Gold: Here come the Flyers
Posted November 12, 2021 3:53 p.m. EST
Updated November 12, 2021 3:59 p.m. EST
The Carolina Hurricanes are 10-1-0 on the season and coming off arguably their best played game in Tuesday night’s 2-1 OT win over the Tampa Bay Lightning. But, they are a team with personnel issues heading into this critical weekend which begins with tonight’s game with the Philadelphia Flyers.
Nino Niederreiter and Brett Pesce are already injured and not quite ready to return. Both have been skating, and Nino appears much closer to drawing back into the line up than Pesce. Now, it’s illness potentially eating away at the lineup. Martin Necas and Jesper Fast didn’t feel well and missed practice on Thursday and while Fast was on the ice this morning Necas wasn’t.
It’s worth mentioning that the most recent Covid-19 tests for both were negative, so at this time, that isn’t an issue. If Necas can’t go Josh Leivo will make his Hurricanes debut.
If you’re interested in catching the Canes at home this month, I sure hope you don’t wait too long. When the Canes host the Flyers at PNC Arena tonight it will be the first of just three games in Raleigh before we flip the calendar to December.
The St Louis Blues come in tomorrow night and Washington’s visit the Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend is the extent of the Canes’ home schedule for November. In between is a 6-game roadie with the first five in the Pacific time zone. But, before you turn your coffee pot to the automatic brew setting, let’s deal with the Flyers, a team that has been more up and down over the last few years than North Carolina Tar Heels football.
Two years ago the Flyers were a bounce back team on the rise, with a future star goalie in Carter Hart, several exciting young players and wily veterans like James van Riemsdyk, Claud Giroux and Sean Couturier. With that formula, Philly was among the best teams in the east.
Then last year hit.
The Flyers did not handle the pandemic season well, as injuries, the retirement of defenseman of Matt Niskanen, and an awful year from Hart saw Philadelphia give back off those gains from the previous season. But, that appears to have been corrected.
Just consider the seesaw Hart’s been on the last three years…
2019-20, 40 starts, 24-13-3, 2.42 GAA/.914 SV%, 4.5 GSAA
2020-21, 25 starts, 9-11-5, 3.67 GAA/.877 SV%, -22.6 GSAA
2021-22 (so far), 8 starts, 3-3-2, 2.49 GAA/.924 SV%, 3.0 GSAA
That last category, GSAA, is an advanced metric that means goals saved above average. In other words, how many goals has he saved more -- or less -- than the average goalie.
Don’t be fooled by Philadelphia’s 7th place standing in the Metropolitan Division. They’re 6-3-2, good for 14 points though 11 games. That’s a 105-point pace and there is no way on this earth that 105 points won’t make the playoffs. The Metro is loaded as evidenced by the fact that the team picked by most of the experts to win the division, the New York Islanders, sit in last place at 5-4-2.
Yes, the entire division is over NHL .500.
Frederick Andersen will get the start for the Hurricanes tonight looking for his 10th win in 11 starts this season. In his career, Andersen is 8-3-3 with a 3.21 GAA/.905 SV% against the Flyers. Jordan Staal has 21 career goals against Philly, more than against any other team. Included in that total are three shorthanded goals, also the most he’s scored against any of the other 31 NHL clubs.
The line
Hurricanes -180
O/U 5.5 goals
Storm Watch starring Alec Campbell rolls in at 6:30 on 99.9 the Fan. Opening face off for the Canes and Flyers is set for just after 7:00 with Mike Mascalco and Tripp Tracy. Don’t forget to follow the Canes Corner Podcast wherever you get your podcasts. There’s a new episode the morning after every Hurricanes game.
