Senators at Flyers
Steve Mason will see his workload increase with the news of fellow goaltender Michal Neuvirth being sidelined four-to-six weeks with a lower-body injury. The 28-year-old Mason is expected to begin that stretch on Tuesday as the Philadelphia Flyers open a three-game homestand against the Ottawa Senators.
Mason replaced Neuvirth on Saturday and turned aside 19 shots - including a point-blank stop on veteran Eric Staal in the waning moments of a 3-2 victory over Minnesota. A former Calder Trophy recipient that has seen highs and lows during his inconsistent career, Mason could use the boost following a strong performance and carries an 8-4-1 mark with two shutouts and a 2.12 goals-against average in 13 career encounters with Ottawa into Tuesday's tilt. The Senators saw their bid for a three-game winning streak denied by the Wild following a 2-1 overtime decision on Sunday. Kyle Turris scored his team-leading seventh goal late in the third for the Senators, who have tallied just 11 times in their last eight games and are 1-for-24 on the power play.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, RDS2, TSN-5 (Ottawa), CSN-Philadelphia
ABOUT THE SENATORS (9-5-1): With all that Craig Anderson has on his plate - personally and professionally - perhaps it stands to reason that the veteran goaltender is keeping an optimistic attitude in light of Ottawa's scoring troubles. "The positive out of not scoring right now is that even though guys might be showing some frustration, they're still doing their jobs on the defensive side of the puck which is allowing us to get points and give ourselves an opportunity to be in each game," Anderson said. The 35-year-old turned aside 40 shots on Sunday to raise his save percentage to .961 in his last seven starts and is expected to be back in net versus Philadelphia, against which he owns a 9-5-2 mark with one shutout in his career.
ABOUT THE FLYERS (7-7-2): With Neuvirth placed on long-term injured reserve, Philadelphia recalled Anthony Stolarz from Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League, and the 6-foot-6 goaltender could make his NHL debut with the Flyers having a back-up-back set in the Sunshine State next week. Stolarz, who was a second-round selection in the 2012 draft and an AHL All-Star last season, has a shutout highlighting his current four-game winning streak and owns a 6-2-0 mark with a 2.39 goals-against average and a .927 save percentage with the Phantoms. Those numbers are significantly better than Philadelphia's NHL-worst 3.63 goals per game allowed and .867 save percentage.
OVERTIME
1. Philadelphia C Brayden Schenn, who scored the game-winning goal on Saturday, has tallied just once in 15 career encounters with Ottawa.
2. Senators D Marc Methot (lower body) returned to practice on Monday despite being limited to under four minutes of ice time versus Minnesota.
3. The Flyers have scored at least one power-play goal in five straight games and nine of their last 10.