Ducks at Flyers
Bouncing back from squandering a three-goal third-period lead is difficult enough; doing it against one of the top teams in the Western Conference is another matter altogether. The Philadelphia Flyers face a monumental task Tuesday as they look for their first victory of the season against the visiting Anaheim Ducks. Philadelphia led 3-0 after two periods against Montreal on Saturday, only to give up three third-period goals and lose in a shootout.
The latest setback is nothing new to second-year Flyers head coach Craig Berube, who saw the team drop seven of its first eight games last season before rallying to make the playoffs. "I think we went through it last year at times at the start of the season, same kind of thing," Berube said. "We had leads in the third period, might have been four or five of them at the start of the season, and lost them." Anaheim is coming off an impressive 5-1 rout of Buffalo.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FSW2 (Anaheim), CSN (Philadelphia)
ABOUT THE DUCKS (2-1-0): Anaheim didn't have much trouble scoring goals last season, but surprised many by having one of the least effective power plays of any Stanley Cup contender. But one season after ranking 22nd in the NHL at power-play conversion rate (16 percent), the Ducks already have four man-advantage goals through their first three games of the 2014-15 campaign. Corey Perry has been the catalyst for the Ducks' early power-play success, scoring three of his four goals with the man advantage.
ABOUT THE FLYERS (0-2-1): Ron Hextall was wrong, after all. The Philadelphia general manager told reporters after Saturday's stunning loss to Montreal that there were "no injuries", despite forward Vincent Lecavalier leaving Wells Fargo Center with a walking boot on his left foot. Two days later, Hextall was singing a different tune - confirming that Lecavalier, who has three points through the first three games, will miss the next two weeks with a lower-body injury after taking a slap shot from teammate Mark Streit off his foot.
OVERTIME
1. Anaheim won both meetings last season, including a 3-2 victory in Philadelphia on Oct. 29.
2. Philadelphia has allowed just one power-play goal in eight short-handed chances.
3. Ducks G Frederik Andersen has won six straight games dating back to last season.