Flyers at Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins are trying to hold down second place in the Metropolitan Division but they will be facing a major nemesis when the Philadelphia Flyers pay a visit Wednesday night. Pittsburgh is tied on points with the New York Islanders in the division but has one game in hand as it goes for its third consecutive victory. The Flyers have been a nightmare matchup for the Penguins, winning six straight meetings overall and four in a row in Pittsburgh.
The Penguins were mired in a 1-5-1 slide before posting back-to-back victories against Arizona and San Jose over the weekend, with coach Mike Johnston referring to the latter win as a potential "turning point." Philadelphia also went to a shootout against the Sharks on Saturday, coming out on the short end of a 3-2 decision for its ninth defeat in 11 games (2-4-5). Eliminated from playoff contention, the Flyers have won only nine times in 39 games (9-20-10) away from home.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, NBC Sports, TVA
ABOUT THE FLYERS (30-29-17): With nothing for which to play, one subplot for Philadelphia's Jakub Voracek is his pursuit of the league scoring title - he trails Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby by three points and is one back of New York Islanders captain John Tavares. Luke Schenn is expected to miss the rest of the season but fellow defenseman Mark Streit will return to the lineup after a visit to Switzerland to visit his ailing grandmother. Netminder Steve Mason is 1-12-6 on the road - with the Flyers scoring two goals or fewer in 17 of those contests.
ABOUT THE PENGUINS (42-23-11): Pittsburgh will be forced to go with five defensemen for the second straight game due to salary-cap restraints and injuries to Kris Letang and Christian Ehrhoff. Four of the five blue-liners played at least 25 minutes Sunday versus San Jose and the Penguins will follow that formula again. "For Wednesday, there's not another option,” general manager Jim Rutherford told the Pittsburgh Tribune. “But it's not like we get backed into a corner, where all of a sudden we're down to three defensemen. “We feel comfortable where we're at.”
OVERTIME
1. Crosby has 30 goals and 75 points in 50 games against the Flyers, but he has been blanked in both meetings this season.
2. Flyers captain Claude Giroux is riding a four-game goal-scoring streak while Voracek has six assists during a four-game point string.
3. Johnston is expected behind the bench Wednesday after attending funeral services for his mother in Nova Scotia.