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Rasmus Ristolainen

Snapshots: Three Stars, Blackwood, Ristolainen

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The NHL released its Three Stars for last week, with three Western Conference superstars making the cut. Jason Robertson is on top after scoring four goals and eight points in three games. After missing training camp, Robertson has picked up right where he left off last season and now has eight goals and 18 points in 12 games.

Second and third went to Nathan MacKinnon and Erik Karlsson, who each had their own impressive weeks. The Colorado Avalanche center had seven assists in the two games overseas, both wins in Finland, to become the league’s all-time scoring leader in games played outside of North America. Karlsson meanwhile had four goals and eight points in three games including a hat trick and has already matched his goal total from last year (ten) in just 14 games.

  • Mackenzie Blackwood has been diagnosed with an MCL sprain, and will meet with doctors tomorrow for further evaluation according to New Jersey Devils team reporter Amanda Stein. Blackwood left a game against the Edmonton Oilers on November 3, leaving the Devils with Vitek Vanecek and Akira Schmid as their tandem for the time being.
  • After being scratched on the weekend, some wondered whether Rasmus Ristolainen was still dealing with the effects of his previous injury. Philadelphia Flyers head coach John Tortorella told reporters including Giana Han of the Philadelphia Inquirer that Ristolainen’s injury isn’t the issue and that “everything about his game needs to be better” when he gets back into the lineup.

Rasmus Ristolainen Moved To Injured Reserve

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The Philadelphia Flyers are 2-0 and they have only allowed four goals on the year. They’ve been able to do that without highly-paid defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen, who is dealing with an undisclosed injury suffered late in camp. Today, they have moved Ristolainen to injured reserve and recalled Zack MacEwen and Louis Belpedio, meaning they’ll have to keep playing without the big Finn for the next little while.

Given that the IR placement is retroactive, Ristolainen can come back basically at any point. But moving him off the roster at least suggests that he’s going to miss some more time.

Many fans of the team will be excited about the move, given it brings back tough guy MacEwen, who became a favorite last season when he was racking up 110 penalty minutes in 75 games. The 26-year-old forward gives the team another player who can skate and throw huge hits, while dropping the gloves whenever necessary.

Belpedio, meanwhile, gives the team another defensive option, though the group has looked pretty good so far. The 26-year-old has played in just four games at the NHL level in the past but is a strong two-way presence in the minor leagues and is coming off an impressive Calder Cup playoff run with the Laval Rocket.

Injury Updates: Flyers, Barabanov, Maple Leafs, Murray

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Don’t expect the Flyers to get many – if any – reinforcements from their injured list over the final few games.  Giana Han of the Philadelphia Inquirer relays (Twitter link) that the only player that might be able to return is defenseman Nick Seeler with interim head coach Mike Yeo admitting that even that “might be a bit of a long shot”.  This means the season has come to an end for wingers Cam Atkinson and Patrick Brown, defensemen Rasmus Ristolainen, Kevin Connauton, and Cam York, as well as goaltender Carter Hart.

Other injury news from around the NHL:

  • Sharks winger Alexander Barabanov is listed as probable for tonight’s game against Chicago, notes Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now (Twitter link). The 27-year-old has missed the last four games with an undisclosed injury.  Barabanov has been one of the bright spots for San Jose this season, notching 37 points in 65 games, a very nice return on a $1MM AAV.  He’s eligible for unrestricted free agency this summer and will be looking at a sizable raise on his next contract.
  • The Maple Leafs could have defenseman Jake Muzzin back in the lineup tomorrow against Washington, reports Sportsnet’s Luke Fox (Twitter link). The veteran has been held out of the last few games after struggling a bit after returning from a concussion.  Meanwhile, Fox adds that blueliner Rasmus Sandin is expected to start practicing with the team as he works his way back from a knee injury that landed him on LTIR last month.  Toronto has enough cap flexibility to activate him if he’s able to get into a game before the end of the season but if not, he should be ready for the playoffs.
  • Senators goaltender Matt Murray is hoping to get into a game or two by the end of the season but it doesn’t seem likely to happen, mentions Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch. The netminder has been out for the last six weeks with a neck injury and is a speculative candidate to play for Canada at next month’s World Championships.  An appearance or two in the final week for Ottawa would go a long way towards demonstrating that he’ll be able to play in that tournament.

Injury Notes: MacEachern, Bruins, Flyers

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The regular season is over for Mackenzie MacEachern, but fortunately his Blues are planning to play well beyond then. The team announced today that MacEachern has been placed on the Long-Term Injured Reserve with an upper-body injury. The LTIR placement requires that MacEachern sit for ten games and the Blues have just eight games left on the regular season slate. The 27-year-old forward did his best to stay off the shelf; after missing the past three games, MacEachern was back at practice today but was forced to leave early, reports Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The cap-strapped Blues had little choice but to add MacEachern to the LTIR and recall forward Dakota Joshua from AHL Springfield on an emergency basis. The swap actually adds the superior player to the roster, as Joshua has more games played, average time on ice, goals, points, plus/minus and more with the Blues this season.

  • It took injuries to David Pastrnak, Hampus Lindholm, Matt Grzelcyk, Brandon Carlo, and Linus Ullmark to send the Boston Bruins into their first three-game losing streak of the season, the final team in the NHL to fall in three straight this year. As the team looks to right the ship on Saturday against the Pittsburgh Penguins, they’re hoping that improved health could help. Grzelcyk was back in the lineup on Thursday night and defense partner could be the next to return, reports beat writer Eric Russo. Carlo was back at practice on Friday and there is optimism that he can return tomorrow from an undisclosed injury. Ullmark, who left Thursday’s game after the first period, did not practice and could be dealing with a concussion, but for now is considered day-to-day. Pastrnak and Lindholm skated by themselves on Friday and there is still no timetable for their return. While there is something to be said for being bit by the injury bug before the postseason, especially for a Boston team that has been decimated in the playoffs in recent years, this rough patch is potentially costing the Bruins their shot at divisional playoff berth as opposed to a wild card spot.
  • The Philadelphia Flyers had no update on injured defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen today, as it is looking increasingly likely that his season is over. Olivia Reiner of the Philadelphia Inquirer relays that head coach Mike Yeo does not expect Ristolainen to return “any time soon” from an upper-body injury. There was also no update on Cam York, who is out with a lower-body injury and considered day-to-day. There is slightly more optimism surrounding Cam Atkinson, who is also out with a lower-body ailment. Atkinson won’t play on Saturday at Buffalo, but could suit up on Sunday for the second game of the home-and-home with the Sabres.

Philadelphia Flyers Extend Rasmus Ristolainen

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The Philadelphia Flyers may be sellers, but that doesn’t mean they are going to send all of their deadline assets packing. Instead of shipping out pending free agent Rasmus Ristolainen, the team has signed him to a five-year extension that carries an average annual value of $5.1MM. PuckPedia has the full breakdown:

  • 2022-23: $4.0MM
  • 2023-24: $5.5MM
  • 2024-25: $6.5MM
  • 2025-26: $5.5MM
  • 2026-27: $4.0MM

From the moment they acquired him last offseason, sending Robert Hagg, a 2021 first-round pick (14th overall) and a 2023 second-round pick to the Buffalo Sabres, the Flyers have maintained that they brought in Ristolainen to keep him. An extension was always the preference, though after a nightmare season for the team, one in which Ristolainen once again put up terrible analytical metrics (and continued his notorious streak of negative performances), it wasn’t clear if the Flyers would move in a different direction and recoup some of the expended assets at the deadline.

Instead, they’ll be locking in the 27-year-old defenseman to a long-term deal that takes him well into his thirties. Ristolainen has 13 points in 49 games this season while averaging more than 21 minutes a night, almost all of those even-strength minutes coming beside Travis Sanheim. He hasn’t proven to be the offensive catalyst he was in Buffalo without the extensive powerplay time, but still does bring a high level of physicality and contributes to the penalty kill. General manager Chuck Fletcher explained:

Rasmus is an important part of our team and we are very happy to have him on our blue line for the next five years. He is committed to being a Flyer, and brings a consistent physical presence to our team.

It’s that size-skating combo that makes Ristolainen such an attractive defenseman in theory. The 6’4″ behemoth can move around the ice with ease, jump in on plays or catch attackers by surprise with a big open-ice hit. But his decision-making, rush, and in-zone defense have still left something to be desired after the move to Philadelphia, something that the team is obviously comfortable moving forward with.

When Flyers CEO Dave Scott explained that he was giving Fletcher a “blank check” to fix the Flyers, big free agent splashes were expected. The team is getting an early start on that market by locking up Ristolainen, though his new deal will actually come in a hair lower than the $5.4MM cap hit he currently carries. Claude Giroux, Derick Brassard, Justin Braun, Keith Yandle, Kevin Connauton, Nick Seeler, and others remain unsigned, meaning the team still has some trade deadline bullets to fire if they want to add some assets in the weeks to come.

Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet was first to report a deal was close.

Trade Rumors: Blackhawks & Flyers

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It didn’t take long for new Chicago Blackhawks GM Kyle Davidson to make some waves in his now-official role. In media availability this afternoon, Davidson made it clear that he sees the Blackhawks as a rebuild. If that is indeed the case, then it may be more than just rentals departing Chicago in the near future. Of course, the two big names that could be on the move if Davidson and company move into a full-blown fire sale are Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews. The face of the franchise, Kane and Toews were the lynchpins of a dynastic run in Chicago and have continued to produce as the franchise has struggled in recent years. With just one year remaining on the matching eight-year, $84MM they signed long ago, Kane and Toews are now much more palatable trade targets if the Blackhawks choose to go that route. With that being said, the duo do have trade protection and any move would likely come from cooperation between the player side and the front office. In the latest edition of TSN’s “Insider Trading”, Darren Dreger suggests that those conversations could be on the horizon, but anticipating a move prior to the trade deadline is likely unrealistic.

  • While Marc-Andre Fleury has been seen as a much more likely trade victim in Chicago, that may not be the case after all. Chris Johnston notes that there has always been an understanding that the Blackhawks would honor Fleury’s wishes despite only limited trade protection. At this time, he hears that Fleury is leaning toward staying in Chicago through the end of the season rather than accepting a trade. It remains unclear what this means for Fleury’s future, but Davidson’s insistence on a rebuild likely means that his time with the Blackhawks will end after this season, though likely not any earlier. Should Fleury’s mindset on being traded change in the coming weeks, he will remain a highly sought-after target and Chicago could certainly benefit from the trade return.
  • Another anticipated top rental target whose status is still unknown is the Philadelphia Flyers’ Claude Giroux. Pierre LeBrun reports that Giroux is still on the fence about moving and controls his own fate with a No-Movement Clause. The 34-year-old certainly would like a shot at a Stanley Cup and isn’t going to get one in Philadelphia this season. On the other hand, with 39 points in 49 games this season, Giroux isn’t showing any signs of slowing down and will have other chances at a title if he decides to ride out the year with the Flyers and save his next move for free agency. From the team’s point of view, Giroux will be worth an exorbitant amount if he does decide he is willing to be traded. LeBrun believes that Giroux could be considered the most valuable rental on the market and initial talks that the Flyers have had with potential suitors reflects that valuation. Philadelphia is expecting to receive a first-round pick, a top prospect, and a young roster player (or a package of equal value) for Giroux. Loyalty aside, the team has to be hoping that Giroux is open to a move.
  • The Flyers face a trickier situation with defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen. When he was acquired this summer, the team had a different vision for how this season would play out. That involved a more obvious upward trajectory for the club, which would have made signing Ristolainen to an extension an easy call. However, given Philadelphia’s struggles and Ristolainen’s himself, it is unclear how the two sides move forward, if at all. Darren Dreger notes that the two sides are talking contract and there is a significant possibility of an extension. However, if those negotiations do not yield an agreement before the trade deadline then Ristolainen could hit the block. Despite a down year, the big, two-way defender would draw widespread interest.

Philadelphia Flyers Announce Several Roster Moves

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The Philadelphia Flyers have announced several moves, including one that you don’t see very often. Carter Hart will be out for this afternoon’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes with an eye infection. His status is unclear moving forward, though there is hope that it doesn’t keep him out long. To fill the spot, Kirill Ustimenko has been recalled under emergency conditions. Meanwhile, Rasmus Ristolainen and Patrick Brown have both been activated from injured reserve, while Wade Allison has moved to IR to make room.

Among those moves, Ristolainen’s return may be the biggest. The veteran defenseman is a pending unrestricted free agent and could potentially be a prime target at the trade deadline. His health will likely determine how many teams are interested though, so getting him back into the lineup can only help the Flyers. Ristolainen hasn’t played since February 9 against the Detroit Red Wings where he logged nearly 24 minutes of ice time.

Overall, he’s averaging more than 21 minutes this season, his first in Philadelphia. The Flyers suggested earlier this season that they hoped to sign Ristolainen to an extension, though with the way the year has gone so far it’s hard to argue that a trade wouldn’t be more productive. Notorious for his poor plus-minus record, despite that statistic not inspiring much faith, Ristolainen is once again in the negative at -12 on the year. He’s been on the ice for 46 goals against at even strength, worse than all but 28 other defensemen in the league.

Still, the mix of size, skating ability, and offensive upside that the 27-year-old brings (along with the fact that he’s right-handed) will make him an interesting player to watch as the deadline approaches.

East Notes: Staal, Ristolainen, Trocheck

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Marc Staal’s first season with the Red Wings was good enough that the team re-signed him to a one-year, $2MM contract for this one, a deal that also carried a full no-move clause.  Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News feels there’s a scenario where Detroit could go that route again with the 35-year-old blueliner.  Staal is logging just shy of 17 minutes a night on their back end and can still contribute defensively and on the penalty kill, making him a useful veteran for a team that’s still rebuilding.  Staal recently said that he enjoys being with Detroit and considering he controls his destiny when it comes to a trade, there’s a chance that he isn’t flipped by the trade deadline.

Elsewhere in the East:

  • Flyers defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen is targeting Monday as his return from his upper-body injury, notes Giana Han of the Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link). The veteran has had a tough first season with Philadelphia with just 11 points in 42 games while logging just over 21 minutes a game.  Nevertheless, he remains one of the more notable pending unrestricted free agent blueliners that should be on the move between now and the March 21st trade deadline as the Flyers will likely want to recoup at least some of what they paid to get him at the draft (blueliner Robert Hagg, a 2021 first-round pick, and a 2023 second-rounder) if they can’t extend him before then.
  • Hurricanes center Vincent Trocheck left tonight’s game against Nashville with an upper-body injury (Twitter link). The pending UFA has had a nice contract year with 32 points in 48 games while winning over 53% of his faceoffs.

Philadelphia Flyers Place Rasmus Ristolainen On IR

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The Philadelphia Flyers announced Tuesday night that they’ve placed defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen on injured reserve with an upper-body injury.

Ristolainen had struggled mightily offensively this season up to this point, his first in Philadelphia. He’s played just 11 points in 42 games, averaging 21:05 per game with a -12 rating. His +/- is second-worst among Flyers defensemen, exceeded only by power-play specialist Keith Yandle. His point production trails all of Ivan Provorov, Travis Sanheim, and Yandle among Flyers defensemen.

One can’t just look at the points production for Ristolainen, though. Some better teammates have led to an improvement in his overall play-driving ability from his days in Buffalo, and his low point production is likely somewhat a result of bad luck, as it has been for much of the team. The same improvement can’t be said for his defensive game, however, as he continues to have one of the worst even-strength defensive impacts in the league.

It’s also tough news for the Flyers off the ice. Ristolainen is a pending unrestricted free agent, and potentially a solid piece of trade bait at the upcoming trade deadline. While Ristolainen was listed as day-to-day earlier this week, the injured reserve placement now is somewhat concerning. The team offered no further update on the severity of Ristolainen’s injury.

What Your Team Is Thankful For: Philadelphia Flyers

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In the spirit of the holiday season, PHR will take a look at what teams are thankful for as the season passes the one-quarter mark. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. We’ll examine what’s gone well in the early going and what could improve as the season rolls on for the Philadelphia Flyers.

What are the Flyers thankful for?

Their new coach.

It’s hard to gauge time with all the postponements, but the Flyers have only played eight games since firing Alain Vigneault on December 6. Since then, however, the Flyers have either gotten lucky or turned a corner, going 5-2-2 under interim coach Mike Yeo so far. The two regulation losses were their first two games under Yeo, a 7-5 loss to Colorado on December 6 and a 3-0 loss to New Jersey on December 8. Since then, they’ve yet to lose in regulation and have won by multiple goals in two of their five wins.

The defensive bleeding is starting to improve, albeit slowly. Philadelphia hasn’t allowed more than three goals since that Colorado loss.

Better goaltending this season will help the Flyers in the long run, and under Yeo, it looks like the team is starting to turn a corner in front of Carter Hart and Martin Jones. If Ryan Ellis can stay healthy later in the season, he’ll be a big help as well.

Who are the Flyers thankful for?

Cam Atkinson.

Not much was made of the Atkinson-for-Jakub Voracek swap this summer. It was a trade of ageing wingers who’d underperformed in recent years, and it allowed the Flyers to gain some salary cap flexibility for future moves. That trade’s paid dividends for both teams, though, especially the Flyers. Atkinson holds the team lead with 12 goals in 31 games and has the best +/- rating on the team by far (+13).

He’s on a 32-goal pace, which would be the third-highest total of his career. COVID hit right after his career-high 41-goal campaign in 2018-19, but he’s now already hit his 12-goal mark in 2019-20 and is only three goals shy of his 2020-21 mark. The +/- mark is especially impressive for a team that’s had the defensive struggles of Philadelphia. That +13 rating is already tied for the second-best in his career. It may be a stretch to say it’s a career season for Atkinson given the 41-goal mark, but it’s certainly one of his best.

What would the Flyers be even more thankful for?

Health and more production from Sean Couturier.

Philadelphia’s defensive struggles this year were exacerbated by a somewhat unexpected lack of scoring. Couturier’s still been as trustworthy as ever defensively, but after signing an eight-year, $62MM extension this offseason, he’s got just six goals and 17 points through 29 games. It’s not awful by any stretch, but he’s been hovering around a point-per-game for the past few seasons and the dip is somewhat concerning.

It won’t be happening anytime soon, though. Couturier was injured recently and team announced he’s now out week-to-week with an upper-body injury.

What should be on the Flyers’ Holiday Wish list?

A Rasmus Ristolainen deal at the trade deadline.

Philadelphia, barring a miracle, is extremely unlikely to make the playoffs. They are tied for ninth in the conference with the Bruins, but Boston has four games in hand on them. With other teams behind Philadelphia looking to make runs as well, it doesn’t seem like they’ll be able to pull away from the pack by the trade deadline.

The Flyers paid a pretty penny to acquire Ristolainen from Buffalo this offseason, but it just hasn’t worked out. He’s still struggled mightily in his own end, and he has just eight points in 29 games this year. The team needs cap space and assets, and shipping out Ristolainen in the last year of his deal would allow them to at least recoup some assets for the ill-advised acquisition.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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