Round 1, Game 5 Preview: Flyers-Canadiens
Under normal circumstances, back-to-back games in the playoffs is highly uncommon. But these aren't normal circumstances, not when 12 teams have been sharing one arena for games. Not when everyone is playing in the same place and there is no travel involved.
It makes for a quick turnaround for the Flyers from their second straight shutout win over the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday afternoon. Wednesday night gives the Flyers the chance to finally get back on the right side of a playoff series result. They have a 3-1 lead and are a win away from their first playoff series win in over eight years.
Game 5 is set for 8 p.m.
Team Leaders
Philadelphia Flyers | GP | G | A | P | Montreal Canadiens | GP | G | A | P |
Scott Laughton | 7 | 3 | 2 | 5 | Shea Weber | 8 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
Kevin Hayes | 7 | 0 | 5 | 5 | Jesperi Kotkaniemi | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
Jake Voracek | 6 | 2 | 2 | 4 | Paul Byron | 8 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
Michael Raffl | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | Jeff Petry | 8 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
Joel Farabee | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | Nick Suzuki | 8 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
Player to Watch | |
9 Ivan Provorov | 6 Shea Weber |
Last 5 Games: 0 G, 1 A, 1 P, +3 | Last 5 Games: 2 G, 0 A, 2 P, +2 |
Projected Goalie Matchup | |
79 Carter Hart | 31 Carey Price |
6 GP, 5-1-0, 1.24 GAA, .958 SV% | 8 GP, 4-4-0, 1.48 GAA, .949 SV% |
Carter Hart made history with his second straight shutout in Game 4, becoming the second youngest goalie in NHL history to record two straight shutouts. Even in a back-to-back situation, how do you not go with Hart in this situation? He's helped to carry you through this series, even with the team playing solid defense around him, and you have a chance to close it out with a netminder who has been essentially perfect from a positioning standpoint for the last two games. Alain Vigneault played coy on lineup decisions, including who is in goal, but it certainly wouldn't be surprising if Hart was in.
With Montreal's backs to the wall, there's no question Carey Price is back in goal. If the Canadiens are going to make a push to come back in this series this is the most crucial game, not only because they have to win it, but because Price has an 0-2-2 record with a 3.76 GAA and .864 save percentage in the second-half of back-to-backs where he starts both games this season.
Flyers Projected Lineup
Left Wing | Center | Right Wing |
12 Michael Raffl | 14 Sean Couturier | 93 Jake Voracek |
49 Joel Farabee | 13 Kevin Hayes | 11 Travis Konecny |
21 Scott Laughton | 28 Claude Giroux | 38 Derek Grant |
82 Connor Bunnaman | 44 Nate Thompson | 18 Tyler Pitlick |
Defense | ||
9 Ivan Provorov | 15 Matt Niskanen | |
6 Travis Sanheim | 5 Phil Myers | |
8 Robert Hagg | 61 Justin Braun | |
Goalie | ||
79 Carter Hart | 37 Brian Elliott |
Canadiens Projected Lineup
Left Wing | Center | Right Wing |
90 Tomas Tatar | 24 Philip Danault | 11 Brendan Gallagher |
13 Max Domi | 14 Nick Suzuki | 92 Jonathan Drouin |
41 Paul Byron | 15 Jesperi Kotkaniemi | 62 Artturi Lehkonen |
60 Alex Belzile | 71 Jake Evans | 40 Joel Armia |
Defense | ||
8 Ben Chiarot | 6 Shea Weber | |
77 Brett Kulak | 26 Jeff Petry | |
61 Xavier Ouellet | 53 Victor Mete | |
Goalie | ||
31 Carey Price | 39 Charlie Lindgren |
Lineup Notes
- Flyers: The Flyers made two lineup changes in scratching Nicolas Aube-Kubel and James van Riemsdyk for Game 4. Aube-Kubel was likely dealing with some effects of two blocked shots in Game 3 that left him in pain, but van Riemsdyk was strictly a healthy scratch. The Flyers then completely shuffled the lines and created all new combinations with the exception of the fourth line. Without knowing much about the lineup, a tactic of Alain Vigneault in these playoffs, these could stick for Game 5 or be completely shuffled again.
- Canadiens: The Canadiens also changed up their combinations while keeping the same lineup for Game 4, but that could change now in a back-to-back with their season on the line. One possible addition to the lineup could be forward Ryan Poehling, who has shown some potential as a scorer in his brief NHL career and could give this already young Montreal team a boost in a game where they need to create offense.
Game Notes
- Power Play: Flyers (24th), Canadiens (T-18th)
- Penalty Kill: Flyers (14th), Canadiens (5th)
- Recent History vs. Canadiens
- Nov. 7, 2019 - Flyers 3, Canadiens 2 (F/OT) (at PHI)
- Nov. 30, 2019 - Flyers 4, Canadiens 3 (F/OT) (at MTL)
- Jan. 16, 2020 - Canadiens 4, Flyers 1 (at PHI)
- Aug. 12, 2020 (Game 1) - Flyers 2, Canadiens 1
- Aug. 14, 2020 (Game 2) - Canadiens 5, Flyers 0
- Aug. 16, 2020 (Game 3) - Flyers 1, Canadiens 0
- Aug. 18, 2020 (Game 4) - Flyers 2, Canadiens 0
- Flyers Leaders vs. Canadiens (Career Regular Season Stats)
- Jake Voracek - 31 GP, 7 G, 22 A, 29 P
- Shayne Gostisbehere - 13 GP, 2 G, 12 A, 14 P
- Claude Giroux - 36 GP, 10 G, 16 A, 26 P
- James van Riemsdyk - 39 GP, 16 G, 9 A, 25 P
- Sean Couturier - 27 GP, 7 G, 12 A, 19 P
- Carter Hart - 4 GP, 2-2-0, 2.85 GAA, .913 SV%
Where to Watch
TV: NBC Sports Philadelphia/NBCSN
Radio: Rock 104.7/97.3 ESPN (Joined in progress after Sixers-Celtics)
Kevin Durso is Flyers insider for 97.3 ESPN and Flyers editor for SportsTalkPhilly.com. Follow him on Twitter @Kevin_Durso.