Philadelphia Flyers at New York Rangers Betting Preview/Player Prop

Longtime rivals will meet up on the ice on Wednesday night as the New York Rangers are set to host the Philadelphia Flyers. Philadelphia picked up an overtime win over New York in the previous meeting, and they are now looking for their second straight win. 

Philadelphia comes into Wednesday night with 31 points on the season, putting them just outside the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference. The Flyers have gone just 2-4 in their last six games, and they need to turn things around in a hurry.

The New York Rangers have lost four of their last five games, and they are in a complete free-fall at this time. New York has managed just 26 points on the season, putting them in sixth place in the East Division. 

The Philadelphia Flyers are -137 in this matchup with the New York Rangers. 

Philadelphia Playing With Pace

The Philadelphia Flyers are averaging 3.35 goals per game this season, but they are also giving up 3.27 a night. Philadelphia wants to play extremely fast, but they must also find a way to slow opposing teams down if they want to become a playoff contender.

Philadelphia is led on offense by James van Riemsdyk who has picked up 13 goals and a team-high 29 points. The Flyers have plenty of other offensive weapons, but the Left Winger has been tough to stop in 2021.

The Flyers are killing off just 74 percent of their penalties, and that number needs to improve as the season goes along. Philadelphia is also looking for better goaltending play from Brian Elliott and Carter Hart. 

Rangers Can’t Find Offense

The New York Rangers are scoring just 2.78 goals per game this season, and they were an abysmal offensive team with Artemi Panarin out of the lineup. Panarin is back for the Rangers, and he leads the team with 16 assists.

New York has converted on just 14 percent of their attempts on the power play, and that number has to improve for this team. The Rangers have been great on the penalty kill, but scoring goals has been a major weakness.

Igor Shesterkin has been the best goaltender this season for New York, stopping over 92 percent of shots he has faced. The Rangers need to keep the Flyers from scoring more than three goals to have a chance. 

Flyers Find Way to Win

The Philadelphia Flyers were able to come away with an overtime win in the previous meeting, and they should win a second straight against their rivals. New York has been struggling mightily of late, and it’s hard to see them turning things around on Wednesday night.

New York just doesn’t score enough goals to consistently win hockey games, and this team is in real danger of making the playoffs. The Rangers will look to slow down the pace on Wednesday night, but that’s not easy to do against the Flyers.

Expect another close game between the Flyers and Rangers, but it will be Philadelphia that picks up another road win. Bet the Philadelphia Flyers -137 over the New York Rangers.

Player Prop

James van Riemsdyk (-120) Over 0.5 Points

After a down season last year, Van Riemsdyk has rebounded in a big way. He leads the Flyers in scoring with 29 points in just 26 games. Included in that is a team-leading 13 goals and he's second on the team in assists behind Jakub Voracek with 16. The 31-year-old winger also leads the Flyers in +/- at 10.

In short, van Riemsdyk has been Philadelphia's most consistent offensive threat. And he has been productive against the Rangers in recent history. Last year he tallied 3 points in 3 games (1 goal, 2 assists) and this year already has a pair of goals in 3 contests. 

With the Dunkel Index projecting a high-scoring affair between the Rangers and Flyers tonight, we'll take James van Riemsdyk (-120) to join in on the fun and go Over 0.5 Points.

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