I didn’t really think a Flyers vs. Hurricanes game in late February would be this big of a deal, but here we are: the two Metropolitan Division foes will hit the ice in Raleigh tonight with quite a bit on the line.
Here’s where we sit entering the evening:
Not only would a Flyers regulation win see them leap frog Carolina in the standings, it’s even more valuable given the two games in hand they hold over the Canes. A win tonight will absolutely help their playoff hopes, and it’s the final time these teams will play this season.
Philadelphia Flyers at Carolina Hurricanes
- Where: PNC Arena | Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
- In the Delaware Valley: The Comcast Network, 93.3 WMMR, SiriusXM 220
- In Carolina: Fox Sports Southeast, 99.9 FM The Fan, SXM 220
- Elsewhere: NHL Center Ice, SXM 220
- Live streaming: NHL.tv (USA), Rogers NHL GameCentre (Canada + Europe)/
The fun part is that the Flyers have won all three games against the Hurricanes so far this year, although all three were in overtime. Two of Shayne Gostisbehere’s 400 overtime goals this season have come vs. Carolina, and he has four points in total against this team so far this year. Jakub Voracek has seven, including the other OT winner.
It sure looks as though Sean Couturier will be back in the Flyers lineup tonight, although we won’t know for sure until after morning skate or even maybe during warmups. Claude Giroux is out with the brain pain.
We’ll update it when we know the full lineup, but here’s a best guess.
Flyers lineup
- Gagner – Schenn – Simmonds
- Raffl – Couturier – Voracek
- Laughton – Cousins – Read
- VandeVelde – Bellemare – White
- MacDonald – Gostisbehere
- Schultz – Streit
- Medvedev Manning – Gudas
Carolina lineup
- Versteeg – E. Staal – Di Giuseppe
- Nordstrom – J. Staal – Nestrasil
- Skinner – Rask – Lindholm
- Terry – McClement – Nash
- Slavin – Hainsey
- Liles – Pesce
- Hanifin – Jordan
