Flyers vs Canucks

Trevor Zegras and the Flyers roll into Rogers Arena with a 19-11-7 record after having their two-game win streak snapped 4-1 in Seattle, while the Canucks sit at 15-19-3, rebounding from a 6-3 home loss to San Jose and a 5-2 defeat in Philadelphia with a gritty 3-2 shootout win over the Kraken. Philadelphia is still missing top scorer Tyson Foerster for months with an upper-body injury, but a deep forward mix led by Christian Dvorak, Owen Tippett, Matvei Michkov and an effective fourth line has supported Dan Vladar, who is 13-5-3 with a 2.39 GAA and .910 save percentage as the clear No. 1. Vancouver’s roster has been thinned down the middle and on the back end—Teddy Blueger and Filip Chytil have spent time on IR and the post-Quinn Hughes blue line is still adjusting—putting even more on Elias Pettersson’s shoulders against a structured Flyers forecheck. In their recent 5-2 meeting, Vladar turned aside 23 of 25 shots while Philadelphia controlled long stretches at five-on-five, whereas Thatcher Demko has seen his GA spike in recent home losses when the Canucks’ structure breaks down. With Vancouver returning home off a taxing road win in Seattle and likely rotating back to Demko, while the Flyers get a travel day and bring the more reliable defensive environment, I like Philadelphia on the moneyline at -130, but I grade it a B because the price reflects much of their edge and the Canucks’ home ice and goaltending keep upset risk live. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 30/12/2025 09:33([espn.com](https://www.espn.com/nhl/team/roster/_/name/phi/sort/age/philadelphia-flyers?utm_source=openai))

With both teams leaning heavily on their goalies and missing pieces up front, this sets up more like a grind than a track meet despite the modest 5.5 total. The Flyers have been held to three or fewer goals in most of their recent outings and are operating without Foerster’s finishing, while Vancouver’s attack has been streaky since moving on from Quinn Hughes and dealing with center injuries, and they’ve needed tight-checking efforts and strong goaltending to stay competitive. Demko’s season line (around a 2.6 GAA with a .909 save percentage) and Vladar’s 2.39 GAA/.910 profile point toward quality in net on both sides, and it’s worth remembering that the 5-2 game in Philadelphia was essentially a tight contest that only blew open in the third period with late insurance and an empty-netter. Coming off a 3-2 shootout slog in Seattle for Vancouver and a 4-1 defensive loss in Seattle for the Flyers, I’m expecting both benches to prioritize structure, line matching and conservative special-teams play, which projects closer to a 3-2 type script than another seven-goal outburst, so I like Under 5.5 at -115 with a B+ grade for its combination of hit rate and manageable juice. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 30/12/2025 09:33([nhl.com](https://www.nhl.com/flyers/news/injury-update-foerster-expected-to-miss-2-3-months?utm_source=openai))

The spread market is where the matchup gets swingy: Philadelphia did clear -1.5 in that 5-2 win thanks to a third-period surge and an empty-netter, but the underlying play for much of the night was closer to a one-goal game, and Vancouver just showed they can drag a strong Seattle group to a 3-2 shootout on the road. The juicy Canucks +1.5 at heavy chalk will appeal to risk-averse backers, yet Demko’s recent home outings—four allowed to the Flyers before an empty-netter and five to San Jose—show how quickly things can unravel when the Canucks’ thinner blue line and injury-hit center group get pinned in, especially against a Flyers team that forechecks in waves and gets above-average goaltending from Vladar. If Philadelphia jumps ahead and can lock into their road structure, another multi-goal margin is very much on the table, and the +205 return makes Flyers -1.5 an appealing upside stab for those already leaning to their side and the Under, but because a large chunk of outcomes still land on a one-goal result, I only grade this C+ and would size it as a smaller, price-driven add-on rather than a primary position. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 30/12/2025 09:33([reuters.com](https://www.reuters.com/sports/nhl/fourth-line-shines-flyers-end-canucks-winning-streak--flm-2025-12-23/?utm_source=openai))