It’s still the 2013 hockey season for some reason, even though there are only three games left, and because of that fact, the Philadelphia Flyers have lost another defenseman to injury.
Kimmo Timonen won’t play tonight, sitting because he’s probably been playing on a fractured foot for a good stretch this season and hockey is meaningless now and there’s absolutely no reason for him to play. They’ve called up Andreas Lilja from Adirondack, but hopefully Lilja is just a press box reserve. We’d rather see the kids play. Matt Konan, Oliver Lauridsen, Brandon Manning, Erik Gustafsson.
That applies up front, too. Jason Akeson, Tye McGinn and Scott Laughton were all called up on Monday, and aside from Laughton who would burn a year of his entry-level contract if he plays, we want to see Akeson and McGinn both get in there and play. Why the hell not? What are Mike Knuble and Ruslan Fedotenko and Jay Rosehill giving us at this point? Get the kids some NHL ice time. That’s all that matters at this point.
Go all in, Lavi. Play the kids.
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The other side of tonight’s game (certainly the more important part) revolves around the opponent, the Boston Bruins, and the city from which they hail. The Flyers will wear “Boston Strong” patches on their jerseys tonight and the charity portion of 50/50 raffle at the arena will be donated to One Fund Boston, which supports those affected by the Boston Marathon bombings and their aftermath.
Also, our friends over at Stanley Cup of Chowder are hosting a charity event during the game tonight, in which you’re highly encouraged to participate. Most fans over at SCOC are picking a stat from tonight’s game and pledging to donate to One Fund Boston based on that stat — one dollar for every hit, or something. Maybe go with goals the Bruins score against the Flyers this evening, because that will be a lot of money to a great cause.
You can also join the SCOC game thread tonight with the chance to win some prizes — all of them are Bruins-centric, obviously, but still worth checking out. Details here. We’ll keep our game thread open tonight but won’t feel bad if you join the crew over at SCOC to talk about the game.
Questions to Answer
1. Does Laviolette play the kids? And how do they look?
2. The defense is downright scary, regardless of who plays. How’s that go?
3. How much money is raised for One Fund Boston during tonight’s 50/50 raffle at the game?
4. Jake Scoracek vs. Claude Giroux for the season points total lead. Who’s on top at the end of the night?
