Daily Deke: Tomas Plekanec/Habs look for revenge vs. Flyers
The last time the Flyers and Habs met, the Canadiens were handed their walking papers during the 2010 Eastern Conference Finals.
Philadelphia enters tonight’s game winning nine of their last 10 games, including three straight victories. Plenty of offense and solid goaltending from Sergei Bobrovsky has helped the team claim 26 points this far. Bob is 4-0-1 over his last five games with a 1.60 GAA. He has just two losses this season, which both came at home. On the road, he’s 4-0-1 with a 1.80 GAA and a .946 SV%.
The Flyers’ scoring lines continue to click on every level and while we could mention several key players, we’ll just mention that the team is currently scoring 3.50 goals per game, which is good for second place in the NHL behind the Washington Capitals (3.61). Both the penalty kill and power play rank within the top ten among teams in the NHL. The team did receive some bad news today, however, as Dan Carcillo has a sprained MCL and will miss at least the next two weeks.
While the Flyers have been hot, the Habs have also been busy the past few weeks. Coming into tonight, they are searching for their fourth straight win and are coming off a huge blowout of the Carolina Hurricanes over the weekend. During the game against the Canes, Tomas Plekanec had four points (1 G, 3 A) and Andrei Kostitsyn scored his team-lading seventh goal of the year.
Not everything is perfect for the Canadiens, as they are now likely to be without defenseman Andrei Markov for the next six months due to a knee injury.
Habs’ Netminder Carey Price has started every game for Montreal except one this season and has played effectively thus far. He ranks third in NHL in wins (10) and ranks fourth in both shots against (457) and saves (422). His 2.18 GAA is also good for tenth best in the League. During the regular season against the Flyers, Price is 5-1-0 with a 1.90 GAA and a .937 SV%.
Pekka Rinne and the Predators are coming off two big time wins against the St. Louis Blues and Chicago Blackhawks and will look to extend that winning-steeak, as they try to climb back into the Western Conference standings. Rinne has won his last two outings and is currently sitting at a .500 record with a 2.85 GAA. He and the Preds will travel to Toronto to take on a slumping Leafs team that is 0-6-2 over their last eight games.
After scoring on a consistent basis to start the year, Leafs’ winger Phil Kessel has one goal over his last nine games. If there has been one bright spot for the Leafs over their winless streak, it’s been Mikhail Grabovski. Grabovski has scored three goals over his last five games, while collecting six points over that same time period.
Anaheim suffered an overtime loss to the Blackhawks on Sunday, so expect them to fire back looking to start another winning streak against the Stars. Winger Corey Perry took two shots on Sunday with both resulting in goals. Perry not only leads the team in goals, but also leads the team in points and assists.
Brenden Morrow will play tonight after being listed as questionable due to a sore groin. Mike Ribeiro is still searching for his first goal of the season after having five goals over the same time frame last season.
It could be a long night for Stars’ netminder Kari Lehtonen. He’s already 0-2-0 against the Ducks this season with a 4.03 GAA and a .871 SV%. Against the Ducks over his career, he’s 1-4-0 with a 3.45 GAA and a .903 SV%. His only win against the Ducks came on 2/15/2009 when he was with the Atlanta Thrashers, a game he allowed four goals on 35 shots.
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