5 THINGS: PHI vs. VGK

Philadelphia Flyers (2017-18: 42-26-14, 98pts) vs. Vegas Golden Knights (2017-18: 51-24-7, 109pts)
at T-Mobile Arena | Las Vegas, NV
TIME: 10:00 p.m. ET | TV: NBCSP | RADIO: 97.5 The Fanatic
presented by The Rothman Institute at Jefferson Hospital
QUICK STATS
Season Series:0-0-0
All-Time Record: 2gp (1-1-0)
Leading Scorers (pre-season):
PHI: 7-pts, Vorobyev (2g-5a)
VGK: 8-pts, Marchessault (4g-4a)
1. THE SEVEN/EIGHT THAT CAME BEFORE
The Flyers concluded their preseason with a 4-3-1 record, winning their last game (4-1 at BOS) and went 3-1-1 on the road... In the case of Vegas, they played just seven preseason games, but racked up a total of 34 goals in that stretch, while allowing just 16 against and posting a 6-1-0 record... Vegas was led by veteran Jonathan Marchessault, who tallied four goals and eight points in five preseason games, while rookie Mikhail Vorobyev led the Flyers in preseason scoring, averaging a point-per-game pace with seven points (2g-5a) playing in seven of the eight preseason games.

2. BIG SPENDERS
Each team comes into the season with some significant changes to their lineup... Most notably for the Flyers was James van Riemsdyk, who was Toronto's leading goal-scorer over the course of his six years with the Maple Leafs with 154 goals (tied with Nazem Kadri) and posted a career high 36 last year... Highly skilled playmaker Paul Stastny and scoring winger Max Pacioretty joined the fray in Vegas - Stastny owns 220 goals and 646 points in his 12-year NHL career and added six goals and 15 points in 17 playoff games to help lead the Jets to the Western Conference Final... Pacioretty comes in with 30+ goals in four of his last five years and five of his last seven seasons with Montreal - he was limited to 64 games last season with the Canadiens, where he posted 17 goals and 37 points.
3. NOT OUR FIRST ROAD-EO
The Flyers will start the season on the road for the fifth straight season, including opening on the West Coast Pacific Time Zone for the third straight year... In each of the previous two years they have earned victories.. Last season, the Flyers finished with the most points on the road in the Metropolitan Division and third-best in the Eastern Conference with a 20-13-8 record for 48 points... Vegas had the best home record in the Pacific Division last year and second-best in the Western Conference with a 29-10-2 mark for 60 points.
4. THIS, THAT & THE OTHER
THIS: Tonight is the 51st season opening game for the Flyers, who own an all-time record of 23-19-8 to open the season, including an 8-8-5 mark when they open the season on the road... The Golden Knights won their only opening game in club history, a 2-1 win at Dallas... THAT:Vegas led all teams in the preseason on the power play, operating at 40.9% while ranking in the Top 5 of the PK at 88.0%... They were in the NHL's Top 10 in both the power play (T-9th: 21.4%) and penalty kill (T-10th: 81.4%)... THE OTHER: As far players making their NHL debut, only one player will play their first NHL game tonight - 21-year-old Mikhail Vorobyev.
5. PLAYERS TO WATCH:
FLYERS (LW: #28 - Claude Giroux)
The Flyers captain is coming off a 102-point season in which he ranked second in the NHL's scoring race and fourth in Hart Trophy voting, just four points shy of Anze Kopitar for being a Top 3 Finalist... Since the start of the 2010-11 season, Giroux leads all NHL players in assists (414) and ranks second in the NHL with 603 points... Currently at 463 assists, he can pass Bill Barber for sole possession of third place in Flyers history with one assist... Also, by playing in tonight's game he moves into eighth all-time in Flyers history with his 739th game played, passing Eric Desjardins... Giroux also had five points (1g-4a) in four preseason games.
VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS (LW: #67 - Max Pacioretty)
Pacioretty was acquired in a trade just before training camps began around the NHL on Sept. 9 and signed a four-year contract with Vegas the next day... He spent his entire 10-year NHL career with the Montreal Canadiens... Since the 2012-13 season, he ranks 10th among all NHL players in goal-scoring with 173 goals, just 16 shy of Tyler Seguin, who ranks second in that time span... Pacioretty got off to a hot start with his new team in the preseason, recording four goals and five points in five games... Against the Flyers, Pacioretty hasn't fared well in goal-scoring, recording just four goals in 25 games, but has 17 points in that stretch.