Philadelphia Flyers: Flying High and Set to Harpoon Sharks

Written by Mark “The Hard Hitter” Ritter

Tonight’s tilt versus the San Jose Sharks, the NHL’s so-called “best team,” should be one for the ages. For the Philadelphia Flyers, tonight’s match is yet another litmus test—an opportunity to serve notice that this Flyers team is not only for real, but also a force, a force to be reckoned with.

With a record of 14-5-4 through 23 games, the Sharks sit atop the NHL standings with 32 points and it’s no accident as to how the Sharks got there. Averaging 3.22 goals per game, the Sharks own the NHL’s fifth-best offense. Dany Heatley leads the Sharks with 14 goals, followed by Patrick Marleau, who has lit the lamp a total of 13 times.

Make no mistake about it, the Sharks' offense is as potent as they come. Anytime you have a player of Joe Thornton’s ilk distributing the puck, the wingers have the potential to be 50-goal-scorers, which Heatley is on pace to be.

Sharks defenseman Dan Boyle is having an All-Star calibre season (too bad there is no All-Star game this season) and has been an integral part of the Sharks' power play. His steady play, leadership, and ability to play in all situations has made him a candidate for Team Canada’s Olympic team, something few thought possible at the beginning of the season.

Defensively, the Sharks are averaging a total of 2.35 goals per game, good enough for third-best in the league. That said, this is a team that gives up an average of just over 30 shots per game, which is high by NHL standards.

Anchored by the strong goaltending of Evgeni Nabokov, who, despite a weak showing in last year's playoffs, has bounced back to have a tremendous season thus far; this Sharks team gets it done, despite the high shots against.

But, let’s face it: without Nabby in net, the Sharks would not be where they are in the standings. Nabokov has a record of 12-3-4 with two shutouts. Nabokov’s 12 wins ties him for a share of the league lead, while his 2.12 GAA and .939 ranks him fourth amongst all NHL goalies in those categories.

Coming into tonight’s match with the Flyers, the Sharks have posted an impressive 6-1-3 record in their last ten games, including a 5-0 drubbing of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

To sum everything up, the Sharks are for real...

The Flyers are on a hot streak of their own, posting a 7-3-0 record over the past 10 games, including a 6-2 win over Tampa Bay, a 5-2 win over Buffalo, and a 3-2 win over the highly-touted Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday night.

Tonight’s game represents game two of a five-game road trip for the Flyers, but more importantly, a victory against the Sharks would go a long way in reminding every team in the NHL that, much like the Sharks, this Flyers team means business and can beat any team on any given night.

The match will see four of Canada’s top centermen do battle. Mike Richards and Jeff Carter vs. Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau...it doesn’t get any better than that, folks!

Chris Pronger and Matt Carle, the Flyers' top defensive pairing, will need to be at their very best if they intend to shut down the likes of Heatley, Thornton, Marleau, and Devin Setoguchi—the Sharks' top forwards.

Look for the Flyers' defense to take the body early and often, with an emphasis of causing havoc in the neutral zone and irritating Heatley and Thornton whenever possible. It’s well documented that Thornton performs poorly when shadowed, just ask the Anaheim Ducks about that!

Even though this game has a late start of 10 p.m., rest assured this will be an action-packed one, with plenty of storylines; a “can’t miss” if I've ever seen one.

Until next time,

Peace!