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Flyers trying to stop home skid

The Flyers will be aiming for their first home win since Oct. 21 when they host Chicago on Thursday.

Right winger Wayne Simmonds, shown in a recent game against Arizona, says the Flyers “have a young team and we;re going to continue to get better.”
Right winger Wayne Simmonds, shown in a recent game against Arizona, says the Flyers “have a young team and we;re going to continue to get better.”Read moreYONG KIM

After a four-day layoff, the Flyers will aim for their first home win in almost three weeks when they face up-and-down Chicago on Thursday night.

The Flyers had more quality scoring opportunities but dropped a 3-0 decision in Chicago last week. Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford was the difference, making 35 saves.

"I think if we play the same way we played in Chicago, we're going to be in good shape," said Flyers captain Claude Giroux, whose team is just 3-2-2 at the Wells Fargo Center and has lost three straight at home since a 2-1 victory over Edmonton on Oct. 21.

"I actually thought we were the better of the two teams," right winger Wayne Simmonds said of the loss to the Blackhawks (7-6-2), "but sometimes you don't get the bounces, and Crawford was unbelievable. Hopefully, [Thursday] will be a different story. We're going to work our butts off."

The Flyers (7-6-2) will start a stretch in which they play 21 games in the next 45 days.

"I think looking back at the end of the season, and the position we're going to be in, we're going to be looking back at these 21 games," Giroux said. "It's a tough schedule for us, but we have to embrace it and accept the challenge and be ready to play every night. … We feel good about our team and how we're playing right now. We just have to keep building on it."

Simmonds likes the consistency his team has shown despite its mediocre record.

"We have a young team, and we're going to continue to get better as we go along," he said.

The Flyers are expected to have veteran Radko Gudas back in the lineup after missing two-plus games. The feisty defenseman was injured in the first period in Chicago, when he took an elbow to the head from Brandon Saad.

In the last six games, the Flyers have allowed the first goal five times.

"We need a good, solid effort right from the get-go," center Scott Laughton said. "We need to get on them early. We went in there and didn't have the outcome we wanted [in Chicago], and we have to go into the Wells Fargo Center and take it to them the first 10 minutes and continue to push them and play a physical, hard game."

The Flyers will be playing their first game since former Eagles coach Dick Vermeil, 81, addressed the team after Tuesday's practice.

"The amount of energy he has and brings to the table was fun to be a part of," coach Dave Hakstol said. It's "special and a great opportunity to have a different voice come in from time to time during a busy season."

Hakstol said it was beneficial to have extra practice time the last few days, and a "good time to mentally and physically recover and rest up a little bit" after playing seven games in 12 nights.