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Rick Tocchet’s Philadelphia Flyers (25-21-11) are in Manhattan on Thursday to take on Mike Sullivan’s New York Rangers (22-29-6). This is the third of four meetings this season between the traditional arch-rival teams.
Game time at Madison Square Garden is 8:00 p.m. EST. The game will be nationally televised on ESPN.
On Wednesday, the Flyers sustained a 3-1 road loss to the Washington Capitals. Goaltender Dan Vladar was the brightest spot for Philly, stopping 26 of 28 shots. He had little chance of preventing either goal he allowed. The final Washington tally was a shorthanded empty net goal. Noah Cates (13th goal of the season) scored the lone Flyers goal early in the third period.
For the Rangers, it’s their first game after the Olympic break.The Rangers were riddled with key injuries weeks before the break. One or both of superstar goaltender Igor Shesterkin and/or offensive defenseman Adam Fox could return for the game against the Flyers.
Where to watch
Time and broadcast: 8:00 p.m. ET on ESPN
Listen online: FlyersRadio 24/7
RAV4 keys to the game for Philadelphia: click here
In-game watch party (Maher Media): click here
Leading scorers: Flyers (through 57 games)
Travis Konecny — 54 points (22g, 32a)
Trevor Zegras — 48 points (20g, 29a)
Owen Tippett — 35 points (19g, 16a)
Christian Dvorak — 34 points (12g, 22a)
Matvei Michkov — 29 points (13g, 16a)
Noah Cates — 27 points (11g, 16a)
Sean Couturier — 26 points (5g, 21a)
Bobby Brink — 25 points (13g, 12a) in 51 games
Travis Sanheim — 25 points (6g,19a)
Jamie Drysdale — 23 points (5g, 18a)
Cam York — 22 points (4g, 18a) in 50 games
Goaltender stats
Dan Vladar — 34 GP, 17-9-6, 2.46 GAA, .905 SV%
Samuel Ersson — 24 GP, 8-10-5, 3.51 GAA, .856 SV%
Aleksei Kolosov — 4 GP, 0-2-0, 4.00 GAA, .830 SV%
Injury report: Flyers
- Tyson Foerster (right arm surgery) is likely out for the rest of the season. He has a five-month estimated timetable from December.
- Rodrigo Abols (ankle) suffered an injury in the Jan. 17 game against the Rangers. He was placed on IR the next day.
Projected Flyers Lineup (subject to change)
The Flyers will not hold a morning skate at Madison Square Garden on Thursday. Philly played the previous night and has a Saturday afternoon game at home against the Bruins. The lineup below reflects Wednesday’s combos in Washington. The only change is Samuel Ersson in goal rather than Dan Vladar. It is possible, however, that Emil Andrae could finally get back into the lineup.
Trevor Zegras — Christian Dvorak — Travis Konecny
Matvei Michkov — Noah Cates — Bobby Brink
Denver Barkey — Sean Couturier — Owen Tippett
Nikita Grebenkin — Carl Grundstrom — Garnet Hathaway
Travis Sanheim — Rasmus Ristolainen
Cam York — Jamie Drydale
Nick Seeler — Noah Juulsen
Samuel Ersson
[Dan Vladar]
Scratches: Emil Anadrae (healthy), Nicolas Deslauriers (healthy).
Flyers Opponent: New York Rangers
Leading scorers (through 57 games)
Mika Zibanejad — 52 points (23g, 29a)
JT Miller — 36 points (14g, 22a) in 48 games
Vincent Trocheck — 36 points (12g, 24a) in 43 games
Alexis Lafreniere — 32 points (12g, 20a)
Adam Fox — 28 points (4g, 24a) in 30 games
Will Cuylle — 27 points (13g, 14a)
Vladislav Gavrikov — 21 points (9g, 12a)
Goaltender stats
Igor Shesterkin — 34 GP, 17-12-4, 2.45 GAA, .913 SV%
Jonathan Quick — 20 GP, 4-14-2, 3.10 GAA, .890 SV%
Spencer Martin — 6 GP, 1-3-0, 4.13 GAA, .864 SV%
Projected lineup: Rangers
Flyer-killer Mika Zibanejad missed practice on Wednesday due to illness. He is a game-day decision on Thursday. Igor Shesterkin and Adam Fox are both officially still on IR as of early Thursday morning. However, both have practiced several times. One or both could suit up against Philly.
