{"id":491262,"date":"2026-03-07T12:41:22","date_gmt":"2026-03-07T12:41:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/491262\/"},"modified":"2026-03-07T12:41:22","modified_gmt":"2026-03-07T12:41:22","slug":"game-preview-philadelphia-flyers-pittsburgh-penguins-3-7-2026-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/491262\/","title":{"rendered":"Game Preview: Philadelphia Flyers @ Pittsburgh Penguins 3\/7\/2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"\">Who:\u00a0Philadelphia Flyers\u00a0(28-22-11, 7867points, 6th place Metropolitan Division) @\u00a0Pittsburgh Penguins\u00a0(31-17-13, 75 points, 2nd place Metropolitan Division)<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">When: 5:30 p.m. ET<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">How to Watch: Local broadcasts on SportsNet Pittsburgh and NBC Sports, streaming on ESPN+<\/p>\n<p>Advertisement<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Pens\u2019 Path Ahead: The Pens have less than 24 hours between puck drops this weekend. They\u2019re back in action Sunday afternoon against the Boston Bruins, before their busy March continues with a five-game road swing that involves a trip out West bookended by road games against the Carolina Hurricanes.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Opponent Track: The Flyers had won three straight, including two overtime victories, before dropping a 3-0 shutout loss to the Utah Mammoth on Thursday. Philadelphia then made a few moves ahead of Friday\u2019s trade deadline, most notably sending out Bobby Brink and Nicolas Deslauriers.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Season Series: The Pens are leading this series despite dropping the Oct. 28 opener in a 3-2 shootout loss, thanks to blowout wins in Philadelphia on Dec. 1 and at home on Jan. 15.<\/p>\n<p>Getting to know the Flyers<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Projected lines<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">FORWARDS<\/p>\n<p>Advertisement<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Trevor Zegras \u2013 Christian Dvorak \u2013 Owen Tippett<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Matvei Michkov \u2013 Noah Cates \u2013 Travis Konecny (?)<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Denver Barkey \u2013 Sean Couturier \u2013 Nikita Grebenkin<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Luke Glendening \u2013 Carl Grunstrom \u2013 Garnet Hathaway<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">DEFENSEMEN<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Travis Sanheim \/ Rasmus Ristolainen<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Cam York \/ Jamie Drysdale<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Emil Andrae \/ Noah Juulsen<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Goalies:\u00a0Dan Vladar, Samuel Ersson<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Potential scratches: Travis Konecny, Nick Seeler, Adam Ginning<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Injured Reserve: Tyson Foerster, Rodrigo Abols<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Second-line winger Travis Konecny, who is day-to-day with an upper-body injury, <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/SGNolan\/status\/2029987434813915315?s=20\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:skated;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">skated<\/a> in a no-contact jersey during the Flyers\u2019 Friday practice.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">The Flyers made a few moves at the deadline. Here\u2019s a run-down of the notable ones:<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">The Flyers traded winger Nick Deslauriers to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for a conditional 2027 seventh-rounder. General manager Danny Briere said the trade was made in the hopes of giving Deslauriers, 35, a shot at a playoff run.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Philadelphia traded winger Bobby Brink to the Minnesota Wild in exchange for defenseman David Jiricek, who will report to the AHL.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">They also claimed Luke Glendening (formerly a New Jersey Devils center) off waivers Friday. The Flyers have been in search of a fourth-line center since losing Rodrigo Abols to an ankle injury in January. Glendening will be <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/NHLFlyers\/status\/2030025631421927623?s=20\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:available;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">available<\/a> to play against the Pens.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Rasmus Ristolainen, subject to trade rumors ahead of the deadline, stayed put in Philadelphia. Briere <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=CAlFpzrdZMA\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:said;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">said<\/a> the Flyers \u201cwent through all the teams that were serious\u201d but couldn\u2019t find the value they wanted.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Holding onto Ristolainen could indicate the Flyers are hoping to take a step forward next season with players like Bump and Jiricek making the jump to the NHL in the near future. Philadelphia is currently in danger of landing in a middle ground the Penguins know well by finishing outside of both the playoffs and the draft lottery.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Season stats<br \/>via\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockeydb.com\/ihdb\/stats\/leagues\/seasons\/teams\/0000532026.html\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:hockeydb;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">hockeydb<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"1122\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"standard-img\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/5eb76902aff8fd2a96098f7892b0c6e5.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"\">The Flyers could be adding a few names to this list after the trade deadline.<\/p>\n<p>Advertisement<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">The Athletic\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/7095261\/2026\/03\/06\/flyers-nhl-trade-deadline-jiricek-defense-ristolainen-brink\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Kevin Kurz;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Kevin Kurz<\/a> reported Friday that AHL winger Alex Bump could make his NHL debut on Friday as a replacement for Brink. Bump has 26 points (11 goals, 15 assists) in 36 games for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms this season.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">The Flyers also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/flyers\/news\/flyers-sign-garrett-wilson-to-a-two-way-nhl-contract\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:signed;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">signed<\/a> former Wilkes\/Barre and Pittsburgh Penguins forward Garrett Wilson to a two-way contract on Thursday, so he could potentially get a call-up down the stretch.<\/p>\n<p>And now for the Pens<img alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"540\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"standard-img\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/latE9JmHtC5THA6a42XpYg--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU0MDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/platform.pensburgh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/123\/2026\/03\/h978l23lg7feq36pn0bw.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0,0,100,100\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Projected lines\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">FORWARDS<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Egor Chinakhov \u2013 Tommy Novak \u2013 Evgeni Malkin<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Rickard Rakell \u2013 Ben Kindel \u2013 Bryan Rust<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Anthony Mantha \u2013 Kevin Hayes \u2013 Justin Brazeau<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Avery Hayes \u2013 Connor Dewar \u2013 Noel Acciari<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">DEFENSEMEN<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Parker Wotherspoon \/ Erik Karlsson<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Sam Girard \/ Kris Letang<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Ryan Shea \/ Connor Clifton<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Goalies:\u00a0Arturs Silovs (Stuart Skinner played last game)<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Potential Scratches:\u00a0Blake Lizotte (day-to-day injury), Ryan Graves, Ilya Solovyov<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">IR:\u00a0Sidney Crosby, Filip Hallander, Jack St. Ivany<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Evgeni Malkin met virtually with the NHL Department of Player Safety on Friday and was suspended for five games, the maximum allowed in a virtual hearing, for slashing Rasmus Dahlin in Thursday\u2019s loss to the Buffalo Sabres. That means the Pens could be without both Sidney Crosby and Malkin for this weekend\u2019s back-to-back as well as three straight West Coast road games.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">The Penguins recalled Ville Koivunen from the AHL. Koivunen was recently <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wbspenguins.com\/ville-koivunen-named-ahl-player-of-the-month-for-february\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:named;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">named<\/a> the AHL\u2019s Player of the month after scoring 16 points (six goals, 10 assists) in 11 games during an 8-1-2 stretch for Wilkes-Barre\/Scranton. The Pens will need a breakout NHL stretch from him in order to help make up for the absence of their two top players.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Sidney Crosby rejoined practice Friday. He was non-contact, and Muse <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/SethRorabaugh\/status\/2029988784591315436?s=20\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:told reporters;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">told reporters<\/a> nothing has in his return timeline. (The Pens said on Feb. 25 their captain would be out at least four weeks. If dating back to his injury, which he suffered on Feb. 18, that would put his reevaluation date around the back end of the team\u2019s upcoming road trip).<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">The Penguins made a deadline-day move of their own by sending out a 2026 third-rounder in exchange for 6-foot-8 forward Elmer Soderblom.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/moneypuck.com\/preview.htm?id=2025020993\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:MoneyPuck;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">MoneyPuck<\/a> projects a major swing in the Penguins\u2019 playoff odds based on the outcome of today\u2019s home game.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"195\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"standard-img\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/50de5ce90a34bb29437e3391e101b3fd.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Who:\u00a0Philadelphia Flyers\u00a0(28-22-11, 7867points, 6th place Metropolitan Division) @\u00a0Pittsburgh Penguins\u00a0(31-17-13, 75 points, 2nd place Metropolitan Division) When: 5:30 p.m.&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":491263,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5112],"tags":[34300,10448,8659,16597,710,8194,4838,95,2215,229,4187,29,977,11081,6770,6878,2588,796,10636,93,4587,772,642,1495,2522,1468,9395,5,11999,1610,4182,3712,5365,1499,1333,509,2218,38,151,4,34649,20760,29698,775,6511,8831,15467,4837,12934,136,1467,56,5205,100,4011,4526,5782,15208,3638,9748,4311,5360,5812,768,6733,157,2171,7951,731,3673,4185,3674,3154,4429],"class_list":{"0":"post-491262","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-philadelphia-flyers","8":"tag-adam-ginning","9":"tag-anthony-mantha","10":"tag-arturs-silovs","11":"tag-avery-hayes","12":"tag-ben-kindel","13":"tag-blake-lizotte","14":"tag-bobby-brink","15":"tag-boston-bruins","16":"tag-bryan-rust","17":"tag-buffalo-sabres","18":"tag-cam-york","19":"tag-carolina-hurricanes","20":"tag-christian-dvorak","21":"tag-connor-clifton","22":"tag-connor-dewar","23":"tag-dan-vladar","24":"tag-danny-briere","25":"tag-david-jiricek","26":"tag-denver-barkey","27":"tag-detroit-red-wings","28":"tag-elmer-soderblom","29":"tag-emil-andrae","30":"tag-erik-karlsson","31":"tag-evgeni-malkin","32":"tag-filip-hallander","33":"tag-flyers","34":"tag-garnet-hathaway","35":"tag-hockey","36":"tag-ilya-solovyov","37":"tag-jack-st-ivany","38":"tag-jamie-drysdale","39":"tag-justin-brazeau","40":"tag-kevin-hayes","41":"tag-kris-letang","42":"tag-luke-glendening","43":"tag-matvei-michkov","44":"tag-metropolitan-division","45":"tag-minnesota-wild","46":"tag-new-jersey-devils","47":"tag-nhl","48":"tag-nick-deslauriers","49":"tag-nick-seeler","50":"tag-nicolas-deslauriers","51":"tag-nikita-grebenkin","52":"tag-noah-cates","53":"tag-noah-juulsen","54":"tag-noel-acciari","55":"tag-owen-tippett","56":"tag-parker-wotherspoon","57":"tag-pens","58":"tag-philadelphia","59":"tag-philadelphia-flyers","60":"tag-philadelphiaflyers","61":"tag-pittsburgh-penguins","62":"tag-rasmus-dahlin","63":"tag-rasmus-ristolainen","64":"tag-rickard-rakell","65":"tag-rodrigo-abols","66":"tag-ryan-graves","67":"tag-ryan-shea","68":"tag-sam-girard","69":"tag-samuel-ersson","70":"tag-sean-couturier","71":"tag-sidney-crosby","72":"tag-sportsnet-pittsburgh","73":"tag-stuart-skinner","74":"tag-the-penguins","75":"tag-tommy-novak","76":"tag-travis-konecny","77":"tag-travis-sanheim","78":"tag-trevor-zegras","79":"tag-tyson-foerster","80":"tag-utah-mammoth","81":"tag-ville-koivunen"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":"Validation 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