Toronto Maple Leafs (22-24-4) at Philadelphia Flyers (21-22-7), 7 p.m. (ET)
(SportsNetwork.com) - The Philadelphia Flyers will try to extend a perfect start to a five-game homestand when they host the sliding Toronto Maple Leafs in Saturday's battle at Wells Fargo Center.
The Flyers have matched a season-high winning streak by going 3-0 to begin this stay in South Philadelphia. Craig Berube's club picked up its most recent win with Thursday's 5-2 decision over the Winnipeg Jets.
Nick Schultz picked up the game-winner in the second period against the Jets, while Brayden Schenn and Sean Couturier scored in the third to help Philly improve to 14-7-3 as the host.
Wayne Simmonds and Chris VandeVelde also scored for the Flyers, winners of four of their last five.
Schultz's goal was his first marker since he tallied for Edmonton back on April 8, 2013. The defenseman's score on Thursday snapped a 2-2 tie and halted his goal drought at 125 games.
In his first start since Jan. 8, Steve Mason picked up his second straight positive result thanks to 36 saves. Mason made his return from a lower-body injury with a victory in relief of starter Ray Emery on Tuesday against Arizona.
"I feel really good. The injury hasn't been a problem which is great," Mason said of his knee issue which kept him sidelined for more than two weeks. "More importantly I thought my game felt sharper than last night or the night before rather, which is obviously a positive sign as well."
Flyers forward Michael Raffl sat out Thursday with an illness and is questionable for tonight.
After this evening's game, the Flyers are off until completing this homestand with Thursday's game against the New York Islanders.
Toronto is mired in an eight-game losing streak and the club suffered its seventh regulation defeat of the slide on Thursday despite carrying a 1-0 lead into the third period against visiting Arizona.
The Coyotes used a three-goal third period to halt a seven-game slide of their own and drop Toronto to 0-7-1 over its last eight. Arizona's Oliver Ekman- Larsson scored a short-handed goal five seconds into the third period to tie the game and kindle the game-winning rally.
Martin Hanzal netted the go-ahead goal for the Coyotes 3:42 after Ekman- Larsson scored and Sam Gagner added a power-play marker to pad the cushion.
Phil Kessel scored in the first period for the Maple Leafs, who are 3-15-1 in their last 19 outings and 1-8-1 since Peter Horachek took over for fired head coach Randy Carlyle on an interim basis.
The Coyotes peppered Jonathan Bernier, who stopped 32 shots in two periods but allowed three goals on 13 in the third. Bernier fell to 0-5-1 over his last six starts and allowed three goals or more for the fourth time during that span.
James Reimer could get the call in net tonight as the Leafs begin a three-game road trip. Reimer is 2-3-0 with a 3.11 goals against average in his career against Philadelphia, while Mason, a native of the Greater Toronto area, is 3-3-1 with a 3.64 GAA in seven lifetime appearances versus the Leafs.
The Flyers posted a 7-4 win in Toronto on Dec. 20 behind four-point nights from both Claude Giroux and Jakub Voracek. Giroux had two goals and two helpers, while Voracek notched four assists.
Voracek leads the NHL with 58 points and 41 assists, while Giroux has 52 points on 16 goals and 36 assists.
Philadelphia has claimed two straight and eight of the past 12 meetings with the Leafs, who have lost eight of their last 11 at Wells Fargo Center.
Toronto is just 7-13-4 on the road and has lost eight in a row as the guest since beating Boston on Dec. 31. The Leafs will continue their swing Tuesday in Nashville before visiting New Jersey on Friday.