Flyers vs. Devils: Projected lines, odds & trends, and what to watch for

The Philadelphia Flyers played one of their better games on Monday night, but they couldn’t get the job done. They outplayed the Islanders but only scored one goal, falling in overtime by a final score of 2-1.

There hasn’t been a lot of consistency this month for the Flyers, but they need to use Monday night’s effort as a building block for their date with the Devils.

Projected lines and pairs

Flyers forward lines

Alain Vigneault should stick with the same lines as against the Islanders. He was able to roll all four lines and they each had at least a few good shifts.

James van Riemsdyk – Sean Couturier – Joel Farabee
Scott Laughton – Kevin Hayes – Travis Konecny
Oskar Lindblom – Claude Giroux – Jakub Voracek
Michael Raffl – Nolan Patrick – Nicolas Aube-Kubel

Flyers defensive pairs

The Flyers defensemen made a few mistakes against the Islanders, but it was a huge improvement. They’ll roll with the same pairs again tonight.

Ivan Provorov – Shayne Gostisbehere
Travis Sanheim – Justin Braun
Erik Gustafsson – Philippe Myers

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Flyers starting goalie

Carter Hart is back in net after not dressing for Monday night’s game.

Carter Hart
Brian Elliott

Follow us on Twitter (@PhillyHockeyNow) and keep an eye out for lineup updates as we get closer to game time.

Betting odds and trends

via Covers

• The Flyers are -155 favorites against the Devils (+135). The total is set at six goals.

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Devils trends

• Devils are 5-13 in their last 18 games.
• Devils are 5-17 in their last 22 games playing on 1 days rest.
• Devils are 3-11 in their last 14 games as an underdog.
• Devils are 1-4 in their last 5 in the fourth game of a 4-in-6 situation.
• Devils are 1-4 in their last 5 games following a win.

Flyers trends

• Flyers are 4-0 in their last 4 vs. a team with a winning % below .400.
• Flyers are 4-1 in their last 5 games playing on 0 days rest.
• Flyers are 7-2 in their last 9 after scoring 2 goals or less in their previous game.
• Flyers are 2-5 in their last 7 overall.
• Flyers are 1-4 in their last 5 in the fourth game of a 4-in-6 situation.

Head-to-head trends

• Devils are 1-5 in the last 6 meetings.
• Favorite is 5-2 in the last 7 meetings.
• Road team is 4-0 in the last 4 meetings.

What to watch for

1. Start of a winnable stretch

The Flyers’ next five games are all against teams below them in the standings. They play tonight against the Devils, two home games against the Rangers, and a two-game set in Buffalo to close out March.

It’s been a rough month for the Flyers, but they have five very winnable games to get things back on track. If they can win three or four of them, they’ll be in decent shape heading into April. And if they’re in the hunt in April, Chuck Fletcher may decide the pull the trigger on a trade.

2. Can they keep it up?

The Flyers were all over the Islanders on Monday night. Now, the task is keeping up that effort against the Devils. The Flyers have been good in the second half of back-to-backs this season and they’ll need to continue that trend tonight.

Flyers need to use strong performance vs. Islanders as building block

The Devils are out of playoff contention, but they can’t be overlooked. New Jersey has won three of their last four games, including two of three against the Penguins.

3. Carter Hart’s chance to shine

The Devils are one team that Carter Hart has dominated in his young career. He is 3-1-0 with one shutout, a .937 save percentage, and a 1.73 goals against average in four starts. He made 33 saves on 34 shots in the Flyers’ 3-1 win in New Jersey on January 28th this season.

If there is ever a chance for Hart to find his game, it’s tonight against the Devils.

The Flyers and Devils are set for a 7:00 p.m. puck drop on Tuesday night.

Photo Credit: Heather Barry Images