Flyers Game Day Preview: #39 At Toronto Maple Leafs

The Philadelphia Flyers (17-18-4) head to Toronto to take on the Maple Leafs (25-13-2) in the last game of Philly’s road trip out of the holiday break.

The Flyers are coming off a 5-2 loss to the Las Vegas Golden Knights, while the Maple Leafs beat the Bruins 6-4 in their most recent contest. The Flyers are 2-2 since the break. The Maple Leafs are 4-1 in the same time frame, with their lone loss coming to the hands of the Washington Capitals.

Puck drop is slated for 7 p.m. at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario.

Projected Lines

Forwards

Owen Tippett – Ryan Poehling – Travis Konecny

Scott Laughton – Morgan Frost – Matvei Michkov

Tyson Foerster – Noah Cates – Bobby Brink

Joel Farabee – Sean Couturier – Garnet Hathaway

Defensemen

Cam York – Travis Sanheim

Egor Zamula – Rasmus Ristolainen

Nick Seeler – Jamie Drysdale

Goalie

Ivan Fedotov

Power Play Units

PP1: Jamie Drysdale – Bobby Brink – Matvei Michkov – Sean Couturier – Travis Konecny

PP2: Rasmus Ristolainen – Noah Cates – Morgan Frost – Owen Tippett – Tyson Foerster

Penalty Kill Units

PK1: Scott Laughton – Joel Farabee – Travis Sanheim – Rasmus Ristolainen

PK2: Ryan Poehling – Garnet Hathaway – Nick Seeler – Egor Zamula

Matthews Return

Maple Leafs Superstar Auston Matthews returned from the IR Saturday for Toronto’s game against the Bruins. It did not take long for Matthews to get reacclimated to the league. Matthews had 3 total points in his return– 2 assists and an empty-net goal. Matthews was also +5 on the night.

Despite wanting to keep his long-term health as a top priority, Matthews is expected to play tonight against the Flyers, making it back-to-back games for the centerman.

Matthews has 10 goals and 12 assists in 18 career games against the Flyers.

Fedotov Between the Pipers

Goaltending has been a huge question for the Flyers, and with Sam Ersson still hurt and a run of poor games from the young Aleksei Kolosov, Ivan Fedotov finds himself getting his first start in just over a month.

Fedotov is 4-4-1 this season with a .877SV%. He is allowing an average of 3.49 goals per game this year.

That is not to say Fedotov has not been dealt a tough game. In his last five games before falling out of the rotation, Fedotov faced the Florida Panthers, New York Rangers, Vegas Golden Knights, Carolina Hurricanes, and the Buffalo Sabres. He was 2-2-1 in that stretch.

Tonight’s matchup is no easier than the rest, and Fedotov will continue a tough stretch of matchups. A good performance tonight could be just what he needs to build confidence moving forward.

Matchup History

Toronto has had Philly’s number in the past five years, as the Flyers are just 1-7-1 against the Maple Leafs. The Flyers won their previous matchup 4-3 in Philadelphia, with Owen Tippett, Morgan Frost, Travis Sanheim, and Scott Laughton all scoring for Philly.

How to Watch

Tonight’s 7 p.m. puck drop will be broadcast live on NBC Sports Philadelphia. You can stream the game out-of-market on ESPN+ and listen live on the 97.5 The Fanatic local radio broadcast.