Looking for their third straight victory, Rick Tocchet’s Philadelphia Flyers (8-5-1) are home for a Saturday matinee against Travis Green’s Ottawa Senators (6-5-3). The Flyers won both games of a short road trip earlier this week.
Game time at Xfinity Mobile Arena is 1:00 p.m. EST. The game will be televised on NBCSP.
Saturday’s match is the second in a three-game season series between the Flyers and Senators. On October 23, Ottawa dealt a 2-1 road loss to the Flyers. The season series concludes in Philly on February 5.
The Flyers have made several roster moves in recent days. Goaltender Samuel Ersson was activated from IR on Thursday and center Jacob Gaucher was loaned to the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms. On Friday, goalie Aleksei Kolosov was loaned to the Phantoms and veteran forward Carl Grundstrom was recalled to the NHL roster.
Here are the RAV4 Things to follow in Saturday afternoon’s game.
1. Between the pipes
The Flyers had an optional practice on Friday. Ersson was among the participants. According to Tocchet, Ersson could get the start against the Senators. If goaltending coach Kim Dillabaugh and Tocchet decide it’s better to give Ersson at least one practice day, Dan Vladar will make his third straight start.
2. Konecny has started to heat up
Back-to-back Bobby Clarke Trophy winner Travis Konecny got off to a slower start in October. However, he’s started to get back to the form he showed prior to the 4 Nations Face Off tournament last season. Entering Saturday’s game, Konecny brings a six-game point streak. Overall this season, TK has posted 12 points (five goals, seven assists) in 14 games.
3. Puck possession and chance generation
The Flyers were outshot (33-23) and, after the first period, outchanced by the Senators in the previous meeting between the teams. It didn’t help that the Flyers had to kill five penalties in the game although the PK went 5-for-5. Vladar’s play was a key reason the Flyers stayed competitive in the 2-1 game until the end. They’ll need a superior overall performance on Saturday.
4. Former captain Giroux
Claude Giroux played exactly 1,000 games — and recorded exactly 900 points — during his Flyers career. Since then, he’s played an additional 277 games (226 points) between the Florida Panthers and Senators. He’s played 10 head-to-head games against the Flyers to date, recording 12 points (3g, 9a).
In the first Flyers vs. Senators meeting of the 2025-26 season series, Giroux threaded the needle for a Michael Amadio goal to open the scoring. Bottom line, while Giroux may no longer be his team’s primary offensive catalyst, he’s still a very dangerous opponent.