Flyers at Bruins
The Boston Bruins look to continue their perfect homestand and put together a sharper defensive effort when they host the suddenly struggling Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday. The Bruins have won four straight at TD Garden but have allowed 13 goals in that stretch after posting a 6-5 overtime victory over Detroit on Tuesday in which leading scorer Brad Marchand registered a hat trick that included the game-winning goal.
“We know there are 82 of these (regular-season games), and it is hard to stay in the moment for 82 and focused and not want to have an offensive surge and trade chances,” Boston coach Bruce Cassidy told reporters. “But we are trying to play to our identity as well, and we talked about it.” The Bruins will be without talented rookie defenseman Charlie McAvoy for at least four weeks due to a knee injury, and the Flyers hope to take advantage after following a six-game winning streak with a four-game slide (0-3-1). Philadelphia used a 10-0-2 surge to move to the top of the Metropolitan Division but has allowed 19 goals during its current skid. The Flyers held a 2-1 lead in the second period on Wednesday before giving up three goals in a span of just under 10 minutes en route to a 5-2 loss to first-place Pittsburgh, which they trail by three points in the Metropolitan Division.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, NHL Network, Sportsnet, NBCS Philadelphia Plus, NESN (Boston)
ABOUT THE FLYERS (34-22-11): Wayne Simmonds (20 goals, 37 points) returned to the lineup Wednesday after missing seven games with an upper-body injury but was kept off the scoresheet and finished with a minus-4 rating. Captain Claude Giroux registered an assist against Pittsburgh, giving him 13 of his team-leading 79 points in his last nine games, while Jakub Voracek is next with 72 after scoring a goal on Wednesday. Defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere has gone five games without a point while the power play he quarterbacks is 1-for-19 over the last six contests.
ABOUT THE BRUINS (41-15-8): Marchand has collected four goals and four assists over his last five games and leads the team with 66 points after scoring his 11th career overtime winner on Tuesday, passing Glen Murray for first place on the franchise list. Defenseman Torey Krug has been red-hot as well with three goals and four assists in his last four contests while David Pastrnak has recorded six of his 61 points over his last three games. David Backes (11 goals, 27 points in 47 games) received a three-game suspension for his illegal hit on Detroit’s Frans Nielsen in Tuesday's victory.
OVERTIME
1. Flyers C Sean Couturier has gone nine games without a tally, leaving him one shy of his first 30-goal season and 100 overall for his career.
2. The Bruins have gone 6-for-15 on the power play in three contests this month and entered Wednesday 10th in the league with a 21.1 percent success rate.
3. Boston is 4-0-1 in its last five games against Philadelphia - including a 3-0 triumph on Dec. 2 behind a 28-save performance by Tuukka Rask, who is questionable for Thursday due to a lower-body injury.