The Flyers are back in a spot they know too well: still chasing their first win of the season, and now staring at game No. 10. Philadelphia hosts the Ottawa Senators on Saturday at Xfinity Mobile Arena, with puck drop set for 7:00 PM ET.
For the Flyers, the most recent setback followed a familiar script. They struck first against the Detroit Red Wings, watched the game get tied, then surrendered a late goal and spent the closing minutes trying to claw back level. It didn’t happen, and loss No. 9 became the setup for another shot at ending the skid.
Ottawa arrives with a much different feeling around it. The Senators were rolling before getting routed 7-2 by the St.
Louis Blues on Tuesday, then steadied themselves with a 2-1 shootout win over the New York Islanders on Thursday. They’ll try to carry that bounce-back into Philadelphia.
The Flyers’ projected defense pairs for Saturday show Travis Sanheim with Oliver Bonk, Nick Seeler with Jamie Drysdale, and Simon Benoit with David Jiricek. In net, Dan Vladar is expected to start, while Joseph Woll is listed for the Senators.
Philadelphia’s special teams groups are also set out with Jiricek, Zegras, Foerster, Michkov, and Barkey on the first power play unit, while Drysdale, Bonk, Dvorak, Martone, and Bunting make up the second. On the penalty kill, the first group is Couturier, Dvorak, Bonk, and Sanheim, with Cates, Foerster, Seeler, and Benoit on the second unit.
There’s also a lineup question hanging over the Flyers. Owen Tippett was not at morning skate, and head coach Rick Tocchet said he is a game-time decision because of an upper-body injury.
Tippett hasn’t done much offensively this season, but his speed and physical play are still a real piece of what this group can lean on. If he can’t go, Garrett Wilson is expected to slot in.
The last meeting between these teams gave Philadelphia some encouragement, even in defeat. The Flyers pushed the Senators hard in a 2-1 game that was decided on a late Ottawa power-play goal. A week later, the standings tell a different story, and this one carries a very different feel.
Saturday also brings a prime goaltending matchup. Vladar gets the start for the Flyers, while Linus Ullmark goes for Ottawa.
Ullmark has been outstanding so far, with a 1.20 GAA, a .949 SV%, and a 6-0-0 record. For a Flyers team that has struggled to create offense, that kind of form on the other side of the ice is a serious test.
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For Flyers fans, the appeal is obvious: Philadelphia has been tracking goaltending depth closely, and Zavragin remains one of the more interesting long-term pieces in that conversation. His recent run has been strong enough to keep him in the spotlight, even as the wider group of drafted prospects in the KHL continues to shift with injuries, ice time and roster decisions that will shape the rest of the season. [Read more 🡒]