2023-24 Regular Season, Game 70: Hurricanes vs. Philadelphia Flyers (Pregame)

The Carolina Hurricanes are back at PNC Arena after sweeping a three-game road trip. After back-to-back wins over the weekend over Toronto and Ottawa, the Canes battled the Islanders on Long Island. The game was decided in the first period. Seth Jarvis and Jake Guentzel connected twice, with Jarvis finishing two shots just 2:05 apart to put the Canes ahead. Martin Necas finished one on the power play with 1.3 seconds left in the period to put Carolina up 3-0 after the first period. Neither found the back of the net in the second period, but New York would get on the board when Kyle Palmieri popped home a rebound to break Pyotr Kochetkov's shutout. This wouldn't give the Islanders any momentum as Jake Guentzel would add the empty-net goal to complete his three-point night and a 4-1 win to finish the trip. 

The Opponent: Philadelphia Flyers (35-26-8, 78 Points- 3rd in the Metropolitan Division)
Last Meeting- While they met three times in just under a month earlier in the season, these two haven't faced off since November 28, when the Canes visited Philadelphia. Michael Bunting started the scoring in the first period less than six minutes in. Travis Konecny evened it up early in the second, but Brendan Lemieux got it back near the end of the period to regain the lead. Seth Jarvis scored the dagger late in the third period, and Jesperi Kotkaniemi potted the empty netter to seal a 4-1 win for the Canes. Bunting and Sebastian Aho finished the game with two points, and Pyotr Kochetkov stopped 28 shots to earn the victory. 

Since We Last Met- Things weren't looking bad for the Flyers immediately after the loss to the Hurricanes in late November. At Christmas, they were in a playoff spot while the Canes were struggling to stay in the Wild Card race. The obvious turning point in their season was the news involving Carter Hart as part of the Hockey Canada situation. With Hart out of the lineup for the foreseeable future, this meant Samuel Ersson would bear the brunt of the burden in the net. Hart made his last start on January 20. Since then, the Flyers are just 10-11-2. Ersson has started 19 of the 23 games, posting an 8-9-2 record with a .883 save percentage and a 3.16 GAA. Despite the losing record, the Flyers are still in the third spot in the division. Travis Konecny is on his way to another 30-goal season and will likely pass his career-high in points soon. Owen Tippett could also reach 30 goals this season, sitting behind Konecny with 25 goals. Led by one of the most interesting men in hockey behind their bench, the Flyers are looking to hold strong in their spot, aiming to create a huge upset in the playoffs.

Stories/Keys of the Game
1. An April Preview?
If the season ended today, the Hurricanes would be hosting the Flyers for Game 1 in April at PNC Arena. The Canes hold a substantial lead over the Flyers in the standings, and that likely isn't going to change before the end of the season. These two have a very different feel to them. The Flyers will look to pound your face in and try to agitate you to the ends of the earth. The Canes won't back down from that but aren't going to engage in many fights unless Brendan Lemieux is in the lineup. I don't consider the Hurricanes to be pushovers, and general logic would dictate that they're the better team on paper, but anything can happen in the playoffs. 

2. Rolling into a Divisional Back-to-Back
As remarkable as the Hurricanes have been since mid-December, they haven't had a win streak longer than five games this season. Tonight, they enter the game with wins in four straight, meaning a victory could tie their season-high. On top of that, it's the first half of a back-to-back against divisional opponents, with Washington awaiting on Friday. Similar to the Islanders on Tuesday, the Flyers and Capitals are desperate for points. The Canes didn't give an inch against New York two nights ago, and I'd expect them to be just as engaged as they look for their fifth win in a row.

3. The Flyers are Barely Hanging On
Entering the night, the Flyers are just three points ahead of the Capitals for third in the division. While the Capitals lost last night to Toronto, they'll have two games in hand once this one ends. The biggest question is what Washington's deficit is going to be once this one ends. The Flyers looked to be moving backward last week, but rough weeks from the teams chasing them helped them maintain their positioning in the playoff picture. There is no guarantee that the Flyers will make it to the postseason, but they're the best positioned to do so. If they can get more consistent goaltending from Samuel Ersson, the final stretch will be less stressful. 

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