Flyers Preview: Can Philadelphia Kick Out Versus the Habs?

Yesterday, the Philadelphia Flyers hung in close with the best team in the NHL.

With three minutes remaining, Jordan Martinook deflected the game-winner past Martin Jones. Jones was steady throughout the game, performing at a high level. Eventually, the levy broke, and time was of the essence to recover. Unfortunately, Sebastian Aho scored the empty-net goal to seal it.

Derick Brassard scored the only goal for the Flyers. He had two incredible efforts with Cam Atkinson. The second one mattered; the first from Atkinson did not count due to goaltender interference.

Tonight, Philadelphia can kick out before the losing streak hits three. They’ll host the Montreal Canadiens at 7pm.

Montreal Canadiens (15-35-8; 38pts)

Remember when the Montreal Canadiens went head-to-head against the Tampa Bay Lightning for the Stanley Cup? Now, they’re the worst team in the NHL. That’s the difference between the presentation of the NHL in 2020-2021 versus 2021-2022, representing a more typical season.

Tonight, Cayden Primeau (1-7-1, 86.6%SV, 4.88GAA) will likely start based on back-to-back schedules. The Canadiens will be without Tyler Pitlick (undisclosed,) Christian Dvorak (upper body,) Jonathan Drouin (wrist,) Kale Clague (undisclosed,) David Savard (ankle,) Shea Weber (ankle,) Andrew Hammond (lower body,) and Jake Allen (lower body.)

Here’s the projected lineup for Montreal:

Caufield-Suzuki-Anderson
Hoffman-Pitlick-Gallagher
Pezzetta-Evans-Byron
Lehkonen-Poehling-Armia

Romanov-Chiarot
Edmundson-Petry
Kulak-Wideman

Primeau
(Montembeault)

Joel Armia (2G, 5A) has a knack for making the Philadelphia Flyers pay from the fourth line. He did it, dating back to 2019-2020, in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals. Armia is hard on the forecheck, playing a physical game. I wouldn’t bet on him to notch a point this game, but his bottom-line contributions are required to keep the Flyers in check.

A Philadelphia Fly-By

The Philadelphia Flyers are as healthy as they were yesterday. They’re still without Scott Laughton (concussion,) Kevin Connauton (undisclosed,) Sean Couturier (back,) Nate Thompson (shoulder,) and Ryan Ellis (lower body.)

Here’s the projected line for the Flyers:

Lindblom-Frost-Konecny
Giroux-Brassard-Atkinson
Farabee-Hayes-van Riemsdyk
Mayhew-Brown-MacEwen

Provorov-Braun
Sanheim-Ristolainen
Yandle-York

Hart
(Jones)

Carter Hart (11-19-6, 91.2%SV, 2.94GAA) will start. He was the starter earlier in a shootout loss to the Montreal Canadiens, head-to-head against Primeau. Hart is 2-2-1 against the Canadiens in his career, touting a 2.59GAA with a 92.3%SV.

Atkinson (21G, 23A) earns the player spotlight. He was a key contributor yesterday, putting pressure on Frederik Andersen with Brassard. Montreal outworked the Flyers, but Atkinson was one of the lone bring spots. His line will have to be assertive once again, setting the pace.

Props/Predictions

Atkinson has a +155 line as an anytime scorer, and if he scores first, the line is +1200. Armia is +450 as an anytime scorer. Tonight, the Philadelphia Flyers are moneyline favorites at -150. The over/under set at six goals, to which I would bet the over. All lines are courtesy of DraftKings.

Flyers 4, Canadiens 3