The Detroit Red Wings (11-5-5) and Philadelphia Flyers (8-9-3) will face off on Thanksgiving Eve in a battle of teams whose seasons are seemingly headed in opposite directions.
You can watch the game LIVE online HERE.
For the Flyers, their season is on the verge of quickly slipping away. They wasted a 46-save effort from goalie Steve Mason in a shootout loss to the New York Islanders on Monday night, and have lost their last five on the road, according to Tim Riday of CSNPhilly.com.
Mason was visibly frustrated by the lack of help from his teammates after the Islanders game. The Flyers were poor at both ends of the ice - they were slow defensively and ineffective and lackadaisical offensively.
"It's frustrating, but at the same time ... it has to be frustrating for the players when you don't perform well and you let in crap goals (in other games)," Mason said. "It's just frustrating not being able to get the extra point."
Detroit, on the other hand, has been playing well of late and may get an added boost with the return of All-World player, Pavel Datsyuk. He had been sidelined for the past four games and six of the last eight with a groin injury after missing the first five games of the season with a separated shoulder.
In 10 games prior to the injury, Datsyuk had five goals and 11 assists, according to NHL.com.
"I thought initially it took him a bit to get back, and then he was on fire and got hurt again," said Red Wings coach Mike Babcock. "The big thing for [Datsyuk] is as you get a little older in your career, your physical fitness and the amount of care you take in keeping your body healthy is so important. He's a high-end player for us."
The 36-year-old will center the third line between Darren Helm and Stephen Weiss.
Flyers coach Craig Berube, who may see his own Michael Raffl return to the lineup from injury, says that Datsyuk's return offered serious impact for Detroit.
"It makes their lines more dangerous. He's such a great player," Berube said. "A great two-way player. Every time he's on the ice, he's dangerous."
Jimmy Howard is likely to get the start in net for Detroit. The Flyers will either reward Mason's strong play on Monday with the start or a night off. If he doesn't go, Ray Emery will get the nod.
