they are the games that are on the schedule.
On Wednesday night, the Leafs will visit the Jets in Winnipeg, where they’ll be playing in front of a loud crowd. The Jets do have two decent lines that can put up some points. They’ll have to keep an eye on Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner among other Leafs players. If Winnipeg can get some pucks towards the net then they have a good shot at winning the game especially since Frederick Andersen hasn’t been playing at his best so far. Andersen will also give up rebound chances so the Jets will want to have someone around the net trying to get to those chances.
Toronto will need its veteran players to step up a little bit since they’ve really been relying on the kids. If they can shut down the top two lines of the Jets then they’ll have a chance to win the game. They need to capitalize on their power play chances since the Jets have allowed some goals while shorthanded. The most important thing for the Maple Leafs to do is to get the first goal and take the loud, boisterous Winnipeg crowd out of the game early.
The Leafs will face their first back-to-back situation this year when they play the Minnesota Wild Thursday night after playing the Jets the previous night. The Wild will need to make sure that their defense can get pucks through with traffic in front of the Leafs’ net. The Leafs have a ton of speed so it’s important for the Wild to try to keep them from using that speed to create plays, especially in transition.
Toronto will want to capitalize on their scoring chances since the Wild don’t give up much during the course of a game. One way to create more is to use their speed through the neutral zone and into the offensive zone. If Toronto can manage to get a lead then the team will want to build on it since Minnesota has lost some games when trailing after the second period. James van Riemsdyk and company will want to watch out for the Wild’s defensive corps because they can contribute on the offensive side of the puck. The Maple Leafs will also need to try to keep the top line off the board for the Wild.
On Saturday, Auston Matthews will visit the United Center for the first time. The Hawks will need to take advantage of the fact that the Leafs are a young team and their roster has a lot of veterans on it. Chicago needs to establish a forecheck and force the defense to turn the puck over and make Andersen work, but be careful that the Leafs don’t get too many chances in transition. This would be a good game for the veterans to get going for the Blackhawks.
The Leafs will need to get pucks to the net with traffic in front of Chicago’s goalies because if they can see the puck then they’ll make the save. The penalty kill of the Blackhawks hasn’t been exactly stellar so Toronto needs to take advantage of its power play opportunities. The Maple Leafs will need to get that first goal to take the crowd out of the game. If they can manage to keep the Hawks’ top two lines in check then they should have a good shot at coming out of Chicago with a win.
Friday night was the Nashville Predators’ home opener and on the first power-play of the 2016-2017 season, newest Predator P.K. Subban scored his first Nashville goal against the Preds’ main foes: the Chicago Blackhawks. The Bridgestone Arena crowd cheered for at least 2 minutes from the start of his goal (where his goal celebration also included a lasso) until his goal call by PA announcer Paul McCann was finished.
Subban said after the Predators 3-2 win: “I just look forward to being able to put all the crap that’s happening in the media, off the ice, around us just away because we’ve got a good group of guys […] I think if we’re focused and the focus is on our team and not just on crap off the ice, I think we’re going to have a lot of success. That’s part of what I said in my speech after the game. Let’s just focus on playing hockey and keep moving forward.”
Bound to get him even more fans in Nashville, Subban also did this:
Every Predators goal, one each from Subban, Roman Josi, and Mike Fisher, was on the power play. But the weirdest moment of the night? Jonathan Toews and James Neal fought.
Game 2 Haiku: Down early field goal Arvidsson straight up dirty Hawks in Panik zone#haikuall82
Saturday night’s game in Chicago wasn’t as good for the Predators. It was backup goalie Marek Mazanec’s first NHL game since 2015, which ended up being a 5-3 loss. Chicago’s Nick Schmaltz scored his first NHL goal and Richard Panik had a hat trick. Colin Wilson, Craig Smith, and Viktor Arvidsson scored for the Preds.
Other News:
Defenseman Anthony Bitetto (D) is expected to miss 4-6 weeks with an upper-body injury. He fought with former Pred Jordin Tootoo (now a Blackhawk) and didn’t come back to the game afterward during the Predators opening night win.
Winger Miikka Salomaki is “projected” to be out for 6-8 weeks, also with an upper-body injury. The Finnish forward exited Saturday’s loss in Chicago after blocking a shot off his hand.
Every year the Predators have a player do a weekly(ish) radio show. This year the victim, I mean, player will be Craig Smith. The players who do these have a tendency to end up as #FormerPredators (including, but not limited, to Kevin Klein and Eric Nystrom). Craig will be on 102.5 The Game at Tin Roof on Broadway for the Craig Smith Predators Player Show from 7pm to 8pm with Willy Daunic, Stu Grimson, and Special Guests so far scheduled until November.
Former Predators News:
Matt Cullen, Stanley Cup champion with the Penguins last season, is back with the Pens this season.
Jordin Tootoo is sick and might not play on Tuesday.
Upcoming Predators News:
Nashville is playing the Dallas Stars Tuesday night at home.
The Philadelphia Flyers look to continue their decent start to the season. They opened the season with a win over the Los Angeles Kings and then lost in overtime to the Arizona Coyotes. They took three of four possible points in what were the opponents’ home openers.
On Tuesday night, they’ll take on the Chicago Blackhawks at the United Center. Philadelphia will then come home to play host to the Anaheim Ducks in the Flyers home opener. On Saturday, the Flyers will be back on the road to play the Carolina Hurricanes. The Flyers have been getting secondary scoring, but the team will need to get off to better starts than they have in the first two games of the season.
The Blackhawks have had their struggles this season, especially on the penalty kill where they have allowed six power play goals. Chicago is relying on some young kids this year because of the loss of key players over the past two seasons due to salary cap constrictions. Richard Panik is the leading scorer, while the Calder Trophy winner from last season, Artemi Panarin, is off to a slow start. The Blackhawks have been getting a majority of their scoring from the top two lines in the early season.
A concern heading into the season for the Flyers was secondary scoring, but they’ve been getting that from the other lines. Brayden Schenn will be serving the final game of his three-game suspension for a hit that took place last season in the playoffs. The Flyers have struggled with their starts to games and that’ll need to change if they want to have a chance at winning Tuesday night. Philadelphia will also need to stay out of the box because Chicago does have a dangerous power play unit. The Flyers will need to try to shut down the top two lines of the Blackhawks and watch out for the defense because they can chip in on the offensive side of the puck. Finally, if Philadelphia wants to steal a win from the Blackhawks then they’ll need the power play units to take advantage of their chances since Chicago hasn’t had the most stellar penalty kill early on.
The Flyers will play on home ice for the first time this season on Thursday night when they face off with the Ducks. The Ducks have had some problems scoring goals again this year. They are firing shots to the net but just can’t finish. The second line (Cogliano–Kesler-Silfverberg) for Anaheim seems to be doing most of the damage for the team along with Ryan Getzlaf. Once Rickard Rackell can play then he should be able to improve the offense and chip in some goals.
Philadelphia needs to feed off the crowd in the home opener and get that first goal. This should be Brayden Schenn’s first game back from his suspension. They will need to be aware of Sami Vatanen and Cam Fowler from the back end for Anaheim since both players can put up points. The Orange and Black will need to shut down Getzlaf and the second line to have a chance at winning. The team needs to get pucks to the net and to test either John Gibson or Jonathan Bernier.
The trip home will be a short one before the Flyers head back out on the road. The Hurricanes have gotten most of their offense from the top line of Jeff Skinner, Lee Stempniak, and Victor Rask. Carolina isn’t a balanced team and has a lot of young kids in the lineup. If they can shut down the Flyers’ top two lines and make the other lines beat them then Carolina has a decent shot at winning the game.
The Flyers need to establish the forecheck early and make the Carolina defensemen turn the puck over to get some scoring chances. Philadelphia will need to shut down the top line of the Hurricanes since they’ve done most of the offensive damage for the team in the early going. If the Flyers get down they need to just keep coming because Carolina has already lost a game after having a lead after two periods. The Hurricanes will need to watch out for the Claude Giroux-Shayne Gostisbehere connection since they beat them a couple of times last year.
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