Just a week earlier, the Philadelphia Flyers were still in search of their first win of the season and the Anaheim Ducks had won four of their first five games. What a difference a week makes.
As the two teams and a newly-dawned rivalry meet for the first of two times in the 2026-27 season, the Flyers are now riding a three-game winning streak, while the Ducks have lost five straight, including all three games of a four-game East coast road trip.
Game time is at 1 PM.
How to WatchProjected Flyers Lines vs. DucksForwards
46 Trevor Zegras – 22 Christian Dvorak – 52 Noel Acciari
94 Porter Martone – 27 Noah Cates – 39 Matvei Michkov
20 Alex Bump – 14 Sean Couturier – 71 Tyson Foerster
86 Denver Barkey – 78 Jacob Gaucher – 54 Cole Knuble
Defense
6 Travis Sanheim – 55 Rasmus Ristolainen
24 Nick Seeler – 59 Oliver Bonk
44 Simon Benoit – 9 Jamie Drysdale
Goalies
53 Joseph Woll
80 Dan Vladar
Scratches: Hunter McDonald, David Jiricek, Michael Bunting
Injury & Roster UpdatesLineup Updates: Rasmus Ristolainen could return after missing the last nine games. Owen Tippett and Travis Konecny will not be ready to return from injury.Starting Goalie: Joseph Woll is expected to start for the Flyers. Woll secured his first win as a Flyer on Monday night, making 24 saves on 26 shots against Colorado.InjuriesOwen Tippett: lower-body injury, placed on IR on Oct. 19Travis Konecny: lower-body injury, out since Oct. 10Cam York: upper-body injury, out since Oct. 10Rasmus Ristolainen: upper-body injury, placed on IR retroactive to Oct. 3Nikita Grebenkin: out for at least four months from Oct. 10 following back surgeryOpponent Snapshot: Anaheim DucksDucks Projected Lineup vs. Flyers
17 Alex Killorn – 91 Leo Carlsson – 61 Cutter Gauthier
13 Nikita Nesterenko – 64 Mikael Granlund – 45 Beckett Sennecke
77 Frank Vatrano – 95 Roger McQueen – 40 Nikita Klepov
18 A.J. Greer – 42 Tim Washe – 12 Sam Colangelo
2 Jackson LaCombe – 14 Drew Helleson
55 Tyson Hinds – 47 Noah Warren
4 Nick Jensen – 67 Tristan Luneau
Special TeamsPower Play: 21.9% (16th)Penalty Kill: 77.1% (21st)Who’s hot?: Leo Carlsson has two goals and 11 points. Beckett Sennecke has five goals and eight points in 10 games. Jackson LaCombe has seven assists and eight points in 10 games.Who’s in net?: Lukas Dostal is expected to start for Anaheim. Dostal made 22 saves on 25 shots in a loss to the Islanders on Tuesday in his last start. Dostal has three straight losses and losses in four of his last five games. Injuries: Troy Terry opened the season on LTIR with a hip injury. Ryan Poehling is out with a knee injury. Ian Moore is out with a lower-body injury. Pavel Mintyukov missed Thursday’s game with a lower-body injury and has been placed on IR.Keys to the GameYouth Movement: Last Saturday, it was goals by Porter Martone and Matvei Michkov. On Monday, it was a pair for Michkov. On Wednesday, it was two goals for Cole Knuble. The three wins are being powered by young players providing the offense.More Power-Play Success: The Flyers have power-play goals in three straight games, something that has been a common thread to their winning streak. Keeping up that success in a game where emotions should run high can be a difference-maker.Feed Off the Crowd: Coming in with three straight wins and facing former Flyers draft pick turned villain in Cutter Gauthier, there should be plenty of energy in the building. The Flyers can feed off of that and look to bring home a fourth straight win, something they did not do during the entire regular season in 2025-26.By the NumbersThe Flyers have allowed 27 goals in the second and third periods combined, compared to just seven in the first period. The Ducks have allowed 24 goals in the second and third periods combined, while allowing nine in the first period.The Flyers have gone 5-0-0 in their last five games against the Ducks, tied for their longest active winning streak against any opponent with San Jose. In those five games, the Flyers have out-scored the Ducks, 23-8.Cole Knuble is the seventh Flyers rookie to record his first multi-goal game in two of fewer appearances. The last to do it was Todd Bergen in 1984-85. Flyers rookies have combined for nine points, tied for fourth among all teams.Quotable”He’s been great. I think we play similar games. He likes to get in there. He’s not afraid. He’s got a will, he’s got passion. He’s got speed. He’s got hockey smarts too. So it’s been fun. I think we’re complimenting each other well.” – Denver Barkey on Cole Knuble.”We came in this morning, a lot of us were talking about it in the room. Just remember last year’s game, how intense that was. There’s a little bit more to it this year again, I think. We’re all looking forward to it.” – Barkey on the Flyers-Ducks rivalryX-FactorsTrevor Zegras: The former Duck had quite the first game against his former team last January, scoring twice to set the tone in a big Flyers’ win. Zegras has been heating up with three goals and six points in his last five games.Cutter Gauthier: The former fifth-overall pick of the Flyers has not been off to the greatest start, with two goals and five points in nine games this season and only one assist during the Ducks’ losing streak. But there’s obviously some emotion behind playing in Philadelphia and being the villian. Gauthier scored his first goal in Philly last January, and looks to do it again.Video Preview
Kevin Durso is Flyers insider for 97.3 ESPN. Follow him on social media @Kevin_Durso.
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