Winners of four straight, the Philadelphia Flyers head north of the border to face the Toronto Maple Leafs for the first time this season in an Eastern Conference matchup. The Flyers are in 3rd place in the Metropolitan Division with 62 points. Meanwhile, the Maple Leafs currently are in 4th place with 62 points. However, they have won 6 of their last ten games.
Philadelphia Flyers
The big story occurred on Wednesday morning when it was reported that defenseman Risto Ristolainen will be out for at least one month, if not more, with an undisclosed injury, but it sounds significant. Ristolainen, who was mentioned in trade rumors, has four points in 31 games this season.
Right-winger Travis Konecny will try to continue his torrid pace. In 26 road games, Konecny is averaging a point per game (14 goals, 12 assists) and is a +15. Another player to watch, winger Joel Farabee, has scored 25 points in road games (10 goals, 15 assists) and a +11.
Philadelphia goalie Sam Ersson should be in goal on Thursday night. Ersson, who won his last start against the Arizona Coyotes, is 15-9-3 in 26 starts with a 2.49 GAA.
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Maple Leafs have won six consecutive games against Philadelphia. Defenseman Morgan Rielly will not play against Philadelphia as he starts the first of a five-game suspension. Reilly cross-checked Ottawa Senator Ridly Greig in the face after he scored a goal. Rielly’s suspension is a huge loss for Toronto, as he leads defensemen with 43 points (7 goals-36 assists). In fact, in his last five games, Rielly has contributed with six helpers.
Toronto, still though, has major firepower when it comes to the forwards. William Nylander, Toronto’s right winger, is 9th in the league in scoring with 66 points (26 goals-40 assists), 25 of those on the power play (7 goals-18 assists). Center Auston Matthews leads the league in goals with 42. Matthews leads the Maple Leafs in power-play goals with 11. Right winger Mitchell Marner is also on the top line and has contributed 57 points (22 goals-35 assists), and 17 of those are on the power play (6 goals-11 assists). Do not forget center John Tavares. Tavares has 40 points this season and 1/3 of those on the power play (7 goals-7 assists). The team is 6th in the league, averaging 3.5 goals a game and 10th in the league with 38 power play goals.
Toronto’s goaltending, which has been shaky this year, is averaging 3.2 goals allowed. Ilya Samsonov, who got the win in his last start on Tuesday night, is 10-4-6 in 22 starts, with a 3.27 GAA. Samsonov did have a confidence issue about a month or so ago, but he seems to have his confidence back. At home, Samsonov, in 11 games, is 7-2-1, and in February, he is 2-1 with a 2.69 GAA.
About the author
David has been following all types of sports since he was a kid. While Phillies baseball is his primary focus, David can talk about the Flyers, 76ers, Eagles, Union, and college sports. He does computer work in Pennsylvania and does stats work for another sports company.
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