The Flyers are finally rolling out something much closer to a real preseason lineup tonight against the Bruins, and that alone makes this one feel different.
Philadelphia has already trimmed the camp roster in a major way, waiving six players and assigning another six to the AHL without waivers. In other words, the obvious bubble names are mostly gone, and what’s left is a group that looks a lot more like the team the Flyers expect to open the season with. This is the penultimate preseason game, and the veteran-heavy portion of camp is arriving right on schedule.
That means a lot of the names people have been waiting to see are in the mix at last. Sean Couturier, Trevor Zegras, Matvei Michkov, Travis Konecny, Tyson Foerster, Noel Acciari, Christian Dvorak, Rasmus Ristolainen, Travis Sanheim, Cam York, and Jamie Drysdale have not played a preseason game yet, and they’re all in line to get their first look tonight. For a team that has spent most of camp with limited morning skates and plenty of lineup guessing, this is the first real chance to see what the Flyers have been building.
The projected forward group has Tyson Foerster with Trevor Zegras and Porter Martone, Travis Konecny with Christian Dvorak and Matvei Michkov, Nikita Grebenkin with Jett Luchanko and Cole Knuble, and Jacob Gaucher with Sean Couturier and Noel Acciari. On defense, the pairs are Travis Sanheim with Rasmus Ristolainen, Cam York with Jamie Drysdale, and Simon Benoit with Helge Grans.
Boston’s projected lineup brings JJ Peterka, Elias Lindholm, and David Pastrnak together on the top line, with Casey Mittelstadt, Pavel Zacha, and Morgan Geekie behind them. The Bruins’ other forwards are James Hagens, Fraser Minten, Marat Khusnutdinov, Alex Steeves, Sean Kuraly, and Mark Kastelic, while Jeremy Swayman is listed in net with Michael DiPietro behind him.
The Flyers’ new power play will be one of the biggest things to watch, because it’s clearly been reworked. Zegras and Michkov are expected to be together on one unit, with Martone, Foerster, and Drysdale also part of the setup. Rick Tocchet has already said he plans to stick with the new look even if it starts slowly, so this game is less about immediate results and more about the first live test of what they’ve been installing.
There’s also a few roster battles worth keeping an eye on. Cole Knuble and Jett Luchanko are both in their third preseason game, and the Flyers appear to be using them to see whether either can make a late push.
Knuble has stood out in camp and could force a conversation if Nikita Grebenkin isn’t sharp enough coming back from injury. Luchanko is a little further behind in that race, but these games still matter for him as a chance to create chances, show some offense, and set himself up for a season with the Phantoms.
Helge Grans is another name still hanging around. He’s headed to the Phantoms, but after a rough training camp last year and a season that didn’t do much to raise his stock, he can at least try to get back on the radar alongside other young defensemen like Hunter McDonald and Ty Murchison. Simon Benoit has something to prove too, since there’s still room for him to show he belongs more as a rotation option than just a depth body waiting for a physical game.
And then there’s the draft angle that will naturally draw some attention. Porter Martone and James Hagens were the Flyers’ decision point on Draft Day last year, and Philadelphia chose the bigger winger over the smaller center, who is playing wing right now. It may not feel like a comparison that matters for long, but tonight is the first time the two will be on opposite sides of the same game.
In Other News...
Flyers Are Still Chasing The Impact Forward This Roster Needs
The Flyers are still in the market for the kind of forward who can change the shape of a roster, with Dave Pagnotta saying on SiriusXM NHL Network Radio that the club remains interested in adding a star-caliber piece. Philadelphia has the cap room to work with and enough young talent it believes can keep growing, which gives the front office some flexibility as it keeps looking for ways to push the team closer to playoff status.
And this is not a case of a team passively waiting for the market to break its way. The Flyers have already shown a willingness to take a swing for a bigger-name addition, and the pursuit of impact help is still very much part of the plan. For a club trying to speed up its timeline, the search for that difference-making forward remains one of the more important storylines around the roster. [Read more 🡒]
Flyers Suddenly Have Two Injury Questions Right Before Opening Night
The Flyers are heading into the final stretch of the preseason with a couple of health questions hanging over the roster. Goalie Dan Vladar left Tuesdays exhibition game after taking an upper-body injury, and the team is still sorting out what it means as opening night gets closer. On a club that already knows how quickly goalie depth can matter, any uncertainty there is worth watching.
Denver Barkey added another concern when he left practice early after dealing with a lower-body injury, putting his status in doubt for the preseason finale and maybe even the opener. Philadelphia is monitoring both players as the regular season approaches, and with the calendar tightening, the next few days could say a lot about how much lineup flexibility the Flyers will have when the games start to count. [Read more 🡒]
Flyers Preseason Test Could Start Sorting Out Key Roster Battles
A mostly NHL Flyers lineup gets a useful preseason stress test against the Bruins, and for a team still sorting out the edges of its roster, these are the kinds of games that matter. Philadelphia will be without injured Dan Vladar and Denver Barkey, but the lineup still has plenty of names worth tracking, with Cole Knuble, Jett Luchanko, Matvei Michkov and Nikita Grebenkin all expected to be in the mix.
The night also carries a little extra weight in goal, where Joseph Woll is set for his first full game with the Flyers. Grebenkins return adds another layer of intrigue after his injury absence, giving the coaching staff another look at a player who has been out of game action since March 21 of last season. For a preseason meeting, there is more than enough here to start separating who is pushing for jobs and who still has more work to do. [Read more 🡒]