The Chicago Blackhawks, who defeated the New York Islanders 4-3 on Tuesday, are back in action on Thursday night. They come in 4-3-3 in their last 10 as they continue to develop young players who will impact them in the future.
This will be a match against the Philadelphia Flyers, who come in 6-3-1 in their last 10. For Philly, they sit five points below the playoff line in the Eastern Conference. The Blackhawks have a chance to spoil any chance of a miracle run for them.
Advertisement
Scouting Philadelphia
The Philadelphia Flyers are having a better year than anyone would have expected before it began, but they have a lot of work to do. There are good young players on their roster, but more steps must be taken for the organization to get over the hump.
Barkey-Zegras-Tippett
Bump-Dvorak-Konecny
Grundström-Cates-Michkov
Glendening-Couturier-Hathaway
Sanheim-Ristolainen
York-Drysdale
Seeler-Juulsen
Ersson
Vladar
Trevor Zegras has had a healthy bounce-back season, his first with the Flyers after a big trade with the Anaheim Ducks. Playing in their top six has given him a boost.
Travis Konecny didn’t make Team Canada at the Olympics after being on the 4-Nations Face-Off team, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t deserving. He is a great player that Chicago’s defense must have an eye on when his line is out there.
Advertisement
Matvei Michkov is on the third line, and his season isn’t going the way he had hoped after a strong rookie year, but the skills are there for him to change a game at a moment’s notice.
Philadelphia’s defense is a big reason that they are even in the race at all. Travis Sanheim was a Team Canada guy in Milano Cortina, and he plays a key role on this team in the NHL.
Rasmus Ristolainen, Cam York, and Jamie Drysdale lead the depth on the blue line, as they all bring different strengths that Blackhawks forecheckers/back-checkers must pay attention to.
In goal, the Flyers have found success with either Samuel Ersson or Dan Vladar in the net. Vladar started on Tuesday against the Columbus Blue Jackets, so expect Ersson against the Blackhawks.
Advertisement
Projected Lines, Defense Pairs, & Goalie For Chicago
The Blackhawks are going to have Sacha Boisvert making his NHL debut. This comes one game after Anton Frondell made his debut. The Blackhawks are continuing to get younger by inserting more prospects that are ready to compete and make the team better.
Greene-Bedard-Frondell
Bertuzzi-Nazar-Lardis
Burakovsky-Donato-Mik
Teravainen-Boisvert-Slaggert
Vlasic-Levshyunov
Kaiser-Rinzel
Del Mastro-Crevier
Knight
Anton Frondell is on the first line, as he should be. His play in his first post-draft season earned him that opportunity before he ever even stepped onto an NHL sheet. He impressed in his NHL debut, a 4-3 win over the New York Islanders.
Advertisement
Sacha Boisvert isn’t at the same level as Frondell, but multiple tough two-way players like him are needed on every team. Playing on the fourth line to dip his toes into the NHL waters is perfect
It looked a little strange for Teuvo Teravainen to be on the fourth line in the last game with Landon Slaggert and Sam Lafferty, but it makes a lot more sense with Boisvert down the middle instead. This line has some skill and a little bit of toughness that should make waves in all three zones.
Arvid Soderblom was excellent in the win over the Islanders. Now, expect Spencer Knight to get the nod against the Flyers. Each goalie will be heavily relied on as the season comes to a close.
How To Watch
The game can be heard locally on AM 720 WGN in the Chicagoland area. To view this game, it can be found on CHSN locally. Nationally, it is available to stream on ESPN+. The puck will drop shortly after 6:00 PM CT.
Image
Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay up to date on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.
Advertisement
For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.
Read the full article here
