Flyers at Maple Leafs
THE STORY: Ilya Bryzgalov heard the displeasure of the Philadelphia Flyers' faithful after he struggled mightily last month. March has brought about a different response as the Russian netminder has keyed the Flyers' four-game winning streak. Bryzgalov is expected to make his 11th straight start on Saturday when coach Peter Laviolette's club travels north of the border to visit the reeling Toronto Maple Leafs.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, CBC, NHLN
ABOUT THE FLYERS (38-21-7): Bryzgalov collected his second shutout in three games on Thursday when he turned aside all 28 shots he faced in a 5-0 rout of the Florida Panthers. Signed to a nine-year, $51 million deal in the offseason, Bryzgalov has won seven of his last nine decisions. All-Star Scott Hartnell recorded his career-best 32nd goal on Thursday - with three of those tallies coming at the expense of the Maple Leafs. Rookie Matt Read also scored versus Florida, marking his third goal in four games.
ABOUT THE MAPLE LEAFS (30-30-7): While Philadelphia is ascending, Toronto is plummeting in the Eastern Conference standings. The Maple Leafs fell for the 12th time in 14 games (2-11-1) when they failed to hold a two-goal lead and dropped a 3-2 decision to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday. The Air Canada Centre hasn't been a safe haven for Toronto (0-5-1), which is one loss shy of matching a seven-game home losing skid for the first time since 1984. All-Star Phil Kessel scored for the second straight contest on Thursday, but has just two tallies in 20 career games versus Philadelphia.
OVERTIME:
1. Philadelphia has dominated its series with Toronto as of late, winning three straight and seven of the last eight matches.
2. Toronto G Jonas Gustavsson has started three straight games, but has struggled versus the Flyers in his brief career. He has yielded 10 goals on 62 shots en route to dropping both contests.