Flyers vs. Capitals preseason: Preview, game time, TV info, lineup and more

VOORHEES, N.J. — The Flyers are putting what very well could be their season-opening lineup on display Saturday night at the Wells Fargo Center.

With Martin Jones in net, the club welcomes the Capitals for its third of six preseason games.

Let's get into the essentials for the exhibition contest.

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When: 7 p.m. ET
Where: Wells Fargo Center
Broadcast: NBC Sports Philadelphia+
Live stream: NBCSportsPhiladelphia.com and the NBC Sports MyTeams app

• The Flyers put Jones in a not-so-friendly spot Thursday night when the 31-year-old made his preseason debut.

Playing the Bruins at TD Garden, the Flyers had one NHL defensive pair in the lineup, while their fourth line served as their second line. It was much more of a preseason lineup, which is understandable for the second exhibition game before the Flyers now start to ramp things up.

But the Bruins rolled with a good majority of their regulars and Jones felt the brunt of their impact. In the first period, Boston scored two power play goals and three markers total. Jones played half of the game and the Bruins went on to win, 4-2.

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Building a goalie's confidence is important heading into the regular season. It sure seems like the Flyers want to give Jones a better look tonight at home. He's set to play all three periods with the club sporting its full NHL lineup, the group of players that Flyers fans will most likely see on the ice for the Oct. 15 regular-season opener, barring an injury or a surprise.

"It'll be good to get the whole team together, build that chemistry right away," Nate Thompson said Saturday. "It's preseason, but at the same time, you want to be firing on all cylinders. To have our full team in tonight will be a good test for us."

The Flyers dropped their first two preseason games (0-1-1). This is a great chance for them to get on the board against a Capitals team that won't be suiting up Alex Ovechkin, T.J. Oshie, Nicklas Backstrom or John Carlson (here is Washington's roster).

• Morgan Frost will get his second chance to make some plays with James van Riemsdyk and Joel Farabee on his wings. The 22-year-old center faced a stiff challenge in Boston for his preseason debut.

The Flyers have Frost in a spot to show his offensive game, so they're going to want to see him produce some goals. But Frost is only one game into his exhibition slate after playing only two pro hockey games over the past 560-plus days.

"I think I probably put a little bit too much pressure on myself in that first game, was probably overthinking things a little," Frost said Saturday. "I've done these camps before, I've played in preseason games, I've played in NHL games. Now that I've got the first one out of the way, I can kind of calm the nerves down a little bit and just do my thing. I'm excited to do that."

Frost feels stronger physically after recovering from surgery in February for a dislocated left shoulder injury that derailed his 2020-21 season.

"I think it's just helped me mentally," he said. "I don't feel as cautious going into battles I guess and that kind of thing, I feel more confident. In the first preseason game I played, I think a little bit of that creeped back in. I don't feel that way anymore — I feel strong, I feel confident going into battles and that I can play against big, strong guys and the best defensemen in the world."

• Thompson is a veteran center who has seen a lot of hockey. He turns 37 years old this upcoming Tuesday, has played for nine teams and owns 86 career playoff appearances.

In his career, he has played in an Eastern Conference Final and a Western Conference Final. General manager Chuck Fletcher traded for him in February 2020. After Thompson spent last season with the Jets, Fletcher brought him back on a one-year deal for his experience and ability to kill penalties.

Thompson is also still looking for a Cup. A guy that has come awfully close, Thompson likes the Flyers' makeup.

"I totally believe in this group," Thompson said. "You look at the moves that Chuck made in the offseason and the core group of guys that are already here, there's no reason why we can't compete for a Stanley Cup this year."

• The Flyers on Saturday loaned Kirill Ustimenko, Quinn Schmiemann and Jackson van de Leest to AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley as the Phantoms begin camp. Schmiemann and van de Leest are camp invites. Ustimenko, a 2017 third-round draft pick who is under contract, did not appear in a preseason game for the big club.