Brian Elliott, feeling better than at any point last season, will start again for Flyers

Brian Elliott, coming off an impressive performance, will get his second straight start Thursday, when the Flyers play Chicago for the second time in the young season.

Elliott stopped 33 of 35 shots in Monday’s 6-2 win over Vegas. In Chicago, he will face a team that dropped a 4-3 decision to the Flyers in the teams’ season opener in Prague on Oct. 4.

“It’s the next opportunity to give your team a chance to win,” said Elliott after Wednesday’s practice in Voorhees. “You can’t take that lightly. They’re a good team; they’re a great team at home. We just have to take the same attitude we have been taking and not let the foot off the gas at any time in the game.”

Health-wise, Elliott, 34, said he feels better than at any point last season.

“Last year was a little bit of a battle,” he said. “It doesn’t change. There’s different battles every time – mental and physical – and you just have to stay on top of it and prepare as best you can. You learn to do that every which way, and I’m feeling good.”

This will be the Flyers’ eighth game of the season, with Elliott (2.55 goals-against average, .925 save percentage) getting three of the starts, and Carter Hart (2.59, .890) getting five.

New coach Alain Vigneault said he was picking his starter “game by game."

“Obviously we’re analyzing the performances of the goaltenders, we’re analyzing the performances of the players,” he said. "That’s why we’re shuffling the deck down there. But with Brian’s last game, there’s no doubt he deserves to come back in goal and give us another good game.”

Vigneault said he knew Elliott was a “competitive individual from playing against him in the past.”

“You always knew you would have a competitive goaltender not giving up on any shots,” he added. "This year, everybody felt good about him, health-wise, and [general manger] Chuck [Fletcher] brought him back, and we have a guy who is willing to fight for ice time, and he’s a good team person.”

The Flyers will use the same lineup that trounced Vegas. … Chicago (2-3-2), which lost, 2-1, in a shootout to visiting Vegas and Marc-Andre-Fleury on Tuesday, also lost defenseman Connor Murphy to an undisclosed injury. … Patrick Kane has eight points (three goals, five assists) in seven games for the Blackhawks, but Jonathan Toews has only two points (goal, assist). … Claude Giroux (four assists) and James van Riemsdyk (0 points) are looking for their first goals. Van Riemsdyk leads the Flyers with 35 shots. … Former Flyers defenseman Eric Desjardins will be among 15 inductees to the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame on Nov. 7 at the Sugar House Event Center. For more information, go to phillyhall.org/2019.