Flyers vs. Blackhawks, Game 46: Lines, Notes & How to Watch

After a strong effort and some creative goals, the Philadelphia Flyers (19-19-7) will host another of the league’s bottom-dwelling teams, the Chicago Blackhawks (12-26-4), on Thursday.

Despite being one of the league’s worst teams, the Blackhawks have won four of their last five games. However, they are 31st in the league. The Blue Jackets are tied in points, but have a worse points percentag.

The Blackhawks rallied for a 4-3 overtime win against the Buffalo Sabres in their last game. Seth Jones tied it with less than a minute left in regulation before scoring the overtime winner. Jones, along with Phillip Kurashev, had three points for Chicago.

The Flyers saw another player score their first career hat trick in their 5-2 win over Anaheim. That came from Kevin Hayes. Rasmus Ristolainen scored shorthanded for his first goal in almost a calendar year.  Morgan Frost also scored a highlight-reel goal, one he set up with a between-the-legs move.

“We had a ton of chances and couldn’t finish,” John Tortorella said of the eventual victory. “I thought it was going to be one of those games. … But I appreciate and respect how we just stayed with it. I thought we played a pretty good game.”

That wasn’t the biggest story to come from the game, however. On the Philadelphia Flyers’ Pride Night, Ivan Provorov did not take warmups as he cited his religious beliefs for not wanting to wear the LBGTQ+ warmup jersey. There were mixed reviews with his decision.

PHN: Flyers’ Ivan Provorov Skips Pride Night Warmups Because of Religious Beliefs

This is the first time the Flyers and Blackhawks will meet this season. They’ll finish up the two-game season series in April. They last played April 22 last  season. Jonathan Toews had two points in Chicago’s 3-1 victory.

The Flyers have a remarkable 17-game home winning streak against the Blackhawks. They have not lost a regular-season home game against Chicago since 1996.

Flyers’ expected lines

van Riemsdyk – Frost – Tippett

Farabee – Cates – Konecny

Hayes – Laughton – Allison

Deslauriers – Brown – MacEwen

Defense

Provorov – York

Sanheim – DeAngelo

Seeler – Ristolainen

Goalie

Hart

Blackhawks’ expected lines

Johnson – Domi – Kane

Kurashev – Toews – Raddysh

Dickinson – Rafferty -Athanasiou

Blackwell – Entwistle – Johnson

Defense

McCabe – Jones

Johnson – Murphy

Phillips – Jones

Goalie

Mrazek

Breakaways

Seth Jones has eight points in his last five games. He leads Hawks’ defensemen in all offensive categories. … Patrick Kane, who scored the goal that gave Chicago the 2010 Cup against the Flyers,  has just eight goals on the season. A walking trade rumor, he has 19 points in 19 career games against the Flyers. … Felix Sandstrom’s conditioning stint has ended in Lehigh Valley. The Flyers will either have to call him back up, or put him through waivers to try to keep him in the AHL. … Mrazek (4-10-1), a former Flyer, has struggled mightily for Chicago, posting a 4.17 GAA and a .877 save percentage. Hart (13-13-6), pulled in his last start, has recorded a 3.00 GAA and a .907 save percentage.

The Flyers are on on a five-game win streak against Western Conference opponents. They are 9-4-2 against the West.

Philadelphia is 8-2 in its last 10 games and is tied for first in the NHL in wins since Dec. 29.

Ristolainen’s shorthanded goal gave the Philadelphia Flyers a league-leading nine shorties this season. It’s the most they’ve had in a season since scoring 13 in 2010-11.

How to watch & listen

TV: 7 p.m. on NBCSP | Radio: 93.3 WMMR

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