Flyers, Travis Konecny, Excited to Face Ottawa’s Claude Giroux

Travis Konecny and the rest of the Philadelphia Flyers are eager to face former teammate Claude Giroux, now in his first year in Ottawa, on Saturday night at the Canadian Tire Center.

“It will be pretty cool playing against him,” Konecny said on Friday. “Like I’m sure a lot of guys on this team, he had a big impact on our careers. It’ll be a lot of fun.”

Konecny, 25, leads the Flyers with four goals, one fewer than Giroux, 34, has scored for the Senators.

“It’s not so weird for us,” Konecny said about facing Giroux. “It’s probably a little different for him because he’ll be playing against his old team for the first time, so we’ll see how it goes.”

Former Flyer Cam Talbot — he played in Philly for four games — is also expected to face his old team. It would be the Ottawa goalie’s first start this season and second game. He broke a rib in the Sens’ final exhibition game. (Sens center Derick Brassard, another ex-Flyer, could also be in the lineup.)

The Philadelphia Flyers (5-3-2) and Senators (4-6) are opposites. Philly has thrived on Carter Hart’s excellent goaltending, but has struggled to score, averaging 2.60 goals per game (30th in the NHL). Ottawa is getting lots of scoring (3.70 per game, fifth in NHL) but little defense (3.60 goals allowed per game, 24th in NHL)

Hart will carry a 5-0-2 record, a 2.10 GAA, and .943 save percentage into the 7 p.m. game, which will be televised on NBC Sports Philadelphia, starting an hour before Game 6 of the Phillies-Astros World Series.

Konecny has been the Flyers’ most consistent forward. He leads the team in goals (4), points (11), and and shots (33). Before the season, GM Chuck Fletcher challenged him to take another step in his production, and Konecny has responded.

How to bet

Money line (Fan Duel): Ottawa is minus-182, Flyers are plus-150.

Prediction: Ottawa 4, Flyers 3.

Prediction record: 5-5.

Breakaways

Based on Friday’s practice, Giroux will play right wing on the top line Saturday with center Tim Stutzle and left winger Brady Tkachuk. … In his career against Ottawa, Hart is 1-1 with a 2.57 GAA, and .899 save percentage. … Ivan Provorov is third in the NHL with 37 blocked shots. … Joel Farabee has 99 career points. … The Flyers host Craig Berube’s St. Louis Blues on Tuesday. … John Tortorella is seven games shy of becoming the 12th coach in NHL history to reach 1,400 games as a bench boss.

Excerpt 2: Ex-Flyers Defenseman Chris Therien Says Eric Lindros Let Down Team.