John Tortorella's Philadelphia Flyers (30-21-7) are in western Pennsylvania on Sunday afternoon to take on Mike Sullivan's Pittsburgh Penguins (25-21-8). Game time at PPG Paints Arena is 3:30 p.m. ET.
The game will be nationally televised on TNT. The radio broadcast is on 93.3 WMMR with an online simulcast on Flyers Radio 24/7.
This is the fourth and final meeting of the season between the teams. The Flyers are 2-1-0 to date against the Penguins. The Flyers swept a home-and-home on Dec. 2 (road, 4-3 via shootout) and Dec. 4 (2-1 in overtime). On January 8 at the Wells Fargo Center, Pittsburgh prevailed by a 4-1 score.
The Flyers enter this game coming off a hard-fought 2-1 home loss to the New York Rangers on Saturday. Playing without the services of All-Star right winger Travis Konecny (day-to-day, upper-body injury), the Flyers outshot the Rangers by a 40-24 margin and outchanced New York, 27-15. However, only Tyson Foerster (11th goal of the season) was able to solve Igor Sheshterkin (39 saves on 40 shots).
The Penguins skated to a 4-1 home win against the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday evening. Kris Letang (5th and 6th) tallied even strength and empty net goals, while Tristan Jarry turned aside 29 of 31 shots. Bryan Rust (PPG, 16th) and Drew O'Connor (8th) also scored for the Penguins.
Here are five things to track in Sunday's game:
1. Petersen in net?
Flyers backup goaltender Cal Petersen (2-1-0, 3.00 GAA, .890 save percentage) is expected to get the start in net for the Flyers on Sunday after Ersson played on Thursday and Saturday. Petersen last played on Feb. 10, making 17 saves on 19 shots in a 3-2 win.
The win over Seattle marked the second time that Petersen stepped up to deliver for the Flyers this season. Back on Nov. 11, a 35-save performance by Petersen keyed a 4-2 victory during a west coast road trip. The Flyers now need the 29-year-old Iowa native to step up again.
Side note: Petersen is just the fourth left-handed goaltender in franchise history: Stephane Beauregard, Steve Mason, Mike McKenna, and Petersen.
For the Penguins, Jarry has made 36 starts and one relief appearance, posting a 15-17-4 record with a 2.46 goals against average, .916 save percentage with six shutouts. Alex Nedeljkovic (9-4-4. 2.67 GAA, .915 SV%, one shutout) has made 17 starts and two relief outings. On January 8, Nedeljkovic made 36 saves in the Penguins' win in Philadelphia.
2. Fatigue Factor Game?
The Penguins, who've played the fewest games to date (54) on any team in the NHL have been home for the last week. They've had two days off since their last game. The Flyers are playing their ninth game this season in the second half of a back-to-back. They've gone 4-2-2 in such games thus far;
The keys to avoid getting worn down in potential fatigue factor games: Adhere to structure, play with discipline, and roll the forward lines and defense pairs as much as possible. The last part is a somewhat tougher task when going with 11 forwards and seven defensemen, but nothing clubs are not used to doing.
3. All Hands on Deck
With Konecny on a day-to-day basis with the upper-body injury he sustained at practice on Friday, the Flyers will need other players to step up to not only help generate scoring chances -- which they did in abundance on Saturday against the Rangers -- but also convert those opportunities into goals.
The Flyers have several key players for whom goals and/or assists have been hard to come by lately. This needs to change with an important divisional game on tap.
For example, Cam Atkinson enters Sunday's game without a point in his last 10 games. Team captain Sean Couturier, in 15 games since returning from a two-game injury absence, has just three points (1g, 2a). Couturier's ice time has been managed a little more cautiously the last few weeks after he routinely played 20 or more minutes for several months. Joel Farabee, who made a really strong play in assisting on the Flyers' first goal in the Chicago game, has four points (0g, 4a) in his last 11 games.
The issues go beyond just three players, of course. The Flyers need contributions from players such as Owen Tippett, Morgan Frost, Foerster and more to deliver offensively on Sunday and beyond.
4. Flyers Special Teams vs. Penguins Special Teams
The Flyers went 0-for-4 on the power play and 5-for-5 on the penalty kill against the Rangers on Saturday. Philly enters the game tied with LA for the top PK in the NHL (86.9 percent) and leads the NHL with 13 shorthanded goals scored. The Flyers' power play ranks 31st at 13.0 percent.
Pittsburgh's power play ranks 30th at 13.9 percent. Their PK ranks ninth at 82.4 percent with two shorthanded goals scored.
5. Behind Enemy Lines: Pittsburgh Penguins
The Penguins still have a very formidable group at the top of their lineup: Sidney Crosby (31g, 25a), Evgeni Malkin (16g, 27a), Bryan Rust (16g, 17a), and defensemen Erik Karlsson (16g, 27a) and Letang (34 points). Jake Guentzel (22g, 30a) is out with an injury. From there, the depth drops off dramatically.
The Penguins are 14-10-4 on home ice this season. The club has gone 4-4-2 over its past 10 games.
