Hurricanes-Flyers Preview
Piling up as many injuries as they are points, the Philadelphia Flyers have had trouble scoring since beating Carolina for their only victory in the last two weeks.
Wayne Simmonds thinks he has the answer for the ailing Flyers to avoid being shut out for a team-record third straight game Monday night against the visiting Hurricanes.
Philadelphia (6-9-5) has dropped 11 of 13, but its 1-3-2 stretch over the past two weeks has proved costly beyond the standings. Over that span, the team has put forwards Ryan White (upper body) and R.J. Umberger and defenseman Mark Streit (groin) on injured reserve. And now center Scott Laughton could be out with an upper-body injury he suffered on a hit by Alex Chiasson early in Saturday's 4-0 defeat at Ottawa.
Injuries aren't the only concern as the Flyers try to snap a three-game slide (0-1-2) since Jakub Voracek scored his only goal this season 37 seconds into overtime for a 3-2 win at Carolina on Nov. 14. Philadelphia has been outscored 8-2 since that victory and been shut out in the last two games.
The Flyers, trying to avoid becoming the first team to be shut out in three straight since Arizona in March 2013, are averaging a NHL-low 1.70 goals and been held to one or none in 10 games.
"We have to make it a consistent thing and have traffic 100 percent of the time and not 85 percent of the time," Simmonds said. "There has to be second and third opportunities. The first shot, if the goalie sees it, he's going to stop it. If we don't take his eyes away it's not going to go into the back of the net."
Perhaps that's why Simmonds has scored just three goals after leading the Flyers with 28 last season. The right wing doesn't have a point in three straight games after finding the net against the Hurricanes (7-10-3).
Simmonds has 16 points in 17 career meetings with Carolina, collecting three goals and two assists in the last three at Philadelphia.
Voracek has seven points in his past six home matchups, while Claude Giroux - the team leader with six goals and 13 points - has 14 over his last 10.
The Flyers, though, have dropped three of their last four (1-2-1) at home against the Hurricanes.
Carolina is trying to win back-to-back games for the first time since a season-high three-game winning streak Oct. 27-30.
Coach Bill Peters is feeling encouraged after the Hurricanes capped a 1-1-3 homestand with Sunday's 4-3 victory over Los Angeles.
"We're a quarter of the way through the season, I like our group and I like the way we're going," Peters said.
Defenseman Justin Faulk has been a positive, leading Carolina with 15 points. His team-high eight goals have all come on the power play and he leads the NHL in that category. He scored twice with the man advantage in the second period Sunday, getting one on his trademark booming slap shot.
"There's probably four or five guys in the league that (defenders) don't quite find the shooting lane on because it hurts, and I think he's in that group," Peters said.
Faulk has just three assists in seven career games at Philadelphia, tough he did set up Victor Rask's tally Nov. 14.
Rookie Brett Pesce is looking to build on his goal and assist Sunday. The defenseman had just one point through his first 12 games and recorded none against the Flyers earlier this month.