Flyers close homestand against red-hot Lightning
Photo: Kate Frese/Flyerdelphia
After taking their only loss of the homestand to this point, the Flyers responded with a resounding 6-0 win over the Blue Jackets on Saturday. They have one game left in the comforts of home on the six-game homestand before taking to the road to continue the playoff push.
The goal for the Flyers on the homestand has been in the range of 10 points in six games. They have eight in five after four wins and one disappointing regulation loss to the Oilers.
One common thread of the Flyers homestand has been the type of opponent. All five games have come against teams either well out of the playoff race or fighting for a playoff spot.
On Monday, that trend changes as the Flyers welcome the first of several playoff opponents to come. The Tampa Bay Lightning are in town and bring a nine-game winning streak with them. Game time is set for 7 p.m.
| Flyers Leaders | GP | G | A | P | Lightning Leaders | GP | G | A | P |
| Claude Giroux | 61 | 18 | 37 | 55 | Nikita Kucherov | 63 | 25 | 28 | 53 |
| Jakub Voracek | 60 | 10 | 38 | 48 | Steven Stamkos | 65 | 29 | 23 | 52 |
| Wayne Simmonds | 64 | 23 | 21 | 44 | Victor Hedman | 64 | 6 | 31 | 37 |
| Brayden Schenn | 62 | 21 | 22 | 43 | Alex Killorn | 64 | 13 | 21 | 34 |
| Shayne Gostisbehere | 46 | 12 | 23 | 35 | Anton Stralman | 65 | 9 | 22 | 31 |
| Player to Watch | |
| 10 Brayden Schenn | 91 Steven Stamkos |
| Last 5 Games: 3 G, 4 A, 7 P, E | Last 5 Games: 3 G, 2 A, 5 P, +4 |
| Goalie Matchup | |
| 35 Steve Mason | 30 Ben Bishop |
| 14-15-7, 2.62 GAA, .916 SV% | 28-17-3, 2.06 GAA, .926 SV% |
Steve Mason made his first start since Feb. 20 in Toronto on Saturday and returned with a shutout, stopping 19 shots. Mason made 29 saves in the Flyers overtime loss to the Lightning to open the season.
Ben Bishop enters Monday's game riding a personal six-game winning streak himself. He allowed three goals to Carolina in his last start but prior to that had allowed no more than two goals in a game since his last loss on Feb. 16 to San Jose.
Flyers Projected Lineup
Scratches: Evgeny Medvedev, R.J. Umberger, Jordan Weal, Jake Voracek, Michael Del Zotto
| Left Wing | Center | Right Wing |
| 10 Brayden Schenn | 28 Claude Giroux | 17 Wayne Simmonds |
| 12 Michael Raffl | 14 Sean Couturier | 89 Sam Gagner |
| 21 Scott Laughton | 52 Nick Cousins | 24 Matt Read |
| 76 Chris VandeVelde | 78 Pierre-Edouard Bellemare | 25 Ryan White |
| Defense | ||
| 47 Andrew MacDonald | 53 Shayne Gostisbehere | |
| 55 Nick Schultz | 32 Mark Streit | |
| 23 Brandon Manning | 3 Radko Gudas | |
| Goalie | ||
| 35 Steve Mason |
The Flyers roll out the same lineup as Saturday night's win over the Blue Jackets to face the Lightning on Monday.
Game Notes
- Power Play: Flyers (18th, 24th at home), Lightning (T-24th, 28th on road)
- Penalty Kill: Flyers (21st, 21st at home), Lightning (7th, T-12th on road)
- Recent History vs. Lightning
- Oct. 8, 2015 – The Flyers suffered a 3-2 overtime loss to the Lightning in Tampa Bay. Goals from Matt Read and Brayden Schenn moved the Flyers to a 2-1 lead in the second before Ryan Callahan tied things up going to the third. A back-and-forth game and frantic overtime ended with Jason Garrison scoring his second goal of the game on a breakaway.
- Flyers leaders vs. Lightning
- Claude Giroux – 24 games, 3 goals, 20 assists, 23 points
- Sam Gagner – 9 games, 0 goals, 8 assists, 8 points
- Mark Streit – 31 games, 4 goals, 18 assists, 22 points
- Steve Mason – 6 games, 1-3-2, 2.98 GAA, .873 Sv%
- Milestone Watch
- Mark Streit plays in his 700th NHL game tonight
- Michael Raffl plays in his 200th NHL game tonight
- Brayden Schenn needs 2 assists to reach 100 in the NHL and 3 assists to reach 100 as a Flyer
Where to Watch
TV: CSN
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Kevin Durso is managing editor for Flyerdelphia. Follow him on Twitter @Kevin_Durso.
