The Flyers offense, which leads the NHL with an average of four goals per game, is about to get stronger.
After missing three games because of an upper-body injury, rookie winger Matt Read is expected to return to the lineup Wednesday against host Tampa Bay.
Read, who has three goals and four assists in 11 games, skated at practice in Voorhees on Monday and said it "gave me a good feeling. I don't feel far behind."
Added Read: "I had a chance to play the other night, but I pulled myself out of the lineup. I didn't think I was ready. Now I feel good and am a lot more comfortable. I'm ready to go."
Even though the Flyers have had several key players miss games because of injuries - including Danny Briere, James van Riemsdyk, Read and power-play quarterback Chris Pronger - they top the NHL with 56 goals.
"Guys have answered the bell so far," said van Riemsdyk, who returned to the lineup and had three points in Saturday's 9-2 win over Columbus. Van Riemsdyk has four goals in his last four games. "Obviously it's still early, and it's a long season, and we've started off pretty good. I think a lot of that is a byproduct of the systems we play. We're always attacking, always skating and creating offense."
So far, the Flyers haven't missed Jeff Carter, Mike Richards or Ville Leino, three players who combined for 78 goals last season.
"If we put the hard work in with the skill level we have, I was pretty confident that [scoring] wasn't going to be an issue," Briere said.
The same thing happened a few years ago, he noted, when Mike Knuble and Joffrey Lupul went elsewhere in the offseason after combining for 52 goals in 2008-09.
"We lost two [almost] 30-goal scorers, and we never skipped a beat," Briere said. "I have the same feeling now. I thought we would have to buckle down a little bit more defensively, and I think we still have to do that."
The Flyers have five players with at least five goals: Claude Giroux (nine), Jaromir Jagr (six), van Riemsdyk (six), Sean Couturier (five) and Max Talbot (five).
Getting balanced scoring "is fun. It's exciting. It makes everyone feel like they have a role to play," said Briere, who has four goals in 12 games.
In the wipeout of Columbus, eight Flyers scored goals, equaling a franchise record.
"It can be huge confidence-wise," van Riemsdyk said.
On the flip side, the defense, which has been without the injured Pronger for the last six games, is 24th in the 30-team league, allowing 3.07 goals per game.
Like Read, Pronger could return Wednesday in Tampa.
24/7. HBO will begin heavily filming the Flyers next week for 24/7, which follows them and the Rangers en route to the Jan. 2 Winter Classic.
First-year Flyer Talbot is a 24/7 veteran, having played in last year's Winter Classic with Pittsburgh against Washington.
"We talked about it. We had a meeting with the producers as well," Talbot said. "We should feel privileged to be a part of it. I think it was great for hockey, great for the game, great for both teams last year and at the same time, it's good memories. When you grow older, your kids are going to watch that and say, 'Dad, you really played in the NHL?' "
Breakaways. Eric Wellwood, who had an assist and was plus-3 in his only game, was sent back to Adirondack. . . . Brayden Schenn will miss at least two more weeks with a broken bone in his left foot, GM Paul Holmgren said. . . . Andreas Nodl is day to day with an unspecified injury. . . . Mike Keenan will coach the Rangers in the Dec. 31 alumni game against the Flyers at Citizens Bank Park. During his career, Keenan coached eight teams, including the Flyers and Rangers.
Contact staff writer Sam Carchidi at scarchidi@phillynews.com or follow on Twitter@BroadStBull
