The Flyers will carry momentum into Tuesday’s showdown; Bruins goalie making NHL debut
The Flyers can pull to within a point of Boston for the final playoff berth in the division with a regulation win.
The Flyers have momentum on their side.
Coming off a thrilling 3-2 overtime win Monday in Boston, they can get to within one point of the Bruins if they can beat them in regulation Tuesday night at the Wells Fargo Center.
On Monday, the Flyers tied the game on Sean Couturier’s third-period power-play goal, and won it on Travis Sanheim’s two-way heroics. Sanheim blocked Patrice Bergeron’s shot and then scored on a breakaway, beating impressive rookie Dan Vladar to the glove side with 1 minute, 52 seconds left in overtime.
Will the momentum from that win carry into Tuesday?
“It’s a good effort and a lot to build on, a lot of positives,” said Travis Konecny, who ended a 12-game goal-less drought with a first-period goal. “We can’t get too high about it. We’ve got to regroup and refresh [Tuesday]; it’s a new game.”
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The Bruins do not look like the team that began the season 10-1-2 and won their first five games against the Flyers. Boston, which has two games in hand on the Flyers, is just 9-9-4 in its last 22 games.
The Flyers had a 6-10-1 March but have played with much more precision in their first two April games: a 3-2 shootout loss to the Islanders, and the overtime win over the Bruins.
“The last two games, we were playing against some well-structured teams that don’t give up a lot, and we’re kind of doing the same thing,” Couturier said. “We’ve tightened things up and haven’t let up as much. These are the type of tight games we need to learn how to win.”
Carter Hart will get the start Tuesday and will try to end a personal four-game losing streak. Hart played well in Saturday’s shootout loss to the Islanders, and the Flyers hope he can string together several similar performances.
In a mild surprise, Brian Elliott was in the nets Monday, and he responded with a strong 27-save effort.
Hart is 0-2-2 against Boston this season, compiling a 5.32 GAA and .843 save percentage.
The Flyers, who are aiming for a three-game point streak for the first time since late February, need Hart to resemble the goalie who looked like his old self Saturday. They also need to play with the same structure and desperation they showed in most of Monday’s win.
The Bruins will use goalie Jeremy Swayman, who will make his NHL debut.
Swayman, 22, was Boston’s backup Monday. The University of Maine product was impressive in nine AHL appearances this year with Providence, putting together a 1.89 GAA and .933 save percentage.
Goalie Tuukka Rask is coming off an injury, and Boston coach Bruce Cassidy said he is not ready to play, and Jaroslav Halak is on the COVID protocol list. The team’s No. 3 goalie, Vladar, made 29 saves — several were spectacular — in Monday’s game.
The Bruins will have defenseman Kevan Miller (two assists in 15 games) back in the lineup. He has missed the last 20 games with a knee injury. Miller brings some experience, which will put Cassidy in a better mood. He was critical of his young defense after Monday’s loss.
Boston defenseman Brandon Carlo is still sidelined with an upper-body injury, and the Bruins clearly miss Zdeno Chara and Torey Krug. Chara signed with Washington, and Krug signed with St. Louis.
More fans allowed
Starting Tuesday, the city will allow the Wells Fargo Center to increase capacity from 15% to 20%, meaning the attendance can go from 3,100 to about 4,000.
The Flyers did not reach the 3,100 maximum in any of their eight home games since fans were permitted back into the Wells Fargo Center. Their eight attendance figures: 3,023; 2,838; 2,807; 3,083; 2,820; 2,882; 2,854; and 3,069.