Philly Leader

The Philadelphia Flyers are preparing for a challenging stretch of games before the National Hockey League's holiday break. The team, currently holding a 14-13-4 record, is set to play four games in six nights starting with a rematch against the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday. In their previous encounter at Wells Fargo Center, the Flyers secured a 4-1 victory, aided by Scott Laughton's impressive four-goal performance.

Managing such an intense schedule requires careful planning. The Flyers took Sunday off and held practice sessions on Monday and Tuesday at the FTC in Voorhees. After Monday's practice, they hosted their annual family holiday party. Travis Konecny, the team's leading scorer, highlighted the importance of balancing rest and preparation during this period.

"There's not many times during the season that you're able to find the space to get a good skate in," Konecny said. He emphasized that having one day off followed by two practices was beneficial before facing upcoming games.

During practice, head coach John Tortorella adjusted line combinations but reverted to previous setups used over nine games. Defense pairings remained consistent with recent matches. Emil Andrae participated in pre-practice activities alongside Erik Johnson.

With no time for additional practice sessions due to back-to-back games, Tortorella must decide on goalie assignments between Samuel Ersson and Aleksei Kolosov while considering Ivan Fedotov as a backup option.

The Flyers have two home games left before leaving Wells Fargo Center until January 7. They will host the LA Kings on Thursday and hold their Holiday Spectacular against the Columbus Blue Jackets two days later. Their final game before the break is scheduled for December 23 against the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena.

Afterward, players will enjoy three days off from December 24 to 26 with an additional non-game night on December 27 as they prepare for a west coast road trip.