Flyers at Bruins
THE STORY: The Boston Bruins are spiraling down the Eastern Conference standings and an opponent they normally dominate may not be the recipe to halt their slide. The red-hot Philadelphia Flyers will look to exact some payback on Boston when they visit TD Garden on Saturday afternoon. The Flyers have won seven of eight and will look to hand the Bruins their fifth straight loss.
TV: 1 p.m. ET, CSP, NESN, NHLN
ABOUT THE FLYERS (41-22-7): Goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov has sparked Philadelphia’s surge, winning all seven starts this month. He lost his bid for a fourth straight shutout in the third period of Thursday’s 3-2 win over the New York Islanders, but set a franchise record with a scoreless streak of 249 minutes, 43 seconds. Scott Hartnell scored his team-high 33rd goal and fellow All-Star Claude Giroux set a career high with his 26th goal as the Flyers pulled within six points of the New York Rangers atop the Eastern Conference.
ABOUT THE BRUINS (40-27-3): Boston’s four-game losing streak, coupled with Ottawa’s win Friday night, knocked the Bruins out of first place in the Northeast Division for the first time in 3 1/2 months. The Bruins have been outscored 21-8 during the skid and have dropped from the No. 2 to No. 7 seed in the East. Reigning Vezina Trophy winner Tim Thomas was dented for a season-high six goals in Thursday’s 6-2 loss at Florida and was yanked after allowing three goals on 10 shots in his previous start.
OVERTIME:
1. The Flyers are 1-8 in the last nine meetings against Boston.
2. Including the postseason, Thomas is 10-1-1 in his last 12 starts versus Philadelphia.
3. The Bruins have allowed the first two goals in four straight games.