NHL Preview: Philadelphia Flyers at New York Islanders

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PHILADELPHIA FLYERS NOTES:

UPCOMING GAMES
DATE OPPONENT LOCATION TIME BROADCAST INFO.
Tues., Nov. 29 New York Islanders Wells Fargo Center 7:30 p.m. ESPN+/Hulu, 97.5 The Fanatic
Thur., Dec. 1 Tampa Bay Lightning Wells Fargo Center 7 p.m. NBCSP, 97.5 The Fanatic
Sat., Dec. 3 New Jersey Devils Wells Fargo Center 7 p.m. NBCSP, 97.5 The Fanatic

CURRENT INJURIES
PLAYER INJURY DATES GAMES MISSED
Wade Allison IR-oblique muscle strain, hip pointer 11/13-present 7
Cam Atkinson upper body 9/25-present 21
Sean Couturier back 9/19-present 21
Ryan Ellis LTIR-groin/hip/back 10/11-present 21
Travis Konecny upper body 11/19-present 4
Scott Laughton IR-upper body 11/21-present 3
James van Riemsdyk IR-upper body 10/27-present 15
2022-23 TOTAL MAN GAMES LOST: 122

PREVIOUS INJURIES
PLAYER INJURY DATES GAMES MISSED
Patrick Brown back 9/21-11/15 16
Carter Hart illness 11/8 1
Owen Tippett upper body 10/15-10/27 5
Rasmus Ristolainen lower body 10/13-10/27 6
Felix Sandstrom lower body 10/1-10/17 2

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
11/22 – Placed F Scott Laughton on Injured Reserve; Recalled F Jackson Cates from Lehigh Valley (AHL)
11/16 – Activated F Patrick Brown from IR
11/15 – Placed F Wade Allison on IR due to an oblique muscle strain and hip pointer

FLYERS VS. ISLANDERS: HEAD-TO-HEAD
FLYERS ISLANDERS
143-98-44 ALL-TIME RECORD 116-134-35
82-36-22 HOME 69-56-20
61-62-22 ROAD 47-78-15
1-2-2 LAST 5 MEETINGS 4-1-0
2-3-5 LAST 10 MEETINGS 8-2-0
925 GOALS SCORED 864
21.8% POWER PLAY 18.6%
81.4% PENALTY KILL 78.2%
Hayes: 15 pts (10-5=15) in 33 GP
Provorov: 10 pts (4-6=10) in 27 GP
Ristolainen: 10 pts (2-8=10) in 28 GP
TEAM SCORING LEADERS Parise: 45 pts (23-22=45) in 52 GP
Bailey: 36 pts (12-24=36) in 65 GP
Barzal: 25 pts (8-17=25) in 23 GP
Hart: 3-3-3, 3,21 GAA, .883 SV% in 9 GP
Sandstrom: Has not faced NYI
TEAM GOALTENDERS Varlamov: 8-3-2, 2.83 GAA, .915 SV% in 14 GP
Sorokin: 7-1-1, 1.72 GAA, .938 SV%, 1 SO in 9 GP

2022-23 SEASON SERIES (ALL TIMES EASTERN)
November 26 UBS Arena 7:30 p.m.
November 29 Wells Fargo Center 7:30 p.m.
February 6 Wells Fargo Center 7 p.m.
April 8 UBS Arena 7:30 p.m.

TEAM NOTES
QUICK HITS

  • Philadelphia plays 21 games in 40 days from Nov. 8-Dec. 17 – tied for the most games played among other NHL teams in that span (STL).
  • The Flyers have allowed the opposing team to score first in 15 of its 21 games this season. Philadelphia ranks T-4th in the NHL with five wins when trailing first in a game. The Flyers are 2-2-2 when scoring first.
  • Philadelphia recorded a franchise-best 59 hits Nov. 12 vs. OTT. The 59 hits are tied for the ninth-most in a regular season game in NHL history.
  • The Flyers rank second in the NHL with 387 blocked shots and with 637 hits.
  • Philadelphia ranks sixth in the NHL in team rookie scoring percentage (11.4) and T-7th in team rookie points (16).
  • The rookies have netted a combined seven goals to rank third among NHL team rookie goal percentage (13.7) and T-4th in rookie goals.

BACK-TO-BACKS

  • Friday’s and Saturday’s games this week mark the Flyers’ fifth back-to-back set of 15 this season.
  • The set marks the first of three home-to-road back-to-backs this season:
  1. Nov. 25 vs. PIT (4-1 L); Nov. 26 at NYI
  2. Feb. 24 vs. MTL; Feb. 25 at NJD
  3. April 1 vs. BUF; April 2 at PIT
  • The Flyers are 2-2-1 in the first game of a back-to-back this season and 0-4-0 in the second.

NOVEMBER TO REMEMBER

  • The Flyers play nine road games this month – the most road games in a single month this season.
  • Philadelphia plays 15 contests this month, its most in a month this season and the ninth time in franchise history the Flyers plays 15-plus games in the month of November:

LUCKY NUMBER 13

  • Kevin Hayes netted his sixth goal of the season Friday, his eighth point (4-4=8) in the last eight games.
  • He owns 10 points (5-5=10) in the last 11 games.
  • The 30-year-old leads the team in assists (14), PPA (6) and points (20) and ranks second in multi-point games (5) this season.
  • He collected eight points (1-7=8) in a career-high five-game season-opening point streak, Oct. 13-22.
  • He tallied his 200th career assist Oct. 19 at FLA.
  • Set a career-high three-game PPP streak (3a) from Oct. 13-18.

BUZZIN’ JOEL

  • Joel Farabee saw his three-game point streak come to an end Friday (1-2=3).
  • He owns seven points (1-6=7) in the last 10 games, including a season-high three-game assist streak, Nov. 8-12.
  • He ranks third on the Flyers in assists (9) and scoring (13) and fourth in goals (4) this season.
  • The forward tallied a season-high three points (1-2=3) on Oct. 22 at NSH.
  • He tied his career-high five shots for the seventh time on Oct. 19 at FLA.
  • The 22-year-old is one of five Flyers players with a GWG this season, notching his fourth career on Oct. 27 vs. FLA.

TIP OF THE HAT

  • Owen Tippett recorded a career-high 21:14 TOI Monday vs. CGY.
  • He registered his first career multi-goal game and a season-high six shots Nov. 19 at MTL.
  • The Ontario native collected five points (3-2=5) in a four-game point streak (Nov. 13-19), matching his career-best four-game point streak also set March 9-15, 2021.
  • He has seven points (4-3=7) in the last 10 contests.
  • He owns 10 points (6-4=10) in 16 games this season, setting a career best in a Flyers sweater.
  • He leads the team in PPG (3), ranks T-2nd in goals, third in shooting percentage (14.6) and T-4th in scoring this season.
  • The forward recorded his first multi-point game (1-1=2) of the season vs. STL (11/8).
  • The 23-year-old has 17 points (10-7=17) in 37 career games with the Flyers in two seasons.

WHOLE LOT OF HART

  • Carter Hart has seen 30-plus shots in 11 of his 15 games this season – he is 6-1-4 in those contests.
  • He ranks third among NHL goaltenders in shots against (495) and fourth in saves (453).
  • He opened the season on an eight-game point streak (6-0-2) to become the fourth goaltender in team history to have started a season on an eight-game plus point streak: Pete Peeters (22-0-5 in 1979-80), Bob Froese (9-0-1 in 1982-83) and Dominic Roussel (8-0-0 in 1993-94). (NHL Stats)
  • He made a career-high 48 shots and tied his career high with 51 shots faced vs. FLA on Oct. 27.
  • He recorded a career-high season-opening five-game win streak.
  • Per NHL Stats, he became the seventh goaltender in Flyers history to win each of his first five games of a season and first since Ron Hextall (5-0-0 in 1995-96). The longest such stretch in franchise history is eight straight games, achieved by Dominic Roussel (1993-94) and Bob Froese (1982-83).
  • The 24-year-old’s 48 saves tied for the eighth-most by a Flyers goaltender while his 51 shots faced T-10th. Per NHL Stats, his 48 saves mark the highest single game save total by a Flyers goaltenders since Steve Mason on March 22, 2016 (51 at CBJ).
  • Outside of Philadelphia, he only has two NHL teams he has not earned a win against: Colorado and St. Louis.

EMERGING TALENT

  • Noah Cates owns six points (3-3=6) in the last 10 games, including two multi-point games.
  • He tallied his first power-play point of the season (assist), Nov. 15 at CBJ.
  • The 23-year-old recoded his first game-winning goal of the season, second career, Oct. 18 at TBL.
  • The forward leads team rookies with six points (3-3=6) and ranks T-7th among NHL rookies in goals and is one of 17 rookies to register a GWG.

ICE ICE BABY

  • Tony DeAngelo recorded a career-high 31:03 TOI Nov. 19 at MTL to become the sixth defenseman in Flyers history to skate 31-plus minutes in two-or-more games, also: Matt Carle (2), Eric Desjardins (9), Derian Hatcher (2), Kim Johnsson (4) and Chris Pronger (3).
  • He ranks seventh in the NHL in average TOI/game (25:04).
  • He ranks third on the team in PPP (6), T-4th in points (10), fifth in assists (7) and T-5th in goals (3),
  • He recorded five points (1-4=5) in a four-game point streak, Oct. 13-19.
  • Per NHL Stats, he became the fifth defenseman in Flyers history to start a season on a point streak of at least four games: Behn Wilson (7 games in 1981-82), Chris Pronger (5 games in 2011-12), Gary Galley (four games in 1993-94) and Mark Howe (four games in 1988-89 & 1984-85).
  • The blueliner scored his first goal in a Flyers sweater, on the power play, Oct. 15 vs. VAN.
  • The Sewell, NJ native, made his Flyers debut on Oct. 13, registering two assists, a plus-3 rating and three blocked shots in a team-high 23:46 TOI.

IVAN THE GREAT

  • Ivan Provorov ranks T-4th in team history for goals by a defenseman with Shayne Gostisbehere (60) and T-7th for points by a Flyers defenseman with Joe Watson (198).
  • The blueliner ranks fourth on the team in assists (8), T-4th in shots (44) and sixth in hits (35) this season.
  • The 25-year-old leads the Flyers and ranks fourth in the NHL with 54 blocked shots.
  • He tallied two assists, a plus-4 rating and 10 blocked shots in Philadelphia’s season opener on Oct. 13 vs. NJ.
  • The Russian native’s 10 blocked shots tied the franchise record for most in a game for the third time: Andrew MacDonald (3/11/16); Provorov (11/2/17 & 10/13/22).

NEW YORK ISLANDERS NOTES:

LAST GAME
DATE NYI RESULT SCORE NYI SCORERS IN GOAL
Fri., Nov. 25, 2022 Win NYI 3 at CBJ 2 Wahlstrom, Pageau,
Nelson
Sorokin (24/26)
Oliver Wahlstrom opened the score, Jean-Gabriel Pageau added a second on the power play, then Brock Nelson tallied the go-ahead goal in the third period, to help the New York Islanders defeat the Columbus Blue Jackets, 3-2, Friday night at \Nationwide Arena. Ilya Sorokin recorded his third straight victory, Mathew Barzal tallied two assists, and Simon Holmstrom recorded his first career NHL point to help the Islanders improve to 2-0-0 against Columbus this season.

SEASON SERIES
DATE LOCATION TV
Nov. 26, 2022 UBS Arena (Belmont Park, NY) MSG
Nov. 29, 2022 Wells Fargo Center (Philadelphia, PA) MSG
Feb. 6, 2023 Wells Fargo Center (Philadelphia, PA) MSG

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Nov. 23 Simon Holmstrom has been recalled from loan (Bridgeport). Kyle Palmieri is day to day with an upper body injury.
Nov. 16 Nikita Soshnikov has been loaned to the Bridgeport Islanders (AHL).
Nov. 7 Robin Salo has been recalled from the Bridgeport Islanders (AHL).

TONIGHT’S MATCHUP
Tonight, the New York Islanders host the Philadelphia Flyers in the first of three matchups between the two clubs this season. The last time the Islanders hosted the Flyers was January 25, when Mathew Barzal, Brock Nelson and Zach Parise each recorded multi-point games in a 4-3 win at UBS Arena. The Islanders enter tonight’s game on the back-end of a back-to-back series and with five straight wins against Metropolitan division opponents, after they defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena last night. The Islanders are 4-1-0 in their last five home ice matchups.

INJURIES GAMES MISSED

15 Cal Clutterbuck Oct. 13 vs. FLA , Nov. 8 at NYR

21 Kyle Palmieri Nov. 23 vs. EDM –

25 Sebastian Aho Oct. 13 vs. FLA – Oct. 20 vs. NJD

26 Oliver Wahlstrom Oct. 13 vs. FLA

Man Games Lost: 9

RECENT RESULTS
Friday, Nov. 25 at Columbus W (3-2)
Wednesday, Nov. 23 vs. Edmonton W (3-0)
Monday, Nov. 21 at Toronto W, OT (3-2)
Saturday, Nov. 19 at Dallas L (5-2)

LAST FIVE MEETINGS VS. PHILADELPHIA
Mar. 20, 2022 Wells Fargo Center (Philadelphia, PA) Loss (2-1)
Jan. 25, 2022 UBS Arena (Belmont Park, NY) Win (4-3)
Jan. 18, 2022 Wells Fargo Center (Philadelphia, PA) SO Win (4-3)
Jan. 17, 2022 UBS Arena (Belmont Park, NY) Win (4-1)
Apr. 3, 2021 Nassau Coliseum (Uniondale, NY) SO Win (3-2)

vs. THE FLYERS:
2021-22 3-1-0
Last 5 meetings 4-1-0
Franchise History 116-134-26-9
NYI Home 69-56-15-5
NYI Away 47-78-11-4

STORYLINES
HOSTING THE FLYERS
The Islanders cap off their fourth back-to-back series of the season tonight, as they host the Philadelphia Flyers for
the first time since January 25 of last season, a 4-3 Islander win. Zach Parise, Mathew Barzal and Brock Nelson each
recorded multi-point games. These teams last met on March 20, 2022 in Philadelphia, a 2-1 decision in favor of the
Flyers.
The Islanders enter tonight’s matchup with an 8-2-2 record against Philadelphia in their last twelve meetings. The
Islanders have also captured five consectuive home wins against the Flyers, dating back to March 20, 2021. Tonight’s
game is the 286th meeting between these two franchises.
Forwards Zach Parise and Josh Bailey have seen success against the Flyers throughout their careers. Parise’s 45
career points against Philadelphia are tied with Boston’s Brad Marchand for tenth-most amongst active NHLers, and
his 23 goals against Philly are seventh-most amongst actives. Josh Bailey has talled 36 points (12g, 24a) against
Philadelphia in his career, second-most against any single opponent he has faced (Pittsburcgh, 42).

AGAINST THE METRO
The Islanders improved to 2-0-0 in their season series against the Columbus Blue Jackets last night in Ohio, and captured their fifth consecutive Metropolitan victory. They enter tonight’s matchup with a 5-1-0 record against opponents in their own division. Since October 26, the Islanders are 7-1-0 against Eastern Conference opponents.

SEVEN STRAIGHT
Islanders forward Mathew Barzal has recorded points in his last seven games, the longest streak by an Islander this season. He has tallied ten points (2g, 8a) in since November 14. Barzal’s 23 assists in 22 games lead the NHL, and the Coquitlam, BC native leads the Islanders in points (25) and assists (23). Barzal has recorded 25 points (8g, 17a) against Philadelphia in 23 career games, the most against any single opponent he has faced in his career. Barzal’s 23 assists in 22 games are only the sixth time in club history that an Islander has recorded higher than an assist-per-game average through the first 22 games of the season. Mike Bossy and Bryan Trottier were the last to do so, in 1984-85.

PPGs
Forward Jean-Gabriel Pageau has found the back of the net three times in his last two games. Four of Pageau’s last six goals have been scored on the power play, and his four PPGs lead the Islanders. On Wednesday night against Edmonton, he scored the eventual game-winner shorthanded. It was the 17th SHG of his career, tying Cal Clutterbuck, Jonathan Toews, and Jordan Staal for seventh place amongst active NHLers. He also scored on the power play, becoming the seventh Islanders player to score both shorthanded and on the power play in a five-minute span.

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Last night against Columbus, Islanders forward Brock Nelson scored the go-ahead goal in the third period to help lift the Islanders over the Blue Jackets, 3-2. Entering tonight’s matchup, Nelson leads the Islanders in goals (10) and game-winners (3). It was Nelson’s fourth career game-winning goal. Nelson has recorded a point in ten of the last 11 Islander wins, and scored a goal in nine of them. He is second on the Islanders in points (21), and has recorded a team-high 69 shots on goal this season. Nelson has been held off the scoresheet just four times this month.

SCORING
Entering tonight’s game, the Islanders have outscored opponents 72-57 through 22 games. Amongst the Metropolitan Divsion, only Pittsburgh Penguins (75) and New Jersey Devils (77) have recorded more goals this season. The Islanders are 9-1-0 when scoring first, and each of their last four victories (OTT, TOR, EDM, CBJ) have seen the Islanders open the score. All 14 Islander victories this season have included at least three Islander goals.

THE THIRD
The Islanders remain most productive in the third period. 13 of the 14 victories they have captured so far this season have included an Islander finding the back of the net in the third (13-5-0 when they find the back of the net in the final frame). Their 32 third period goals this season are tied with the Boston Bruins for most in the NHL.

FIRSTS
Islanders forward Simon Holmstrom was recalled from loan from Bridgeport (AHL) on November 23. Holmstrom made his NHL debut that night, the first Islanders rookie to make their NHL debut this season. Holmstrom recorded his first NHL point on Friday night Columbus, an assist on Oliver Wahlstrom’s sixth goal of the season.

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Islanders forward Oliver Wahlstrom recorded his sixth goal of the season last night against Columbus. Wahlstrom leads Islanders forwards and is tied for the team-lead (Pelech) in plus-minus, with a +9 through 22 games this season. Wahlstrom has recorded five points (2g, 3a) in 11 games against Philadelphia.

SOROKIN
Islanders netminder Ilya Sorokin captured his third straight win last night in Columbus, turning away 24 of 26 shots faced. Sorokin’s ten wins this season are tied for third-most in the league (Jones, Shesterkin). His 2.19 GAA is third amongst all NHL netminders (min. 6 GP), and his .933 SV% is second-most (Ullmark). On Wednesday night vs. Edmonton, Sorokin posted a career-high 49-save shutout against the Oilers. It was Sorokin’s second shutout of the 2022-23 campaign (last: Oct. 26 vs. NYR), and his 49 saves were the third-most in a shutout by an Islander goalie in franchise history (J. Halak 51, G. Healy 50). He enters tonight’s matchup as one of five NHL netminders to post at least two shutouts so far this season. Sorokin becomes one of just three goalies in the expansion era to have 12 shutouts in their first 89 NHL games (T. Esposito, G. Resch).

BLUELINERS
Islanders defenseman Noah Dobson leads blueliners in all three scoring categories, with 15 points (six goals, nine assists) through 23 games. Dobson’s six goals are tied with four skaters for third-most in the league amongst defensemen (E. Karlsson 11, R. Dahlin 8). Dobson has tallied 65 shots on goal this season, leading defensemen by far and second on the team (Nelson, 69) . The next closest Islanders defensemen to Dobson’s 65 shots on goal is Scott Mayfield, with 32. Islanders defenseman Sebastian Aho recorded his second goal of the season in the Islanders’ win on Wednesday night vs. Edmonton. Aho’s goal on Wednesday was the 17th goal and 49th point by an Islanders blueliner this season. Islanders defenseman Adam Pelech leads the team in time on ice with 21:17 per game, and plus/minus with a plus-nine through 21 games (tied with O. Wahlstrom). Pelech leads active Islander defensemen in games played, and has skated each of his 403 contests in an Islanders uniform. The Islanders are 5-1-0 when Pelech finds the scoresheet this season, and the Toronto, ON native added his seventh assist of the season on Wednesday night vs. Edmonton.