It is today that we will know the identity of the team that will face the Canadiens in the first round of the National Hockey League (NHL) playoffs.
The Tampa Bay Lightning and the Philadelphia Flyers, two teams still unbeaten in the round robin, will cross swords at 8 p.m.
The match will be presented to you on TVA Sports and on TVA Sports direct.
The winning team will be the one that finds the Habs in the playoffs.
So far, the Flyers have been very tight-lipped by allowing only two small goals to powers known for their devastating attack.
“Philly” first defeated the Bruins 4-1, before triumphing 3-1 over the Capitals. This means that the Flyers’ defense, an interesting mix of youth and experience, has largely fulfilled expectations. Fortunately, because it will not be a piece of cake against the Lightning!
The Florida team also managed to beat Boston and Washington. Two victories acquired by the count of 3-2. Without Steven Stamkos moreover.
Well, it must be said that the Flyers did the same without Jakub Voracek, who has still not played a game since the resumption of NHL activities …
Two resourceful teams
If we focus on the Philadelphia-Tampa Bay confrontation, we realize that the duel this afternoon may be quite tough.
On the one hand, the Lightning. Despite the absence of its captain, the team relies on incredible depth on offense. Thus, the Kucherovs, Point, Palat and Johnson quickly managed to forget the injury of their # 91. Defensively, Tampa is not to be pitied either! When Hedman, McDonagh, Shattenkirk, Bogosian, Sergachev and Cernak form your group of defenders, you can sleep with peace of mind.
In net, Andrei Vasilevskiy doesn’t really need any introduction and his growing playoff experience could quickly become another asset for Tampa Bay.
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Among the Flyers, the attack is also well distributed. Of course, Claude Giroux and Sean Couturier are the main masters, but let’s not neglect the contribution of players like Travis Konecny, Joel Farabee and Kevin Hayes.
On the blue line, Ivan Provorov and Matt Niskanen have developed an interesting chemistry over the past few weeks. The two skaters play at the height of a first defensive duo.
Behind them, the Myers-Sanheim and Gostisbehere-Braun pairs also did an excellent job.
Finally, to defend their cage, the Flyers rely on the young and very talented Carter Hart, who has never ceased to amaze since his debut in the NHL.
So which team will the Canadiens face in the playoffs?
The answer from 8 p.m. on TVA Sports!
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