In the final game of a five-game homestand, John Tortorella's Philadelphia Flyers (9-10-2) will take on Bruce Cassidy's Vegas Golden Knights (13-6-2) on Monday evening. Game time at Wells Fargo Center is 7:00 p.m. EST.
This is the first of two meetings this season between the inter-conference clubs. The Flyers and Golden Knights will rematch on January 2 at T-Mobile Arena.
The Flyers enter this game after staging a 3-2 comeback overtime win on Saturday afternoon against the Chicago Blackhawks. Third period goals by Sean Couturier and Noah Cates drew the Flyers even before Matvei Michkov netted the game winner on the power play in OT. Rookie goaltender Aleksei Kolosov earned his first win in the NHL.
Here are five things to watch in Monday's game:
1. TK leading the way
Travis Konecny's gorgeous saucer to Michkov in overtime set up the winning goal in Saturday's game. Konecny leads the Flyers with 25 points (11 goal, 14 assists) in 21 games played this season.
Konecny has collected at least one point in eight of his last nine games. During that span, he has compiled 15 points (6g, 9a).
2. Between the pipes: Holding the fort in Ersson's absence
With No. 1 goaltender Samuel Ersson on Injured Reserve and the Flyers facing a gauntlet of four games in six nights this week, both Kolosov and Ivan Fedotov will see action in the upcoming matches.
Fedotov (3-4-0) has posted a 3.69 goals against average and .875 goals against average to date. Kolosov (1-4-0) has a 3.34 GAA and .877 save percentage. By comparison, Ersson is 5-2-2 with a 2.70 GAA and .902 save percentage.
3. Minimizing turnovers
When the Flyers lost to Carolina this past Wednesday, 4-1, giveaways or failed breakout opportunities played directly into all four goals the Flyers yielded. Vegas is another opponent against whom it is vital to keep unforced turnovers to an absolute minimum.
Vegas plays a different style than the Hurricanes. They have the biggest, heaviest roster in the NHL and take full advantage of their size advantage in a variety of matchups.
4. Special teams factor
On Monday, one of the NHL's most dangerous power plays will go up against one of the league's stingiest penalty kills. The Golden Knights rank fourth in the NHL on the power play at 29.6 percent efficiency. The Flyers penalty kill ranks third leaguewide at an 86.8 success rate.
The Flyers power play, which has struggled recently at 5-on-4 manpower, comes into Monday's game ranked 21st at 17.7 percent success. The Vegas PK ranks tied for 25th at 75 percent.
5. Behind Enemy Lines: Vegas Golden Knights
The Golden Knights are playing the fourth game of a five-game road trip. It's Vegas's fourth game in six nights. The road trip started with a 3-0 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Vegas bounced right back for a 3-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators followed by a 6-2 blowout win over the Montreal Canadiens.
Top center Jack Eichel leads Vegas with 32 points (7g, 25a) in 21 games. He's followed by Ivan Barbashev (9g, 13a), two-way veteran Mark Stone (6g, 15a), Tomas Hertl (8g, 9a) and defensemen Shea Theodore (1g, 15a) and Alex Pietranges (2g, 12a).
Adin Hill has made 14 starts in goal (9-4-1, 2.99 GAA, ,877 SV%, one shutout). Ilya Samsonov has made the other seven starts (4-2-1. 2.99 GAA, .906 SV%).
