Flyers-Kings: Game 40 Preview

By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor 

Just one game remains in the year 2019 for the Flyers and it comes as the midpoint of their West coast trip. The Flyers will play the third game of a six-game road trip, the first five of which take place out west.

The final opponent for the Flyers in the calendar year is the Los Angeles Kings, who enter with the lowest point total in the Western Conference and losses in four of their last five games.

Game time is at 9 p.m.

Team Leaders

Philadelphia Flyers GP G A P Los Angeles Kings GP G A P
Travis Konecny 36 11 23 34 Anze Kopitar 41 15 20 35
Sean Couturier 39 10 20 30 Drew Doughty 41 6 19 25
Jake Voracek 39 8 21 29 Tyler Toffoli 40 10 12 22
Claude Giroux 39 11 16 27 Alex Iafallo 41 6 15 21
Kevin Hayes  39 12 11 23 Jeff Carter 41 12 8 20
 
Player to Watch
11 Travis Konecny 11 Anze Kopitar
Last 5 Games: 0 G, 5 A, 5 P, -2 Last 5 Games: 1 G, 2 A, 3 P, -2
 
Since returning from injury on Dec. 17, Travis Konecny has had no problem maintaining his pace in points. He has six assists in the six games since his return. He has, however, been stuck on 11 goals for the last six games, though he has come close to scoring. The newly-named All-Star sure seems due for one soon. 
 
Anze Kopitar has been the Kings' leader in goals and points this season with 15 goals and 35 points, but has been in a bit of a slump lately. LA's All-Star had a two-point game against the Canucks on Dec. 28 after getting just two points in the previous five games.
 
Projected Goalie Matchup
37 Brian Elliott 32 Jonathan Quick
18 GP, 9-4-2, 2.88 GAA, .906 SV% 27 GP, 10-15-2, 3.05 GAA, .893 SV%

After a really rough start in Winnipeg and a win in Ottawa where he allowed four goals, Brian Elliott bounced back in a big way, picking up the win in Anaheim on Sunday making 27 saves on 28 shots. He will be back in goal for the final game of 2019 on Tuesday in Los Angeles.

No starter has been officially named for the Kings, but it can be assumed that Jonathan Quick will be in goal for LA on Tuesday. Quick enters Tuesday's game having lost three straight starts, including the last game on Saturday against the Canucks where he allowed three goals on 26 shots. Quick does have excellent numbers against the Flyers, posting a 9-3-1 record with a 1.61 GAA and .946 save percentage in 14 games.

Flyers Projected Lineup

Injuries: Nolan Patrick (migrane disorder, out indefinitely), Oskar Lindblom (Ewing's sarcoma, out for season)

Scratches: Phil Myers (healthy), Chris Stewart (healthy)

Left Wing Center Right Wing
28 Claude Giroux 14 Sean Couturier 93 Jake Voracek
25 James van Riemsdyk 13 Kevin Hayes 11 Travis Konecny
12 Michael Raffl 21 Scott Laughton 18 Tyler Pitlick
49 Joel Farabee 24 Mikhail Vorobyev 62 Nicolas Aube-Kubel
Defense    
9 Ivan Provorov 15 Matt Niskanen  
6 Travis Sanheim 61 Justin Braun  
8 Robert Hagg 53 Shayne Gostisbehere  
Goalie    
37 Brian Elliott 79 Carter Hart  

Lineup Notes

No official word on the lineup just yet, but morning skate line rushes showed that Scott Laughton appears to be returning to action, skating on the third line with Michael Raffl on the third line with Tyler Pitlick

Kings Projected Lineup

Injuries: Alec Martinez, Dustin Brown, Trevor Lewis, Derek Forbort

Scratches: Joakim Ryan 

Left Wing Center Right Wing
19 Alex Iafallo 11 Anze Kopitar 73 Tyler Toffoli
9 Adrian Kempe 46 Blake Lizotte 51 Austin Wagner
74 Nikolai Prokhorkin 77 Jeff Carter 29 Martin Frk
13 Kyle Clifford 10 Mike Amadio 64 Matt Luff
Defense    
26 Sean Walker 8 Drew Doughty  
15 Ben Hutton 3 Matt Roy  
56 Kurtis MacDermid 34 Kale Clague  
Goalie    
32 Jonathan Quick 36 Jack Campbell  

Game Notes

  • Power Play: Flyers (13th), Kings (30th)
  • Penalty Kill: Flyers (6th), Kings (29th)
  • Recent History vs. Kings
    • Nov. 1, 2018 – Flyers 5, Kings 2 (at LA)
    • Feb. 7, 2019 – Kings 3, Flyers 2 (F/SO) (at PHI)
  • Flyers Leaders vs. Kings
    • Claude Giroux – 17 GP, 4 G, 10 A, 14 P
    • Kevin Hayes – 9 GP, 5 G, 2 A, 7 P
    • Jake Voracek – 25 GP, 6 G, 11 A, 17 P
    • Brian Elliott – 17 GP, 6-7-2, 2.34 GAA, .918 SV%
  • Milestone Watch
    • Shayne Gostisbehere needs two points to reach 200 for his career.

Where to Watch
TV: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic

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