Two teams in dire need of a turnaround will face off Tuesday in Salt Lake City when the Utah Hockey Club host the Philadelphia Flyers.
The teams have a combined eight-game losing streak, although the reasons for each team’s losses differ. Philadelphia visits Utah having been shut out in three straight games. The only other time that’s happened in the team’s history occurred in the 2002 Stanley Cup playoffs against the Ottawa Senators.
On Sunday, the Colorado Avalanche beat the Flyers 2-0. Goalie Samuel Ersson stopped 30 of the 32 shots he faced in the loss, a much better performance than when he was pulled in the second period of last Wednesday’s 5-0 loss at New Jersey after he gave up four goals on 16 Devils shots.
Scott Laughton was the last Flyers skater to score, getting an empty-netter with 15 seconds remaining in the team’s 4-2 home win against the Devils last Monday. Travis Konecny leads the team with 21 goals and 37 assists (58 points). He had four assists in the three games prior to the shutout streak starting, but the 27-year-old has not scored in his last seven games.
Philadelphia averages 27.3 shots per game, and with 1,472 shots on goal, the Flyers rank 19th overall. In the three shutouts, the team has amassed 71 shots, a 23.7 per-game average.
“I don’t think we’re developing as much as we’ve had a couple weeks ago,” coach John Tortorella said after the Colorado loss. “Had some chances … We just haven’t put the puck in the net.”
Utah’s primary issue in its five-game skid has been closing out games. In each of those, the first-year franchise has given up either go-ahead or game-tying goals in the third period to go 0-3-2 over that stretch.
Coach Andre Tourigny had praised his team’s performance during the early part of the streak, but after Sunday’s 2-1 loss to St. Louis, he told reporters that the Blues outplayed them.
Tuesday’s game wraps up a four-game homestand. Philadelphia is the first of four games Utah will play this week before its nearly two-week break for the NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off.
“It’s an extremely huge game for us against Philly,” Tourigny said. “We need the two points. We need to finish up that homestand at least (with four points in four games), hit the road and have a hell of a road trip before the break. There’s no doubt about it.”
Clayton Keller’s 18 goals and 38 assists lead Utah. He did not earn a point in Sunday’s loss and has five points (one goal, four assists) during the losing streak.
Both teams are also battling injuries heading into Tuesday. The Flyers said Monday that defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen, who left Sunday’s game early, is day-to-day with an upper-body injury. Owen Tippett, the team’s third-leading scorer with 30 points (14 goals, 16 assists), is also day-to-day with an upper-body injury but has not played since leaving the loss to the Devils after playing less than seven minutes.
Utah is dealing with injuries to two of its top scorers. Dylan Guenther last played on Jan. 8 but still ranks fourth for Utah with 34 points (16 goals, 18 assists). Guenther was considered day-to-day with a lower-body injury before the St. Louis game. Logan Cooley, second on the team with 43 points (15 goals, 28 assists), last played Wednesday against Pittsburgh but is considered out indefinitely with a lower-body issue.
