NHL News

Home

Teams

Quizzes

Newsletter

Apr 17, 2025; Buffalo, New York, USA; Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Egor Zamula (5) and Buffalo Sabres center Peyton Krebs (19) battle for position in front of Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Aleksei Kolosov (35) during the second period at KeyBank Center. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images

Four Storylines to Follow as Flyers Host Sabres

Originally posted on Breakaway on SI | By Adam Waxman | Last updated Dec 3, 2025 5:00 PM ET

The Philadelphia Flyers fell victim to another dazzling outing from Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins, losing by a score of 5-1 earlier this week. Crosby stole the show with his 58th and 59th career goals against Philadelphia en route to the victory.

The attention now turns to a mid-week showdown as Philadelphia hosts the struggling Buffalo Sabres at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Here are four storylines to get you set for puck drop.

1. Foerster’s Injury Forces Adjustments

Flyers forward Tyson Foerster will miss approximately 2-3 months after leaving the team's game vs. Pittsburgh in the second period with an upper-body injury.

After pulling Philadelphia even on the scoreboard, he stepped into another chance that had the crowd rising, but his follow-through ended abruptly. Foerster collapsed to the ice, gripping his right shoulder as trainers rushed over. The suddenness of the play and the pain on his face made it immediately clear something had gone very wrong.

Foerster had been dealing with an infected elbow in the offseason following an injury that occured while playing for Team Canada at the World Championships.

Foerster is the team leader in goals with 10. Additionally, he has three assists for 13 points.

Forwards Nicolas Deslauriers and Nikita Grebenkin are expected to draw into the lineup tonight. With Foerster out, one of them is likely to move onto the third line, though Garnet Hathaway and Rodrigo Abols remain in the mix as the Flyers rework their bottom six.

Against the Pens, the fourth line featured Abols between Grebenkin and Hathaway, so the coaching staff already has a recent look at that trio as they consider their options.

Additionally, the Flyers called up forward Carl Grundstrom from Lehigh Valley.

2. Last Meeting

The Flyers and Sabres last met in the 2024-25 season finale, with Buffalo winning at home, 5-4.

Head coach Lindy Ruff secured his 900th career win and Ryan McLeod led the scoring for the Sabres, potting a goal and two assists.

On the Philadelphia side, Matvei Michkov scored a pair of goals and added a helper in the loss.

3. Special Teams Struggle

Despite entering the night with the fourth-best penalty kill in the NHL, Philadelphia allowed a trio of power-play goals from the Penguins, dropping its ranking to ninth.

It'll look to secure some kills against a Buffalo power play that sits at 19th.

On the other side, the Sabres have the No. 2 ranked penalty kill in the NHL, only allowing three goals on 27 penalties.

The Flyers' power play struggled vs. Pittsburgh, only scoring once on six opportunities against the now best power play unit in the NHL.

4. Goalie Matchups

After Dan Vladar allowed five goals on 27 shots against the Pens, Rick Tocchet turns to Sam Ersson, who last made 31 saves, including one in the shootout, to beat the New York Islanders 4-3 on Black Friday.

On the year, Ersson is 4-2-2 with a 3.09 goals-against average and a .906 save percentage.

Across the ice, all signs point to rookie netminder Colten Ellis getting the nod for the Sabres. He had his own net during yesterday's practice.

Ellis made 22 saves in a 3-2 shootout win over Minnesota on Nov. 29. On the year, the 25-year-old is 4-2-0 with a 3.13 goals-against average and a .898 save percentage.

The Flyers and Sabres will meet at 7:30 p.m. from Xfinity Mobile Arena. The game will be nationally televised on TNT and streamed on HBO Max.

This article first appeared on Breakaway on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: