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Ryan Johansen Not Expected To Play In 2024-25

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Flyers center Ryan Johansen isn’t expected to play before his contract expires at the end of the 2024-25 season, GM Daniel Brière told reporters Friday (including Jon Bailey of Philly Hockey Now).

Johansen was acquired from the Avalanche as part of the Sean Walker trade before the trade deadline, and he was waived the following day for assignment to AHL Lehigh Valley. He informed the Flyers after the trade that he was dealing with a hip injury, which was subsequently confirmed by the team’s medical staff, resulting in his AHL assignment being reversed. The 31-year-old remained on the active roster for the rest of the season but did not play in a game.

Brière said that he didn’t ever envision Johansen suiting up for the Flyers after the trade, although that was before he had knowledge of the injury. It’s a long-term absence, as implied by Brière’s full statement today, which means the team can’t execute a buyout on the final season of his contract:

All I can tell you is I don’t expect him to be back. I don’t know, exactly, the situation. We’re dealing on the medical side with him. The thing for him is getting him back to be able to play at this time. He doesn’t think he can play hockey. I wish I had a better answer for you. We need to get him better to figure out if there’s even a remote chance of him dressing for the organization.

Johansen’s contract has been moved twice in the past calendar year. Entering this season at an $8MM cap hit for two more years with the Predators, Nashville traded him to Colorado last summer at 50% retention. The Avs hoped he would be able to plug their second-line center vacancy behind Nathan MacKinnon, but the former 71-point scorer struggled mightily in the role, posting just 13 goals and 23 points in 63 games before the team cut ties and traded him and his reduced $4MM cap hit to Philadelphia. Johansen didn’t miss any time in Colorado with his apparently severe hip injury.

He was a negative possession player during his time in Colorado and averaged only 13:39 per game, although he was still strong in the faceoff dot with a 53.1 FOW%. Still, his offensive production and average ice time was lower than all four of the Flyers’ regular centers (Sean Couturier, Morgan Frost, Scott Laughton, Ryan Poehling) last season, and he wouldn’t have had a fit on the team even if healthy.

The Flyers may be unable to rid themselves of the final year of Johansen’s contract entirely. But if his hip injury stretches into next season as expected, they can place his $4MM cap hit on long-term injured reserve and gain cap relief that way, much like they did with defenseman Ryan Ellis’ $6.25MM cap hit this season. Ellis, acquired from Nashville as part of a three-team trade in 2021, had five points in four games for the Flyers before sustaining a career-ending pelvic injury.

Flyers’ Rasmus Ristolainen Undergoes Triceps Surgery

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The Philadelphia Flyers have announced that defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen has undergone surgery to repair a ruptured triceps tendon. He’s expected to have a three-month recovery period and be fully ready for the start of 2024 training camp (Twitter link). Ristolainen has been out since February 10th with the injury, moving to injured reserve on February 26th.

Ristolainen appeared in just 31 games this season, recording one goal, four points, and eight penalty minutes. This season marked the fewest games and tied for the fewest points, of his NHL career, rivaling his rookie season when he totaled four points in 34 games. It’s an unfortunate step backwards after Ristolainen scored 20 points in 74 games last season, his highest point totals since the 2019-20 season.

Ristolainen’s injury opened a lineup spot that Philadelphia never found a perfect fill-in for. They cycled between a list of defenders as the end of the season approached, awarding Ronald Attard, Louis Belpedio, Adam Ginning, and Emil Andrae NHL ice time in their search. It was ultimately Attard and Belpedio that received the most action, each appearing in 12 games. Belpedio managed four points, split evenly, while Attard recorded two assists.

The Flyers now get an early relief from that lineup decision, missing out on the playoffs after a disappointing 4-9-3 end to their season. Ristolainen’s $5.1MM cap hit will earn him an NHL role next season, though Attard and Belpedio could add extended pressure to his bottom-of-the-lineup role.

Jeff Carter Announces Retirement

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The Penguins announced postgame that veteran center Jeff Carter is retiring after a 19-year NHL career. He’d spent the last three seasons and change in Pittsburgh, maintaining his status as a regular but slipping to bottom-six minutes as his point production and all-around game declined.

The two-time Stanley Cup champion cited family reasons as his primary reason for stepping away from the game, confirming he’ll stick around in the Pittsburgh area moving forward:

Yeah, we’re staying. We moved here in August full-time. We’ve loved it. It’s been a great fit for our family. It’s central to both our extended families. It has worked out really well.

Carter’s career began with the cross-state rival Flyers, who selected him with the 11th overall pick in 2003 as part of arguably the most star-studded first round in modern history. The now-39-year-old wouldn’t make his NHL debut for another two years, sticking around with the Soo Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League while a labor lockout canceled the 2004-05 campaign. At age 21, he immediately stepped in as a solid complementary scorer, scoring 23 goals and 42 points in 2005-06 while averaging only 12:04 per game.

He was promoted to Philadelphia’s top six the following season, where he largely remained for the Flyers and three other clubs before being demoted last season. By 2008-09, he’d cemented himself as one of the better two-way centers in the league, leading a deep Flyers offense in scoring with a career-high 46 goals and 84 points, averaging nearly 21 minutes per game.

His point production trailed off marginally over the next two seasons but nonetheless remained a top-six fixture. Injuries began to take a minor toll, as he was limited to 12 appearances in the Flyers’ run to the 2010 Stanley Cup Final. Philly inked him to an 11-year, $58MM extension early in the 2010-11 campaign, but he would never play a game for the franchise under that deal. Then-Flyers GM Paul Holmgren had a quick case of buyer’s remorse amid his early 2010s roster-retooling, dealing Carter to the Blue Jackets for young winger Jakub Voráček, a first-round pick that became captain Sean Couturier, and a third-round pick that became depth contributor Nick Cousins.

It was a slam-dunk deal for Philly, who got 604 points and 727 games out of Voráček, 795 games and 498 points (and counting) out of Couturier, and three seasons of decent depth scoring out of Cousins. Carter played less than a full season in Columbus, as he was flipped to the Kings at the 2012 trade deadline after just 15 goals and 39 games in a Blue Jackets uniform.

His offensive peak may have been in Philadelphia, but he found the most success in Los Angeles. He posted nine points in 16 games down the stretch in 2012 before tying for the league lead with eight goals in 20 postseason games as the eight-seed Kings had one of the most dominant Cinderella runs in professional sports, winning the first Stanley Cup in franchise history while going 16-4. Splitting duties with former Flyers teammate Mike Richards as some of the Kings’ primary secondary scorers behind Anže Kopitar, he returned with a vengeance in 2014, erupting for 10 goals and 25 points in 26 playoff games as L.A. captured its second championship in three years.

Carter eclipsed the 60-point mark in each of the next three seasons and was on his way to doing so again in 2017-18 until an October skate cut caused tendon damage in his lower left leg, requiring surgery and keeping him out for over four months. He was strong in limited action, posting 22 points in 27 games, but was held without a point in four playoff games as the Kings were quickly dispatched by the expansion Golden Knights in the first round.

Unfortunately, he was never the same after that. He managed 60 points combined over the following two seasons (136 games), posting a -41 rating in the process. After he was limited to eight goals and 19 points through the first 40 games of the COVID-shortened 2021 season, the retooling Kings traded the final season-and-a-half of his aforementioned extension to the Penguins for a pair of mid-round draft picks, retaining half his $5.27MM cap hit in the swap.

The move worked out well in the short-term for Pittsburgh. Carter had a resurgence in slightly increased minutes down the stretch, recording 11 points in 14 games and four goals and six playoff games as the Pens were eliminated in the first round by the Islanders. He put up 45 points the following season, his highest total in five years, but Pittsburgh was again dispatched in the first round, this time by the Rangers.

Given his mild rebound, Penguins GM Ron Hextall inked Carter to a two-year, $6.25MM extension midway through the 2021-22 campaign. Unfortunately, the unavoidable aging curve took effect sooner than they’d hoped, knocking his production down to 13 goals and 29 points last season while having his ice time slashed to its lowest since his rookie season. This year marked another significant slide, posting 11 goals and just four assists in 72 contests. He is coming off his best-ever year in the faceoff dot, winning 61.5% of his draws.

Carter’s final goal came earlier tonight in a 5-4 loss to the Isles, a power-play tally assisted by Sidney Crosby and Michael Bunting. All told, his 1,321 career games played stand alone at 63rd on the all-time list. He tallied 441 goals, 409 assists, and 850 points with a career +9 rating and captured Selke Trophy votes on four occasions (2009, 2011, 2016, 2017). His estimated career earnings to date are $76.5MM, per CapFriendly.

With Carter sticking around in Pittsburgh, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him take an off-ice role in GM Kyle Dubas’ front office. PHR extends its best wishes to Carter and his family in their next chapter.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Jamie Drysdale Might Need Another Surgery In Offseason

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It was a tough season for Flyers defenseman Jamie Drysdale as he battled injury woes at multiple parts of the year.  Speaking with reporters today (video link), the blueliner indicated that when he was in the lineup, he was often playing hurt and that he might need a procedure done this summer to get back to full health for next season.  The 22-year-old was the centerpiece of the return they received for Cutter Gauthier back in January but he was limited to just 24 games with his new team and 34 on the season, a year after playing in only eight contests in 2022-23.  Drysdale is still viewed as a key piece of Philadelphia’s future and they’ll certainly be hoping that he can not only stay healthy but be an impactful player next season.

Flyers Reassign Bobby Brink, Olle Lycksell, Ronnie Attard, Adam Ginning

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With their season coming to an end at the hands of the Washington Capitals last night, the Philadelphia Flyers have reassigned several waiver-exempt players to their AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. In the transaction, the team will be sending forwards Bobby Brink and Olle Lycksell, as well as defensemen Ronald Attard and Adam Ginning north to Lehigh Valley.

Of the four, Brink spent the most time at the NHL level this season, suiting up in 57 games for the Flyers. Over that stretch, Brink scored 11 goals and 23 points in total, sitting 12th on the roster in scoring. While he did not manage to crack the 60-game mark this year, Brink should rather easily crack the opening night roster next season as a middle-six option.

Lycksell, on the other hand, likely has more offensive potential compared to Brink, based on his strong back-to-back seasons with the Phantom. Scoring only one goal and five points over 18 games for the Flyers this season, Lycksell was more than productive with Lehigh Valley earlier in the year, scoring 19 goals and 38 points in only 36 games.

On the blue line, Attard and Ginning are both remarkably similar in size and stature. Of the two, Attard has the upper hand on the offensive side of the puck, while Ginning excels more defensively. Even though Philadelphia has some openings in their defensive core this summer, both defensemen should expect similar roles next year.

While the Phantoms still have three games left to play in the 2023-24 AHL season, they are likely headed for the same fate as last year, poised for sixth place in the Atlantic Division. If the season were to end today, Lehigh Valley would match up against their interstate rivals, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.

Flyers Sign Massimo Rizzo To Entry-Level Deal

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10:46 a.m.: Rizzo’s deal carries a $925K cap hit, per PuckPedia. That’s broken down into an $832.5K base salary and a $92.5K signing bonus each season. When assigned to the minors, he’ll earn a $70K salary.

10:19 a.m.: The Flyers announced this morning that they’ve signed center prospect Massimo Rizzo to a two-year entry-level contract beginning next season. Financial terms were not disclosed, nor did the team confirm if he’ll join AHL Lehigh Valley on a tryout to end the campaign.

Rizzo, 22, was selected by the Hurricanes in the seventh round of the 2019 draft but had his signing rights picked up by Philadelphia in an August 2023 trade. This was part of a complicated saga that saw the Flyers buy out the final season of defenseman Tony DeAngelo’s two-year, $10MM contract so that he could sign with Carolina.

The Hurricanes drafted Rizzo out of Penticton in the British Columbia Hockey League, and he didn’t make his collegiate debut for the University of Denver until 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. He broke out in a big way with the Pioneers, averaging well north of a point per game across his three seasons there and capturing two national championships. Rizzo capped off his university career with 10 goals, 34 assists and 44 points in 30 contests this season and a +24 rating. That earned him NCHC Second All-Star Team honors, a nomination to the NCAA Second All-American Team for the West Region, and Denver’s Hobey Baker Award nominee for the top player in college hockey.

The high-skill playmaker will make a decent case to challenge for a roster spot as soon as next season, although it shouldn’t be viewed as a major disappointment if he begins 2024-25 in the minors. The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler named him the fifth-best prospect in the Flyers system in February, trailing only 2023 top-10 pick Matvei Michkov and rookie winger Bobby Brink among forwards. His ELC will expire in 2026, making him an RFA at that time.

Flyers Sign Hunter McDonald To Entry-Level Deal

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The Flyers have signed left-shot defenseman Hunter McDonald to a two-year, entry-level contract that begins in the 2024-25 season, per a team announcement. Financial terms were not disclosed. McDonald, a 2022 sixth-round pick, was already on an ATO with AHL Lehigh Valley.

McDonald made his professional debut on March 23 and has made nine appearances with the Phantoms, adjusting well with two assists and a +5 rating. He turned pro after his sophomore season at Northeastern University, which was shortened by an injury that kept him out for most of the first three months of the campaign.

2023-24 was a bit of a step back for McDonald, who was named to the Hockey East conference’s All-Rookie Team and was awarded Best Defensive Defenseman honors in his freshman year after posting 14 points and a +21 rating in 35 games. In 23 appearances this season, though, he mustered only six points and a +3 rating.

The 21-year-old is a shutdown-only threat and has been since joining the junior hockey ranks in 2019. His 14 points during his freshman year with the Huskies exceeded most offensive expectations. The New York native has NHL-ready size at 6’4″ and 205 lbs and is a decent outlet passer, but otherwise has poor offensive instincts and is a slow skater with even slower acceleration. He’s still an incredibly strong defender with a high-end ability to box out opposing forwards around the net, but he carries a third-pairing ceiling at the NHL level.

McDonald’s deal expires after the 2025-26 season, at which point he will be an RFA. He will be eligible for unrestricted free agency in 2029.

Seth Jones And Alex Vlasic Will Play At World Championships

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Despite their recent collapse, it doesn’t appear as though the Philadelphia Flyers are planning to make a coaching change to replace John Tortorella anytime soon. This news comes from TSN’s Darren Dreger who reports that Flyers sources have told him that “Torts is not leaving the bench.” The speculation around Tortorella’s job security makes sense given that the team is mired in a 1-6-3 streak in their last ten and are currently chasing a playoff spot after sitting comfortably in third place in the Metropolitan Division just a few short weeks ago.

The Flyers are winless in eight straight games and have looked lost the last month, particularly in their last three games where they have been outscored 19-7 by the Buffalo Sabres, Columbus Blue Jackets and Montreal Canadiens. Last night’s 9-3 loss to Montreal was particularly difficult to watch as the Canadiens dominated the Flyers from start to finish which further added to speculation about Tortorella’s future.

In other evening notes:

  • Aaron Portzline of The Athletic is reporting that Columbus Blue Jackets forward Adam Fantilli won’t play again this season after suffering a lacerated calf against the Seattle Kraken back on January 28th. While that news isn’t overly surprising given that there are just a handful of games left on the NHL schedule, what is surprising to hear is that the 19-year-old rookie might play for Team Canada at the IIHF World Championships if he is healthy a month from now. Fantilli played for Team Canada last year at the tournament and could return on May 10th if he is at 100 percent. Last year’s third-overall pick will finish his first NHL regular season with 12 goals and 15 assists in 49 games.
  • Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times is reporting that Chicago Blackhawks defensemen Seth Jones and Alex Vlasic will suit up for Team U.S.A. at the IIHF World Championships. The 22-year-old Vlasic hasn’t represented the United States internationally for over five years, last suiting up for the Americans at the U18 World Championship in 2018-19. Jones last suited up internationally two years ago at the World Championships when he captained the Americans to a fourth-place finish.

Flyers Sign Oscar Eklind To Entry-Level Deal

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The Flyers have signed undrafted free agent winger Oskar Eklind to a one-year, entry-level contract for next season, GM Daniel Brière announced today. The deal carries an AAV and cap hit of $950K, the maximum allowable.

Eklind, 25, was under contract for next season with Luleå HF of the Swedish Hockey League, where he spent his 2023-24 campaign. However, the contract can be terminated for a fee as the NHL and SHL have a transfer agreement.

The 6’4″, 220-lb winger has spent his entire career in his home country. His rights have never been held by an NHL team, but career highs across the board this year, plus his appealing size, led to some recent interest.

A power forward, Eklind had 17 goals and 11 assists for 28 points in 48 games with Luleå last season, along with a +5 rating and 64 PIMs. His season ended late last month after they were swept in the quarterfinals of the SHL playoffs by Växjö Lakers HC.

He’s coming off his sixth full season playing in the professional ranks and his eighth overall with SHL or HockeyAllsvenskan (the Swedish second-tier pro league) experience. Luleå was his fifth organization in the Swedish tier system in the last seven years, also spending time with the Malmö Redhawks, IK Pantern, Mora IK, and Brynäs IF before landing with Luleå on a transfer last offseason.

Eklind pauses his SHL career for now with 30 goals, 28 assists and 58 points in 160 games, along with 125 PIMs. He didn’t fare much better in the HockeyAllsvenskan, posting 31 goals and 66 points in 183 games with 115 PIMs.

He’s a long shot to make the Flyers’ roster out of camp, and if he does ever crack an NHL roster, it’ll likely be exclusively in a fourth-line role. He has the shot necessary to stay afloat in the league, as he does physicality, but his overall play-driving ability and sluggish acceleration up the ice limit him from having much upward mobility.

Eklind will be 26 this summer, but since his birthday isn’t until after July 1, he should maintain RFA eligibility when his contract expires in 2025. He’ll have his NHL rights controlled by the Flyers indefinitely if the Flyers issue him a qualifying offer at the end of next season, even if he opts not to stick around and return to Sweden.

Injury Notes: Couturier, Hamonic, Oshie

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It has been revealed that Philadelphia Flyers captain Sean Couturier is facing a sprained shoulder, per NHL.com’s Kevin Kurz (Twitter link). Couturier seems to have dodged more serious injury and continues to carry the day-to-day injury designation given to him on Wednesday and is questionable for the team’s Friday night game.

Couturier has had an eventful season since being named Philadelphia’s first captain since Claude Giroux on February 14th. He’s since managed just three assists through 20 games, adding 11 penalty minutes and a -17. The cold streak has earned him two healthy scratches that he hasn’t yet vindicated – riding a six-game scoreless streak since returning to the lineup. Couturier managed 30 points in 41 games of the season but has since fallen apart. Hopefully a clean bill of health following this shoulder injury can bring with it a resurgence on the scoresheet.

Other notes from around the league:

  • The Ottawa Senators are expected to be without defenseman Travis Hamonic on Thursday night due to a lower-body injury, per Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun (Twitter link). Hamonic has missed 16 of Ottawa’s last 17 games with this injury and continues to miss time even after being removed from injured reserve on March 19th. He’s played in just 48 games this season, recording six points, 40 penalty minutes, and a -10. He joins Thomas Chabot on the team’s sideline, with Tyler Kleven benefiting most from the pair’s absences.
  • T.J. Oshie missed the Washington Capitals practice on Thursday, instead seeing the team’s doctor for an upper-body injury. Head coach Spencer Carbery shared that the injury will hold Oshie out of Washington’s next two games, per Bailey Johnson of the Washington Post (Twitter link), as the Capitals face a back-to-back on Thursday and Friday. His next chance to return will come on Sunday, when Washington hosts the Ottawa Senators. Oshie has played in just 47 games this season, recording 11 goals and 19 points.

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