Ilya Bryzgalov gets the start in net tonight when the Flyers play host at the Wells Fargo Center when the Chicago Blackhawks come to town. The game will start at 7:00 and it will mark the return of former Flyer D-man Sean O'Donnell. It would also be the "glorious" return of Daniel Carcillo however he will be sitting out due to his 7 game suspension from the league for boarding Edmonton Oilers' Defensemen Tom Gilbert.
The Blackhawks will somehow have to manage without him. But we all know that won't be an issue. The 2010 Stanley Cup winners come into town with a roster swimming with talent.
Jonathan Toews might possibly be the best captain in the NHL. Of course this is only an opinion but something tells me that if the captains were switched around in 2010 the Flyers would have raised the banner rather than Chicago. That is not a dig at Mike Richards who had a tremendous postseason in 2010 and came just short of bringing the Cup back to Philly. Its like having a Lamborghini or a Porche. There is no wrong choice, only a better choice.
Patric Sharp has come out of his shell since finding a home in Chicago since the Flyers shipped him away for Matt Ellison and eventual 3rd round draft pick Jon Matsumoto. Great deal that ended up being. But has emerged as an essential piece of the Blackhawks puzzle and an undoubted leader in the locker room. Sharp currently leads the Blackhawks in power play points with 12.
The Blackhawks also pack a powerful punch on the blueline. Brent Seabrook and Duncan Keith may very well be two of the best Defensemen in the league. Both have great defensive awareness but also have great offensive presence. Keith enters the game with 20 assists on the season, 10 of which on the power play. Seabrook is having a down year but is still one of the top defensemen, not only in the Western Conference but also in the entire NHL.
The 'Hawks also bring two more monsters to town with them tonight. Marian Hossa, who is no stranger to the back of the net, comes in with a team leading 41 points on the season (17g, 24a). The other is Patrick Kane who Flyers fans know best for his Stanley Cup game 6 game winning goal. Sorry Michael Leighton.
The Flyers look to counter attack in their first game since dropping the Winter Classic 3-2 to the Rangers on Monday. Hopefully with the HBO cameras out of the picture Ilya and the boys can get their heads back on right and start winning some games with some consistency again.
Currently 4 points out of first in the Atlantic Division and the Eastern Conference the Flyers find themselves in their own building for the first time since getting thumped 6-0 by the Bruins. The Flyers will be without Jaromir Jagr who will miss the next 7-10 days with a left groin strain. They will using Matt Read on a line with Claude Giroux and Scotty Hartnell to try and generate some offense. Most people expected them to go with James VanReimsdyk who has been struggling to find the stat sheet and the ice recently.
Hopefully the boys in Black and Orange can find their winning ways. Maybe Mr. Universe can find his inner compass and not be lost in the woods. The Flyers could really use a stand out game from their $51M man. They definitely would love to grab the extra 2 points on the Penguins who are idle tonight. Having played one less game and having 2 more points then the Pens, an extra 2 points would go a long way down the road.
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