5 Things: Flyers vs. Capitals

John Tortorella's Philadelphia Flyers (1-3-1) play at home and host Spencer Carbery's Washington Capitals (3-1-0) on Tuesday. Game time at Wells Fargo Center is 6:00 p.m. EDT.

The game will be televised on ESPN. The radio broadcast will be on 97.5 The Fanatic with a 24-hour online simulcast on Flyers Radio.

This is the first of three meetings this season between the Flyers and Capitals. The teams will face off again on Wednesday at Capital One Arena in D.C. The season series continues on February 6th in Philadelphia before concluding on March 20th in Washington.

Here are five things to keep in mind for Tuesday's game.

1. Ersson kept the games close

The Flyers begin this game with a 3-0 loss to the Vancouver Canucks in their home opener on Saturday.

However, the play of goalkeeper Sam Ersson was a positive for Philadelphia. He faced 32 shots and stopped 29.

During the first period the ice was largely tilted territorially in Vancouver's favor. Ersson kept his team in the game by stopping 14 of 15 shots. He had little to no chance to stop a Nils Hoglander goal late in the period after the Flyers lost coverage.

Vancouver scored two close-range goals in the second half to build a three-goal lead – one on another coverage error, the other on a cracking play after a faceoff in the attacking zone – and then tied it up in the final 20 minutes .

The Flyers need similarly solid play from Ersson against the Capitals.

2. Seeler makes his season debut

Veteran defenseman Nick Seeler missed the first five games of the season after knocking a puck off his knee during the Oct. 1 exhibition game in Boston. Seeler is expected to make his season debut and compete on Tuesday.

The Flyers lacked Seeler's shot-blocking skills, physicality and competitiveness early in the season. The team could also have used the stability he brings to their defensive pairing and his leadership skills as a role model.

At the start of the season, Seeler was expected to pair with Jamie Drysdale as his regular defense partner. Look for this duo to play together against the Caps after they met in practice on Monday.

3. Sharper play is required at five-on-five

Sometimes a team can play right but isn't rewarded. In other cases, a club can escape with a win (and/or a pile-up of goals) in a game in which they actually didn't play particularly well.

At the start of the 2024/25 season, neither the flow nor the results of the Flyers' 5-on-5 game were satisfactory. The structure of the defensive zone was incomplete. There was enough sustained possession of the puck after the forecheck. The transition game – a key strength from last season – was not up to par.

The bottom line: In five games, the Flyers have scored 16 goals in 5-on-5 situations while only scoring six times. The Capitals scored 13 goals and allowed 10.

4. Special teams were a bright spot

The Flyers' streak of scoring at least one power play goal per game ended Saturday. Overall, however, the power play contributed a large portion of the offensive output the Flyers have generated so far (5-on-19, 26.3 percent).

Philly's penalty kill also did a good job. In five games, the Flyers have scored just one 5-on-4 power play goal, one 5-on-3 goal and one 4-on-3 manpower. Overall, the Flyers have a record of 18-21 (85.7%) with one short-handed goal (Travis Konecny).

The Caps' PK started the season with a 12-for-14 ratio. However, the power play starts slowly (2 against 13).

5. Behind Enemy Lines: Washington Capitals

After opening the season with a 5-3 loss to the New Jersey Devils, the Capitals have won each of their last three games: 4-2 at home against the Vegas Golden Knights, 3-2 at home against the Dallas Stars and 6-5 in overtime against the Devils away.

Dylan Strome is off to a red-hot start to the season with three goals and seven points in four games. The robust Tom Wilson has already scored five goals. Longtime offensive leaders John Carlson (1g, 4a) and Alex Ovechkin (1g, 3a) have five and four points, respectively.

Charlie Lindgren and Logan Thompson have split the first four games in goal, with each goalkeeper getting two starts. As can be seen from the final results of most games so far, the Caps will need to improve their goaltending to continue to be victorious.