There was a snoozefest hockey game that went on at Verizon Center on Thursday night. With a game that had a throwback Devils feel to it, the Capitals squeaked out a 1-0 victory over their Metropolitan Division rivals from New Jersey. The Capitals made franchise history with their 14th straight home victory over the Devils. With 2 wins in a row, the Capitals will look to extend their home winning streak on Saturday as they face the Philadelphia Flyers. Puck drop is at 7:30 PM ET on CSN.
PHILADELPHIA FLYERS
The Flyers (30-26-7) have plummeted in recent weeks. After hovering around the 2nd Wild Card spot for a while, they are now 6th in the Metropolitan Division.
The Flyers made a couple of moves at the Trade Deadline. They traded away veteran defenseman Mark Streit at the NHL Trade Deadline, and received forward Valtteri Filppula in return. GM Ron Hextall also extended goaltender Michal Neuvirth and forward Pierre-Edouard Bellemare.
With a 2-1 shootout win over the Florida Panthers on Thursday night, the Flyers have won 2 in a row. However, they have only won 4 out of their last 10 games.
The Flyers leading scorer is Jakub Voracek, who is having a nice rebound season. Voracek, 27, has recorded 17 goals and 52 points in 63 games. He is currently riding a 3-game point streak.
SPECIAL TEAMS
The Flyers powerplay is strong. It is 21.4% effective, which is ranked 10th best in the NHL. The Flyers penalty kill is solid. It is 81.6% effective, which is ranked 13th best in the NHL.
SHOTS FOR AND SHOTS AGAINST
The Flyers are one of the NHL’s top teams with throwing pucks at the net. They average 31.6 shots per game, which is 6th best in the NHL. The Flyers do not surrender a ton of shots. They surrender an average of 28.5 shots per game, which is 8th fewest in the NHL.
WASHINGTON CAPITALS
The Capitals (43-13-7) are still at the top of the NHL, as they lead the Minnesota Wild by 5 points for the top spot.
The week started well for the Capitals as it began with a 4-1 victory over the New York Rangers. The Capitals and Devils nearly put everyone to sleep on Thursday night, but Braden Holtby was in the zone and stopped every Devils shot he faced for his 8th shutout of the season.
The Capitals have received some good news on the injury front. There is a good chance that T.J. Oshie returns to the lineup tomorrow against the Flyers. He has been out of action since February 22 when was injured against the Flyers.
Would expect Oshie to be back in the lineup tomorrow. Has been practicing and Trotz said he was “really, really close” yesterday.
— Isabelle Khurshudyan (@ikhurshudyan) March 3, 2017
In addition to Oshie returning, Andre Burakovsky is out of a hard cast. He skated with the team today, and is now in an air cast. Burakovsky is still a few days away, and he cannot be activated off LTIR until March 9.
Burakovsky has what looks like an air cast now. Could put gloves on over it it looks like. Can’t be activated off LTIR until March 9 anyway.
— Isabelle Khurshudyan (@ikhurshudyan) March 3, 2017
SPECIAL TEAMS
The Capitals powerplay is very good. It is 22% effective, which is ranked 5th best in the NHL. The Capitals penalty kill is also excellent. It is 84.4% effective, which is ranked 6th best in the NHL.
SHOTS FOR AND SHOTS AGAINST
The Capitals do not rank too high with shots per game. They average just 29.7 shots per game, which is ranked 20th best in the NHL. The Capitals do not surrender a lot of shots against per game. They surrender an average of 27.8 shots per game, which is 5th fewest in the NHL.
THE MATCHUP
The Capitals have had success against the Flyers this season. In their previous 3 meetings, the Capitals are 2-0-1. The Capitals claimed a 4-1 victory in their last meeting in Philadelphia on February 22. On Saturday night, the Capitals and Flyers will meet for their final matchup of the regular season.
SHAVINGS
In his last 22 games, Braden Holtby is 18-0-2 with 5 shutouts, a 1.71 GAA & a .935 save percentage.. #Caps might have a back-to-back Vezina!
— Rob Carlin (@RobCarlinCSN) March 3, 2017
GAME LINKS
Game Notes vs. Philadelphia, 3/4/17 (Capitals PR)
Capitals winger Andre Burakovsky has cast removed, recovery remains on schedule (Tarik El-Bashir/CSN Mid-Atlantic)
By: George Foussekis
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