The Flyers are open to the idea of keeping three goaltenders on their roster when Michal Neuvirth returns from his groin injury, GM Ron Hextall acknowledged to Marc Narducci of the Philadelphia Inquirer. While Hextall admitted that doing so wouldn’t be ideal, the injury histories of Neuvirth and Brian Elliott present a compelling case to keep Calvin Pickard around even when that duo is intact to give them some extra insurance. Neuvirth has resumed skating with the team and isn’t expected to be out too much longer.
More from the Metropolitan:
- While Seth Jones is still expected to miss another two-to-four weeks after tearing a ligament in his right knee in the preseason, Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen indicated to Brian Hedger of the Columbus Dispatch that his rehab is progressing as anticipated. Jones’ absence has left a big void on the back end in Columbus and David Savard has been pressed into top pairing duty while he’s out of the lineup.
- Islanders owner Jon Ledecky provided an update to Newsday’s Andrew Gross and Jim Baumbach regarding the Belmont Park arena timeline. The hope is that the project will begin in May with an anticipated opening in October of 2021. New York is currently splitting home dates between Brooklyn and Nassau County and will likely continue to do so until this new arena opens.
- Capitals winger Tom Wilson’s appeal hearing will be held on Thursday, reports Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston (Twitter link). Commissioner Gary Bettman will hear the appeal and if his 20-game suspension is upheld, it can further be appealed to the neutral arbitrator, Shyam Das, who made headlines earlier this week with the reduction of Austin Watson’s suspension. Wilson remains ineligible to play throughout the appeals process and will miss his fifth game tonight.