Flames Versus Flyers Gamethread – Sex Panthers Last Hurrah?

If this is indeed Jokinen's last game, part of me is going to miss the guy. Not for his total lack of hockey sense, his inability to play against good player, his penchant for hitting the post nor his horribly inflated contract. But he did make for an amusing punching bag during his time here. One of the first potential M&G branded shirt designs I had in mind featured one his frightening pics and the accompanying caption reading "Sex Panther – 6.9% of the time, he scores every time." Anyways, watch him record the hat trick tonight, just to stick it to the man.

Other stuff to watch for:

– With Iginla paired with Boyd and Stajan, I assume that Langkow et al are going to see the tough match-ups this evening. I’m not sure who that is on the Flyers since they have a couple of heavy hitters, but I’ll assume that means Jeff Carter.

– Ian White takes both Phaneuf’s number and position beside Regehr in the line-up. Do the tough minutes now fall to Bouwmeester? I’d think yes, but it remains to be seen.

– The inclusion of Hagman and Stajan immediately bump Nystrom and Backlund down (or…off) the starting line-up. And despite Backlund playing well in his last two outings, this is a good thing. At some point, the same fate probably awaits Dustin Boyd, although who knows what else Sutter has in mind – maybe he’s on his way out too.

Let it rip.

by Kent Wilson