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PHILADELPHIA FLYERS SATURDAY, DEC. 21 7:00 P.M. WELLS FARGO CENTER PHILADELPHIA, PA |
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How can Elvis Merzlikins possible encore Thursday's performance?
We'll find out.
Elvis gets the start in net Saturday night when the Columbus Blue Jackets face the Philadelphia Flyers from the City of Brotherly Love.
Merzlikins made a season-high 40 saves in the 4-2 victory over the New Jersey Devils two nights ago, with three saves dazzling enough to get a shoutout from the NHL's official X (formerly known as Twitter) account.
The win ended a five-game losing streak by Columbus, one that started with a 5-3 loss to the Flyers on December 10th.
Here's what else to know when Elvis and the Jackets look to return the favor in Philly:
| CBJ | SEASON STATS | PHI | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.24 | 10th | GOALS FOR | 20th | 2.94 |
| 3.58 | 30th | GOALS AGAINST | 29th | 3.55 |
| 18.9% | 20th | POWER PLAY | 26th | 16.1% |
| 72.7% | t-27th | PENALTY KILL | t-14th | 80.0% |
| 30.5 | t-6th | SHOTS FOR | 25th | 27.4 |
| 29.0 | 20th | SHOTS AGAINST | 10th | 27.5 |
| PHILADELPHIA: LAST THREE GAMES | ||||
| SAT, 12/14 | @ Wilds | L, 4-1 | ||
| WED, 12/18 | @ Red Wings | L, 6-4 | ||
| THU, 12/19 | vs. Kings | L, 7-3 | ||
| PHILADELPHIA: TEAM LEADERS | ||||
| GOALS | Travis Konecny | 16 | ||
| ASSISTS | Konecny | 21 | ||
| POINTS | (still him) | 37 | ||
| ODDS & PROJECTIONS | ||||
| CBJ WIN PER MONEYPUCK: | 40% | |||
| CBJ ODDS PER ESPNBET: | +125 | |||
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RE: FLYERS
The Flyers are on a three-game losing streak, being outscored 17-8. That includes a 7-3 loss to the Los Angeles Kings on home ice Thursday night ... Keep an eye on these two Flyers: Matvei Michkov, who leads the league in points (27) from a rookie and has rare offensive ability, and Travis Konecny, who leads the team in goals, assists, points, and has 17 career goals against Columbus in just 27 games.
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POWERFUL PLAY...ISH
Zach Werenski's power play goal Thursday made it six of seven games with a power play goal from the Blue Jackets. But despite the streak, they've fallen from 17th in the power play before it started down to 20th. How does that happen? Three of those seven games have been 1-of-5 performances on the man-advantage, and they're yet to have a multi-goal power play game this season.
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LINEUP CHANGES & PROJECTIONS
Just one change in the projected lineups, and that's Kent Johnson and Zach Aston-Reese switching places in the middle six. After a sensational start, Johnson has gone without a point in three straight and without a goal in five consecutive games.
James Malatesta, who made his season debut Thursday, stays with Sean Kuraly and Mikael Pyyhtia on the bottom line. He was on the ice for 10:56 in the win over New Jersey.
Here are the complete projections (subject to change):
| LW | C | RW | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | Dmitri Voronkov | 23 | Sean Monahan | 86 | Kirill Marchenko |
| 21 | James van Riemsdyk | 19 | Adam Fantilli | 27 | Zach Aston-Reese |
| 91 | Kent Johnson | 4 | Cole Sillinger | 24 | Mathieu Olivier |
| 67 | James Malatesta | 7 | Sean Kuraly | 82 | Mikael Pyyhtia |
| LD | RD | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Zach Werenski | 78 | Damon Severson |
| 2 | Jake Christiansen | 9 | Ivan Provorov |
| 3 | Jack Johnson | 22 | Jordan Harris |
| Starting Goalie | Back-Up | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 90 | Elvis Merzlikins | 40 | Daniil Tarasov |
