Flyers vs. Red Wings
7:30 p.m. on Comcast SportsNet
It’s time to up the ante.
In what should be a bubbling Wells Fargo Center on Tuesday night, the Flyers (32-23-12) welcome the Detroit Red Wings (34-24-11) for a game with massive playoff implications.
We’ll touch on that and more in five things you need to know for the matchup:
1. What’s at stake?
That would be a four-point game that could swing the wild-card pendulum in the Flyers’ favor …
… Or do irreparable damage to the orange and black.
The Flyers are three points behind the Red Wings for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The good news is the Flyers already have a game in hand on Detroit with two remaining against the Red Wings: tonight and April 6.
NHL
With a regulation win tonight, the Flyers would secure one of the tiebreaker scenarios with Detroit by taking the season series in points.
The bad news is a loss would knock them farther down the ladder with games against the Blackhawks, Penguins and Islanders on the horizon.
But Jakub Voracek says pressure's on the Red Wings.
“The way we’re playing, [Detroit’s] got to be more worried about not making the playoffs than us,” Voracek said at practice Monday. “Because … everybody knows how good we’re playing right now and everybody watches the games.”
We’ll see tonight.
2. Voracek not ready
Speaking of Voracek, the Flyers’ second-leading scorer skated “for a little bit” on Sunday and returned to the ice for part of practice Monday.
However, the 26-year-old said there’s “not a chance” he plays Tuesday (see story).
Voracek has missed seven games with a lower-body injury and has been seen wearing a walking boot on his left foot.
On Feb. 29, general manager Ron Hextall said Voracek would be out approximately two weeks.
Impressively, the Flyers have gone 5-1-1 during Voracek’s absence, a stretch in which they’ve outscored opponents 26-17.
3. Detroit downward?
As the Flyers have gained steam, the Red Wings have fluttered in March, losing four of six while scoring just 2.00 goals per game to 3.17 goals against.
But you wonder if it’s just a matter of time before Detroit rediscovers itself. During March, despite the 2-4-0 record, the Red Wings lead the NHL in shots per game with 36.3, so they’ll get their chances against Steve Mason and the Flyers’ defense.
If anything, Detroit won’t be fazed by a down-to-the-wire contest as the Red Wings have played in an NHL-most 40 games decided by one goal (23-6-11).
And not only do the Flyers begin a vital four-game stretch, but so do the Red Wings, starting a four-game road trip.
Buckle up.
4. Keep an eye on
Flyers: Since the start of February, Claude Giroux has 27 points (six goals, 21 assists) in 24 games, and with Voracek on the shelf, the captain has picked up the slack, registering eight points (two goals, six assists) in seven games. Also, quietly and impressively, the 28-year-old has more points than any other NHL player over the past five seasons with 357.
Red Wings: Dylan Larkin, Detroit’s 19-year-old stud rookie, has come back to earth a bit, scoring just two goals for two points in his last 15 games. Still, Larkin is incredibly a plus-18 on the season with 20 goals, 20 assists and five game-winners.
5. This and that
• The Red Wings have not won in Philadelphia since the 1997 Stanley Cup Final, losing 10 straight.
• Claude Giroux has 507 career points and is two shy of passing of Rick Tocchet for 13th on the Flyers’ all-time list.
• All 15 of Shayne Gostisbehere’s goals have been either game-tying or go-ahead markers.
• Mason has seen the Red Wings more than he’s faced any other NHL team, going 11-11-2 with a 2.75 goals-against average and .919 save percentage in 24 career games against Detroit.
• Red Wings goalie Petr Mrazek is tied for the fifth-best goals-against average (2.17) and save percentage (.925) in the NHL this season. He’s gone up against the Flyers just once in his career — a 2-1 shootout loss this season.