5 Things: PHI vs. BUF
Flyers face the Sabres for the first time this season
1. GOING AWAY AGAIN
After finishing up a 14-day, five-game homestand the Flyers hit the road for the first game since Nov. 5 at Arizona... It's part of a stretch in which the Flyers will play eight of their next 11 games away from the Wells Fargo Center... The Flyers are 5-3-1 on the road and have points in four straight road games from their West Coast trip (3-0-1)... The Flyers are averaging over a goal per-game on the road (3.66) as compared to home (2.63)... Robert Hagg leads the team's defense on the road in both goals (3), points (6) and leads all Flyers with a +6 rating in nine road contests.
2. BUFFALO HOT
The Sabres are the NHL's hottest team, currently riding a six-game win streak, and have also earned points in 12 of their last 14 games, posting a 10-2-2 record to sit in 3rd place in the Eastern Conference... During the six-game streak, the Sabres have played four of those past regulation play, while during the point streak, they have had six of their last 11 decided in overtime/shootout... The Sabres also have one of the best home records in the NHL (6-2-1) and have earned points in each of their last five home games, going 4-0-1, including three straight wins.
3. A TALE OF TWO STATS
This season, the Sabres are averaging 3.00 goals per-game and have allowed 2.86 goals per-game, compared to last season through 21 games when they averaged 2.28 goals per-game and allowed 3.47 goals per-game... The Flyers have won five of their last seven against the Sabres, including three of their last four, but playing in Buffalo has been a different story - they have lost three of their last four playing at First Niagara Center... Last year's season series saw the Flyers earn two of the three wins, but their only loss was at Buffalo... Eight of the 14 goals scored between the two teams came in the third period, which had the fewest amount of shots than the previous two.
4. SWEDE ROOKIES
The Flyers will also face the No. 1 overall pick in last year's draft, defenseman Rasmus Dahlin, who after starting out the season with just five points (1g-4a) in 15 games, he has the same amount points in his last five games... Dahlin logs 18:27 of TOI per-game, but has averaged 21:40 in his last three games... Flyers rookie Oskar Lindblom currently has a four-game road scoring streak with six points (2g-4a) in that stretch... He has eight of his 10 total points, including all four of his goals, on the road this year and is tied among all NHL rookies in road scoring, with eight points (4g-4a) in nine road games.
5. PLAYERS TO WATCH:
FLYERS (LW: #25 - James van Riemsdyk)
In just his third game since returning from injury, van Riemsdyk is the player to watch again after a three-point effort in his last game (1g-2a)... His last game prior to Saturday in which he posted three points came against the Sabres last year (Mar. 15: 2g-1a)... Lifetime against Buffalo, van Riemsdyk has 13 goals and 19 points in 32 career games, including three goals and five points in his last five at KeyBank Center... He is three points shy of 400 in his NHL career.
SABRES (LW: #53 - Jeff Skinner)
In his first season with the Sabres, Skinner is fitting in very well - He leads the team with 14 goals, which also ranks T-3rd in the NHL - his 14 goals in 21 games is the best start to his NHL career... In all those years in Carolina, Skinner has had a lot of success against the Flyers - he has 13 goals and 23 points in 30 career meetings - his 13 goals are tied for the most against any other team, while his 23 points are second-most against any other team (WSH: 24).
