Flyers-Stars Preview: Second Half Starter

Tuesday's loss to Toronto marked the halfway point of the season for the Flyers. A 17-19-5 record not only has them on the outside looking in to the playoffs, but much closer to the bottom of the conference than the top. After going 8-2-2 over a 12-game stretch in November, things have been a struggle since, with a 5-9-2 record in the last 16 games.

Next up for the Flyers is a meeting against the Dallas Stars, a perennial contender in the Western Conference.

Game time is 7 p.m.

Team Leaders

Philadelphia Flyers	GP	G	A	P	Dallas Stars	GP	G	A	P
Travis Konecny	41	20	25	45	Matt Duchene	39	16	22	38
Matvei Michkov	39	12	17	29	Jason Robertson	39	10	22	32
Owen Tippett	41	11	13	24	Wyatt Johnston	39	9	20	29
Scott Laughton	41	9	13	22	Jamie Benn	39	11	17	28
Travis Sanheim	41	6	15	21	Mason Marchment	33	12	15	27

Travis Konecny scored twice on Tuesday to reach the 20-goal mark at the halfway point of the season, putting him on pace for a 40-goal season. Konecny also has four goals in the last four games.

Jason Robertson has been heating up of late. In his last 10 games, Robertson has 13 points, nearly half of his season total. Robertson has four multi-point games in his last five.

Sam Ersson gets the start for the Flyers. Ersson makes his return to the lineup after leaving with an injury on Dec. 31 against the Sharks. He had made 15 saves on 15 shots to that point in the game.

Casey DeSmith gets the start for the Stars. DeSmith makes his first start since Dec. 31, when he made 21 saves on 23 shots in a win over Buffalo. DeSmith has won three straight starts, allowing five goals in that time.

Projected Lineups

Flyers Scratches: Nick Deslauriers (injury), Olle Lycksell (healthy), Erik Johnson (healthy), Aleksei Kolosov (healthy)

Stars Scratches: Tyler Seguin (injury), Mason Marchment (injury), Brendan Smith (healthy)

Lineup Notes

Flyers: Ivan Fedotov will serve as the backup in Sam Ersson's return to the net. Aleksei Kolosov will be a scratch. There are no other changes to the Flyers lineup.
Stars: Matt Dumba returns to the lineup after being a scratch for the last game on Tuesday in New York. Brendan Smith comes out of the lineup.

Game Notes

Power Play: Flyers (14.9% - 29th), Stars (16.8% - 27th)
Penalty Kill: Flyers (78.4% - 17th), Stars (84.8% - 2nd)
Recent History vs. Stars
- Jan. 18, 2024 - Flyers 5, Stars 1 (at PHI)
- Oct. 21, 2023 - Stars 5, Flyers 4 (F/OT) (at DAL)
Team Leaders vs. Stars
- Owen Tippett - 9 GP, 3 G, 5 A, 8 P
- Travis Konecny - 13 GP, 5 G, 3 A, 8 P
- Morgan Frost - 4 GP, 0 G, 2 A, 2 P
Milestone Watch
- Sean Couturier needs two goals to reach 200 for his career.
- Joel Farabee needs four points to reach 200 for his career.
- Rasmus Ristolainen needs four points to reach 300 for his career.