Ryan Kesler scored two goals in the Canucks 3-2 win over the Flyers in October. (Photo Courtesy of ESPN.com)
The Philadelphia Flyers already got the better of a former goalie. Now, they set their sights on the hottest team in hockey.
The Vancouver Canucks enter Monday night’s game against the Flyers with wins in eight of their last 10 games. The team that had threatened to win a Stanley Cup in years past is starting its ascent to playoff contention after a slow start.
The team, led by former Rangers head coach John Tortorella, will have some background on the Flyers.
Vancouver’s success starts with the Sedin twins, Henrik and Daniel. The two are posting nearly identical seasons. Henrik Sedin leads the team with 34 points and 25 assists. Daniel Sedin has 12 goals and 21 assists for 33 points.
Ryan Kesler is the team’s leading scorer with 15 goals. Three more players, including defenseman Jason Garrison and forward Mike Santorelli, have at least 20 points on the season.
The Canucks also have a strong defensive core with Garrison, Kevin Bieksa, Alexander Edler and Dan Hamhuis.
In goal, it would seem that since Eddie Lack played yesterday, Vancouver would send Roberto Luongo. However, as Luongo recovers from a groin injury, Lack appears to go again against Steve Mason – 15-9-4, 2.37 GAA. Lack is 7-2-0 with a 1.74 GAA in 12 games.
The Flyers will look to the recent hot streaks of Jake Voracek, Claude Giroux, Wayne Simmonds and Scott Hartnell. With points in multiple games for all four players, the Flyers will need to attack offensively, especially by taking control of power-play opportunities. The Flyers were 3-for-5 on the power play in Saturday’s shootout win in Edmonton.
Game Notes
- Power Play: Flyers (T-15th, 5th on road), Canucks (22nd, 21st at home)
- Penalty Kill: Flyers (10th, 15th on road), Canucks (1st, 3rd at home)
- The Canucks defeated the Flyers, 3-2, on Oct. 15 at Wells Fargo Center. The Flyers are 69-30-13-0 in 112 games against the Canucks in franchise history.
- Milestone Watch: Steve Downie is one assist away from 100 in his career. Wayne Simmonds is just two points away from 200 for his career.
Flyers scratches: Hal Gill, Jay Rosehill, Chris VandeVelde, Erik Gustafsson
Flyers Projected Lineup
Line 1: Michael Raffl-Claude Giroux-Jake Voracek
Line 2: Scott Hartnell-Brayden Schenn-Wayne Simmonds
Line 3: Matt Read-Sean Couturier-Vincent Lecavalier
Line 4: Steve Downie-Adam Hall-Zac Rinaldo
D-Pair 1: Kimmo Timonen-Braydon Coburn
D-Pair 2: Nick Grossmann-Mark Streit
D-Pair 3: Luke Schenn-Andrej Meszaros
Goalie: Steve Mason
Where to Watch
TV: CSN
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Kevin Durso is the lead beat writer for Flyerdelphia. Follow him on twitter @KDursoPhilsNet.
