Flyers-Rangers: Game 49 Preview

Flyers Leaders	GP	G	A	P	Rangers Leaders	GP	G	A	P
Jake Voracek	48	13	29	42	Mats Zuccarello	48	9	29	38
Claude Giroux	48	11	28	39	Derek Stepan	48	12	25	37
Wayne Simmonds	48	19	17	36	J.T. Miller	48	16	19	35
Brayden Schenn	45	15	17	32	Chris Kreider	42	18	16	34
Ivan Provorov	48	4	18	22	Michael Grabner	47	21	8	29

 

Player to Watch
53 Shayne Gostisbehere	40 Michael Grabner
Last 5 Games: 0 G, 1 A, 1 P, -6	Last 5 Games: 2 G, 0 A, 2 P, +1

 

Shayne Gostisbehere is due, and perhaps getting back on the scoresheet on Sunday will help. His assist on Claude Giroux's game-winning goal snapped a six-game pointless drought, his first game with a point since Jan. 4 against the Rangers. He's currently riding a 24-game goalless streak. His last goal came on Nov. 25, also against the Rangers.

 

Michael Grabner has been a steal for the Rangers, leading the way with 21 goals after being a very under-the-radar signing for them. Grabner doesn't score a lot over time, he has more of these big-game bursts. He scored two in his last game against the Flyers on Jan. 4. Three nights later in Columbus, he had a hat trick. He then went three games without a goal before scoring two against Toronto last Thursday.

 

Goalie Matchup
35 Steve Mason	30 Henrik Lundqvist
15-15-6, 2.92 GAA, .899 SV%	21-12-1, 2.75 GAA, .906 SV%

Steve Mason was stellar in Sunday's win, coming up with several big saves among his 36 total. Riding a bit of momentum from his first win since Dec. 21, Mason is expected to be back between the pipes for the Flyers on Wednesday. 

The Flyers catch Henrik Lundqvist on a hot streak. The veteran netminder has won three straight games, stopping 80 of 84 shots in those games. In his two games against the Flyers this season, Lundqvist has won both, making 70 saves on 74 shots.

Flyers Projected Lineup

Scratches: Dale Weise, Brandon Manning, Nick Schultz

Left Wing	Center	Right Wing
12 Michael Raffl	28 Claude Giroux	24 Matt Read
25 Nick Cousins	14 Sean Couturier	93 Jake Voracek
11 Travis Konecny	10 Brayden Schenn	17 Wayne Simmonds
76 Chris VandeVelde	78 Pierre-Edouard Bellemare	13 Roman Lyubimov
Defense
32 Mark Streit	3 Radko Gudas
9 Ivan Provorov	47 Andrew MacDonald
15 Michael Del Zotto	53 Shayne Gostisbehere
Goalie
35 Steve Mason

Game Notes

• Power Play: Flyers (9th, 8th on road), Rangers (T-10th, 17th at home)
• Penalty Kill: Flyers (21st, 24th on road), Rangers (12th, T-14th at home) 
• Recent History vs. Rangers
  • Nov. 25, 2016 - The Flyers fell to the Rangers at home, 3-2. The Rangers opened up a 2-0 lead in the first on goals by Derek Stepan and Matt Puempel. Kevin Hayes scored just past the midpoint of the game to make it a 3-0 game for the Rangers. The Flyers got on the board 1:34 into the third with a goal by Chris VandeVelde and cut the lead to one late with a goal by Shayne Gostisbehere with 2:04 to play. Henrik Lundqvist made 40 saves in the win for the Rangers while Steve Mason stopped 20 of 23 shots.
  • Jan. 4, 2017 - The Flyers were defeated by the Rangers at home, 5-2. After a scoreless first period, the Rangers opened the scoring two minutes into the second with a goal by Kevin Hayes and carried a 1-0 lead to the second intermission. Chris Kreider made it 2-0 five minutes into the third and Michael Grabner added a goal just past the midpoint of the third to essentially seal the victory for the Rangers with a 3-0 lead. Jake Voracek got the Flyers on the board with a power play goal with 7:28 to play to cut the lead to two, but Kevin Hayes answered with his second goal of the game with 5:45 to play to seal the game for good. Voracek added his second with under three minutes to play before Grabner iced the game with an empty-net goal just 37 seconds later. Steve Mason made 23 saves in the loss, while Henrik Lundqvist stopped 30 shots in the win.
• Flyers leaders vs. Rangers
• Claude Giroux – 43 games, 6 goals, 29 assists, 35 points
• Jake Voracek - 29 games, 11 goals, 11 assists, 22 points
• Wayne Simmonds - 30 games, 11 goals, 8 assists, 19 points
• Steve Mason - 17 games, 7-6-3, 2.37 GAA, .925 Sv%
• Milestone Watch
  • Brayden Schenn needs one goal for 100 in his career.

Where to Watch
TV: NBCSN
Radio: 93.3 WMMR