1. RACE HEATS UP
The Flyers play their fourth game in a span of six days tonight and are looking for three straight wins after earning back-to-back wins on the weekend... In those two wins, the Flyers have outscored their opponent 10-5 with all 10 of their goals coming at even strength (two empty-net goals)... The Flyers penalty kill has been perfect in the last three games, going 7-for-7... The Flyers have moved within two points of the Penguins for second place in the Metropolitan Division... Tonight sees nearly every team in the race for the Metro and wild card play each other (except Washington)... PIT vs. NYI; CBJ vs. NYR; NJD, vs. SJS; and FLA vs. OTT... Should the Penguins lose in regulation, the Flyers could forge a points tie for second in the Metro with a win. Same goes for the Blue Jackets, who also sit at 85 points.
2. PIZZA, PIZZA
The Flyers wrap up their season series against the Red Wings in Detroit after earning wins in the first two games, including a 3-2 OT win in their first contest at Little Caesars Arena on Jan. 23... The Flyers will look to sweep the season series (of two games or more) against Detroit for just the third time ever and first since the 1982-83 season when they went 3-0-0... The Flyers have gone unbeaten in regulation against the Red Wings in their last five games (4-0-1) and are 7-1-1 in their last nine against Detroit... Five of the last eight games have been decided in either overtime or a shootout, including four of the last five meetings.
3. MARCH SADNESS
The Red Wings come into today looking to snap a 10-game winless skid in which they have earned just one point, going 0-9-1, including dropping every game in March thus far... During this 10-game stretch, the Red Wings have been outscored 41 to 19 and have just three power-play goals on 27 opportunities... Nine of the 10 games in the skid have been road games, with tonight being just the second home game since Feb. 24, a span of 12 games... The Red Wings have actually earned points in two of their last three at home.
4. HOT PLAY RECENTLY
Wayne Simmonds is on a tear lately, recording back-to-back multi-point games with four points (2g-2a) and has recorded points in four of his last five, while Sean Couturier has points in four straight games (5a)... Jakub Voracek has points in six of his last seven games (4g-3a)... Justin Abdelkader has points in two straight (1g-1a), while Gustav Nyquist has been hot for Detroit, recording points in three of his last four games with three goals and four points in that stretch.
5. PLAYERS TO WATCH:
FLYERS (G: #34 - Petr Mrazek)
Tonight marks the first game back in Detroit for Mrazek, who spent the first six years of his career with the Red Wings, winning a Calder Cup with their AHL affiliate in Grand Rapids (2013)... Should he get the start, he would be the first Flyers goaltender to make a start against Flyers, then make a start for the Flyers in the same season since Michael Leighton in the 2009-10 season... Since joining the Flyers, he won his first three starts in net and has a 5-5-1 mark with a 3.14 GAA.
RED WINGS (D: #25 - Mike Green)
Green represented the Red Wings in this year's NHL All-Star Game and leads the team's defense in scoring with 33 points (8g-25a) in 65 games and the entire team in ice-time at an average of 22:04... Since the 2007-08 season, Green ranks fourth among all NHL defensemen in goal scoring with 139 goals in 649 games... Against the Flyers, Green has career numbers of 29 points (9g-20a) in 44 games, including a goal and an assist through two games of this year's season series.
