Game 80 Hub: Philadelphia Flyers versus Ottawa Senators

With three games left in the regular season, it's all about preparation now for the Ottawa Senators. Last night's results have locked the Senators into the first wild card spot in the Eastern Conference, and the Maple Leafs have a four point lead on the Tampa Bay Lightning with three games remaining. The Battle of Ontario looms large.

For Travis Green, it'll be important to keep his players focused on the task at hand – as the coaching staff has tried to do all season – despite this experience being brand new for this group. Injuries are more likely to happen when you aren't playing focused, detailed hockey and the Philadelphia Flyers are not a bottom-feeder opponent. Interim head coach (and former Senators assistant captain) Brad Shaw is looking to secure a head coaching gig, and the young Flyers are looking to do what the Sens teams of the past eight seasons have tried to do during this time of year: play hard, spoil other team's chances, and build momentum for next season.

Lineups:

Here's how Ottawa lined up on Friday against Montréal. We expect changes this afternoon in multiple areas, likely with Nick Cousins re-entering the fray, and potentially Travis Hamonic in for a defender who needs some rest. The Sens have not announced their starting goaltender as of yet.

Here's how the Flyers have been lining up recently. They have three goaltenders who have been rotating games: Samuel Ersson, Ivan Fedotov, and Aleksei Kolosov. As of writing, the team hasn't announced who's starting against Ottawa:

Game notes:

• Tim Stützle has only had four stretches all year where he went 3+ games without recording a point: Dec 29 to Jan 3, Jan 19 to 23, Mar 29 to Apr 1, and currently (since Apr 5), which is a four-game pointless streak. He and his linemates are still driving play during this stretch, which doesn't give me any reason to be concerned. Look for him to get on the scoresheet today.
• Relatedly, Travis Green has been experimenting with different line combinations in hopes of finding some playoff-ready combinations. We expect lineup changes for the team's remaining three games to rest some players (e.g., Jensen) and reintroduce others (e.g., Cousins), so it'll be interesting to see who gels with who.
• When Brady Tkachuk gets back into the lineup, I don't think Fabian Zetterlund should automatically be the player demoted. Putting a savvy veteran like David Perron or Claude Giroux against another team's fourth lines could result in some advantages.
• If we look at milestones, Zetterlund is two goals away from 20 on the season, Giroux is one point away from 50, and Perron is one goal away from 10.
• Bigger picture: Anton Forsberg's 140 games played for the Ottawa Senators ranks fifth-most all-time. He's played more games for the club than Ray Emery (134), Brian Elliott (130), and Martin Gerber (100), but less than Ron Tugnutt (166) and Damian Rhodes (181). Quite possibly the best waiver pickup in franchise history.
• With 43 games played for the Senators, Linus Ullmark is tied with Dominik Hasek. He'll likely be T-10 as soon as next season, which speaks to the lack of bonafide starting goaltenders over the years and the incredible legacies of Craig Anderson and Patrick Lalime.
• For the Flyers, it's all about the future. Matvei Michkov looks as special as advertised, and scored in his first meeting against the Senators. He's the first Flyers rookie to reach the 60 points mark since Mikael Renberg in 1993-94.
• Jakob Pelletier, who was traded to the Flyers from Calgary in exchange for Morgan Frost and Joel Farabee, has six points in his last seven games. Overall, the team's wingers look like a really nice blend of size, speed, and skill: Foerster, Michkov, Pelletier, Brink, Konecny, and Tippett.
• The Flyers have Jett Luchanko coming down the middle, and there's a chance North Dakota's Owen McLaughlin or Notre Dame's Cole Knuble could be a 3C. Adding James Hagens, Michael Misa, Caleb Desnoyers, Jake O'Brien, or Roger McQueen as a part of the 2025 draft class could set them up well.
• While the goals didn't come for the Flyers this season, they've been a stronger defensive team than Ottawa and rank 9th in the league in expected goals. Plenty for interim Brad Shaw or a new coaching staff to work with.

This is Ottawa's last afternoon game of the season and starts at 1:00pm ET. If you're watching on TV, you can catch the game on TSN5 or RDS2. If you're attending in-person, the game is the start of the Senators' "Fan Appreciation Week", so head there early to enjoy the activities set up at the CTC Plaza, food and beverages, music, and photo opportunities.

Stats:

• from NHL.com and NaturalStatTrick.com