After a grueling road trip, the Wells Fargo Center has seldom been a more welcome sight for the Flyers.
The Philadelphia Flyers are looking to shake off a three-game losing streak against the Columbus Blue Jackets, finally returning home after a supremely disappointing road trip, taking home a dismal 1-2-2 record.
The Flyers are still reeling from a 5-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers, where Connor McDavid made a mockery of the Flyers' defense with a five-point night. Meanwhile, the Blue Jackets are also coming into this matchup after a loss, falling 4-1 to the Boston Bruins on Jan. 2.
These losses are not the only ways these two teams are similar. The Flyers and the Blue Jackets are mirroring a number of things about each other this season, which should make for an interesting matchup at the Wells Fargo Center.
Both teams suffered huge losses due to injury last season. For the Flyers, Sean Couturier and former Blue Jacket Cam Atkinson both missed the 2022-23 season, and have been pretty slow to return to form.
Additionally, the young stars have been the centerpieces of both teams as of late. On the Flyers side, fans have enjoyed an uptick in quality by forwards Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost, along with consistent improvement from defenseman Cam York. Then, of course, Carter Hart's net presence needs no introduction. Left winger Noah Cates could also return to the lineup after missing the beginning of the season with a broken foot.
Former Flyer Ivan Provorov is also expected to start tonight following a controversial exit from the orange and black last year.
The Flyers did not host a morning skate this game day.
Flyers Projected Lines:
Forwards:
Farabee - Couturier - Konecny
Tippett - Frost - Brink
Foerster - Poehling - Atkinson
Deslauriers - Laughton - Hathaway
Defense:
York - Sanheim
Seeler - Walker
Zamula - Ristolainen
Hart
Blue Jackets Projected Lines:
Forwards:
Gaudreau - Fantilli - Roslovic
Chinakhov - Voronkov - Marchenko
Johnson - Sillinger - Bemstrom
Texier - Danforth - Olivier
Defense:
Provorov - Severson
Bean - Jiricek
Christiansen - Gudbranson
Tarasov