Philadelphia Flyers
Flyers Game 67, Avoid the Season Long Losing Streak; Lines, Notes, & How to Watch vs. Lightning
The Philadelphia Flyers (27-31-8) will continue their pursuit of the first win of the seven-game homestand on Thursday night when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning (37-23-4).
Philadelphia is 0-5 during its homestand, with two games remaining: Tampa Bay on Thursday and Carolina on Saturday.
While it does not compare to the Flyers skid, things haven’t been so great in Tampa Bay either. The Lightning are 2-3-0 in their last five games, coming into Philadelphia after back-to-back losses.
The puck drops at 7:00 p.m. EST. at the Wells Fargo Center.
Projected Lines
Forwards
Tyson Foerster – Noah Cates – Travis Konecny
Owen Tippett – Sean Couturier – Matvei Michkov
Olle Lycksell – Ryan Poehling – Bobby Brink
Nicolas Deslauriers – Rodrigo Abols – Jakob Pelletier
Defensemen
Cam York – Travis Sanheim
Nick Seeler – Jamie Drysdale
Emil Andrae – Egor Zamula
Goaltender
Ivan Fedotov
Power Play Units
PP1: Noah Cates – Matvei Michkov – Travis Konecny – Tyson Foerster – Jamie Drysdale
PP2: Sean Couturier – Owen Tippett – Bobby Brink – Travis Sanheim – Cam York
Penalty Kill Units
PK1: Noah Cates – Travis Konecny – Cam York – Travis Sanheim
PK2:  Ryan Poehling – Nicolas Deslauriers – Nick Seeler – Egor Zamula
Read More: Opinion: Flyers’ Deadline Moves Are Encouraging
Avoid the Season’s Longest Losing Streak
The Flyers will be looking to avoid matching their season’s longest losing streak Thursday night. The Flyers’ longest streak is six straight losses; however, one of them was in overtime. That said, the Flyers’ current five-game losing streak is their longest pointless streak of the season.
It won’t be easy for the Flyers to end the streak, as their next five games are against teams with a .600 winning percentage or higher: two against Tampa, one against Carolina, Dallas, and Washington.
The Flyers are in a brutal stretch of their schedule; a less than ideal time to be in the middle of a season-long pointless streak.
Ristolainen Out
At Thursday’s morning skate, head coach John Tortorella said that Rasmus Ristolainen is “banged up” and will be out of the lineup Thursday night, thus meaning Egor Zamula will draw back in.
It’s hard to pinpoint when and where exactly whatever is keeping Ristolainen out of the lineup occurred. When asked if it was “upper or lower”, Tortorella responded with “he’s banged up”, making it even harder to determine when this happened.
Regardless, the Flyers will be without one of their best pure defenders Thursday night against an elite offensive team in the Lightning. At morning skate, Zamula just stepped in to Ristolainen’s right-side spot with Emil Andrae.
Konecny vs. Cooper
For the first time since the 4 Nations Face-Off, Travis Konecny will face-off against the head coach that scratched him in the championship game.
While the decision to scratch Konecny was questionable, it ultimately did not matter, as Canada won the game. However, Konecny’s recent play has not backed up the thought that he belonged in that championship game. Cooper will be the Canadian head coach in the 2026 Olympics. Despite his recent woes, Konecny will still be fighting for a roster spot on that Olympic team.
What better time to break your slump against the coach that scratched you. Maybe the added chip on his shoulder, along with what looks to be a new line, will give Konecny the boost he needs to break his slump.
Read More: A Look at Jamie Drysdale’s Recent Offensive Aggression
Previous Matchups
The Flyers have not been so fortunate against the Lightning in recent history. Philly has a record of 3-6-1 in their previous 10 matchups against Tampa Bay.
In that last game between the two teams, the Flyers snuck away with a 2-1 shootout win against Tampa earlier in the year. That game was Ivan Fedotov’s first career NHL win.
How to Watch
TV: NBC Sports Philadelphia, ESPN+
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
The puck drops at 7:00 p.m. EST. at the Wells Fargo Center.
Read More: PhHN Daily: Pick Watch; Vet Goalie Extended; Next Flyers Mailbag
Well, some of us fans want the losing streak to continue! Working on better draft position! Also, it sets up better draft position for each pick that the Flyers own!
Pittsburgh has a winnable game tonight that could put PHI at 6, PGH at 7. Seattle’s win yesterday puts them at 60, and they have a favorable matchup vs Utah on Friday. Not that Top-four is close (yet) but Nashville has a favorable matchup vs ANA too.
Losses don’t hurt from the off ice perspective, but the team is going to do everything they can to avoid that season long streak.
Sixteen games to go…..hope they can improve their draft position, and also grab a few more ping-pong balls in the process. Assume they still use them for the jackpot for the number one pick.