Flyers’ Travis Konecny, Nick Seeler Return From Injury
Two veteran Philadelphia Flyers players returned from injury-related absences for the team’s game tonight against the Rangers: winger Travis Konecny and defenseman Nick Seeler.
Konecny is the more notable name of the pair, as he has led the Flyers in scoring each season for the last half-decade.
The 28-year-old has 57 points in 58 games this season, and holds a six-point lead over teammate Trevor Zegras for the scoring lead.
Last week, it was announced that Konecny would be sidelined on a day-to-day basis as he dealt with an upper-body injury. He missed the team’s victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on March 2, as well as their following two contests.
With his return tonight, his injury absence is capped at three games, a stretch in which the Flyers went 2-1-0.
With the Flyers clinging to slim playoff hopes at this stage of the season (their 29-22-11 record puts them seven points behind the Boston Bruins for the Eastern Conference’s final playoff spot, with a game in hand), getting Konecny back now gives the team a boost to its competitive chances.
Were the Flyers somehow in the Western Conference, they would actually be in playoff position, but their geographic position puts their playoff hopes in a precarious spot. For them to build any momentum to go on a run and challenge for a playoff spot for the rest of the season, they’ll need Konecny healthy and playing at his best.
The other injured Flyer to be returning, Seeler, isn’t quite as important to the team as Konecny, but that’s not to say he doesn’t play a useful role in head coach Rick Tocchet’s lineup. The 32-year-old is the Flyers’ No. 5 defenseman in terms of ice time, averaging 18:21 per game.
He’s a regular penalty killer, averaging over two minutes of ice time per game short-handed. He also adds imposing size and a physical edge to a Flyers defense staffed with other players (outside of veteran Rasmus Ristolainen) who are not known for having that kind of dimension to their game.
Seeler missed the Flyers’ last two games nursing a lower-body injury. While Seeler was sidelined, 24-year-old Emil Andrae played in Seeler’s former role on the Flyers’ third pairing, next to veteran Noah Juulsen. With Seeler back, Andrae will exit the lineup and serve as a healthy scratch.
That sort of development has larger implications for Andrae. He is a pending arbitration-eligible restricted free agent, meaning each game carries significant stakes – he’s playing to prove he deserves a spot in the Flyers’ future plans. Each game spent as a healthy scratch is a lost opportunity for Andrae to make his case for a new contract with the Flyers.
But putting the consequences of Seeler’s return for Andrae aside, it’s clear his relatively quick recovery is a positive development for the Flyers as a whole. Seeler, like Konecny, is a valuable veteran for the team, and if they are to continue to play meaningful hockey down the stretch, they’ll need to have both players healthy and productive for as long as possible.
Photos courtesy of Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports
Injury Notes: Werenski, Konecny, Gibson
The Columbus Blue Jackets announced today that star defenseman Zach Werenski has been sidelined for tonight’s game against the New York Rangers due to an illness. The exact nature of his absence, beyond that he is ill, has not yet been disclosed, but based on prior cases of players being sick for games, it is unlikely Werenski will miss too much time. Regardless, the news is still significant, as there are few players who are more valuable to his team on a nightly basis than Werenski. The 28-year-old has scored 65 points in just 54 games this season, and averages 26:26 time-on-ice per game, including 2:49 on the power play and 1:30 on the penalty kill. He ranks No. 2 in the NHL in scoring by a defenseman (behind only Edmonton Oilers defenseman Evan Bouchard, who quarterbacks a power play featuring Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl), and No. 2 in the NHL in time-on-ice per game, behind only Olympic teammate Quinn Hughes.
For as long as Werenski’s absence persists, the Blue Jackets will likely increasingly rely on veteran Ivan Provorov, who occupies a role that on other teams would be considered a No. 1 defenseman’s workload. Provorov, who has 20 points in 56 games this season, is averaging 25:11 time-on-ice per game, including playing on the second power play unit, and averaging 3:06 per game on the penalty kill. Despite not even leading his team in the stat, Provorov ranks No. 5 in the NHL in time on ice per game, ahead of several star No. 1 defensemen such as Cale Makar, Jake Sanderson, and Rasmus Dahlin.
Other injury notes from around the NHL:
- The Philadelphia Flyers announced tonight that forward Travis Konecny will miss tonight’s game with an upper-body injury, and will be sidelined on a day-to-day basis. Konecny occupies a first-line role in Philadelphia, playing alongside No. 1 center Christian Dvorak and star winger Trevor Zegras. While he was unable to parlay his spot on Canada’s victorious 4-Nations Face-Off team into a spot in the Winter Olympics, 2025-26 has still been a strong year for Konecny. Through 58 games, he has scored 23 goals and totaled 57 points, which gives him a chance to set a new career-high in scoring. Replacing Konecny on the top line, per Jackie Spiegel of the Philadelphia Inquirer, is speedy winger Owen Tippett, who has been elevated from the second line.
- Detroit Red Wings starting goalie John Gibson left today’s road win over the Nashville Predators with an upper-body injury, according to a team announcement. Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press relayed word from head coach Todd McLellan postgame, who told the media that he believes Gibson is “OK,” but added that he’ll be evaluated when the team returns to Michigan. Gibson has been a good fit in Detroit this season, his play helping lift the team into playoff position in the Eastern Conference. In 39 starts, Gibson has gone 23-12-2 with a .906 save percentage and 2.57 goals-against average.
Snapshots: Stolarz, Konecny, Samuelsson
Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz reached another milestone as he approaches his return. David Alter of The Hockey News revealed that Stolarz skated with the regular group today.
The 31-year-old will be eager to get back into action after what’s been a trying 2025-26 so far. Unable to play since November 11 after an upper-body injury, even beforehand, Stolarz struggled a bit. His .884 SV% and 3.51 GAA are below expectations from the upcoming four year extension worth $3.75MM per year, in which Toronto is banking on the late-bloomer to hold down their crease for his first true #1 role.
Winners of seven out of their last 10, the Leafs have turned the corner after it appeared their season was in serious danger. Just shy of a Wild Card spot for now, the team could finally have two-punch stability between the pipes. Joseph Woll has exceeded expectations since coming in for Stolarz, with a .921 SV% and 10-4-2 record.
There’s not yet a specific return date for Stolarz, but he and Woll figure to give Toronto a formidable duo entering the final push of the season.
Elsewhere across the league:
- Philadelphia Flyers star Travis Konecny has had an eventful last few days, but returned to the lineup tonight, shared by Jackie Spiegel of The Philadelphia Enquirer. Konecny missed Saturday’s game after an upper-body injury from the day before, and came back to practice yesterday, which seemed to be a good sign. The 28-year-old then left yesterday’s skate with another injury, unable to catch a break. Thankfully back tonight without a hitch, Konecny was ejected from the game for abuse of officials, as reported by Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia. The Flyers top forward will look ahead to next Wednesday’s game in Buffalo.
- Buffalo Sabres defenseman Mattias Samuelsson was shaken up late in tonight’s loss against Florida, and Head Coach Lindy Ruff had no immediate update postgame, per Rachel Lenzi of The Buffalo News. Samuelsson has missed just two games on the year, his play as a top pairing blueliner a huge part of Buffalo’s revival of late. The 25-year-old appeared to be favoring his right arm after taking a spill. The Sabres are back in action Wednesday, hosting Konecny and Philadelphia, hopefully not sans their lefty minute-eater in the midst of his best campaign yet.
Metro Notes: Konecny, Grundstrom, Wilson
Philadelphia Flyers winger Travis Konecny missed the team’s game Saturday as the result of an upper-body injury he suffered Jan. 8 against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Earlier today, he was on the ice for practice, a development that was, temporarily, a good sign for his availability moving forward. But the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jackie Spiegel reported shortly afterward that Konecny left practice with an injury, and added that he “seemed to have trouble walking to the room.”
While there’s no official update from the Flyers on Konecny’s status, this reporting from their practice does cast into doubt Konecny’s likelihood of being available for the team’s game tomorrow against the Lightning. Any significant injury to Konecny would deal a massive blow to the Flyers’ competitive hopes. The 28-year-old’s 38 points in 42 games ranks second on the team behind Trevor Zegras, and his efforts have helped the Flyers amass a 22-13-8 record a little over halfway through the season. The hope, obviously, will be that Konecny’s injury scare today ends up being only something minor.
Other notes from the Metropolitan Division:
- The Flyers told reporters today that winger Carl Grundstrom missed practice with an illness, and that his availability for tomorrow’s game is questionable. Grundstrom has had a hot start to his time in Philadelphia, scoring seven goals and eight points in 17 games. Acquired as part of the trade involving Ryan Ellis’ contract in early October, Grundstrom worked his way onto the Flyers’ NHL roster with strong AHL performances and looks to have a firm grip on an NHL lineup spot thanks to his goal-scoring streak. A pending UFA making $1.8MM this season, Grundstrom has likely aided his upcoming free agent fortunes considerably in his brief stint so far with the Flyers.
- Washington Capitals winger Tom Wilson, who remains out with a lower-body injury, skated in the team’s practice today with a non-contact jersey, per Bailey Johnson of The Washington Post. Consequently, Wilson is not expected to be available for Washington’s game against the Predators tonight. Wilson hasn’t played since Jan. 5 due to his injury, missing three games. The 31-year-old has 42 points in 41 games this season.
Injury Notes: Konecny, Eberle, Parekh
The Philadelphia Flyers announced mid-game that star Travis Konecny would not return due to an upper-body injury.
Konecny has yet to miss a game this season, recording 37 points in 41 games, and notching the team’s only tally of the night as they lost in overtime to Toronto. Although he did not return for the third period, the forward was seen doing a television interview at the intermission beforehand, which hopefully indicates that his injury is not serious, and the decision was for more precautionary reasons.
Philadelphia has continued their winning ways of late, impressively second in the Metropolitan, and they will cross their fingers that their second-leading scorer will not miss any time. The team is right back in action on Saturday, hosting Tampa Bay.
Elsewhere across the league:
- Shortly before their home tilt against Minnesota, the Seattle Kraken shared that forward Jordan Eberle will not play, with an upper-body ailment. The team will be missing their captain for the first time this season, who somewhat surprisingly has turned back the clock in 2025-26, on pace for his best season with the Kraken. The 35-year-old has 15 goals in 41 games, after finding the back of the net just 26 times in the last two seasons combined. Eberle could return as soon as Saturday in Carolina, as the team hopes to fend off competitors in the Pacific Division and earn their second-ever playoff appearance.
- Zayne Parekh’s return to the Flames lineup will be delayed, as the defenseman has been listed as day-to-day with an upper body injury, as reported by Eric Francis of Sportsnet. Although not immediately clear, it is most likely that the ailment comes from Parekh’s time leading Team Canada in the World Junior Championship. With just one point in 11 games so far in the NHL, Calgary is in no rush with their 19-year-old prized prospect, and in the meantime, Hunter Brzustewicz will hold his spot in the lineup. Parekh could return Saturday afternoon in Pittsburgh.
Eastern Notes: Konecny, Devils, Kuntar
Philadelphia Flyers forward Travis Konecny is coming off a career-high 76-point season, but the 28-year-old will need to clear one final hurdle to truly elevate his game to the next level, writes the Hockey News’ Jonathan Bailey.
Konecny is coming off of a bit of a two-part season. He started 2024-25 with a bang, which included 17 goals in his first 38 games. However, he struggled mightily down the stretch, posting just seven goals in his final 44 games. What’s more, he was only able to light the lamp twice over the final 25 games of the season. Despite those struggles during the second half, Konecny (who skated in all 82 games and participated in the 4 Nations Face-Off), still finished with a career-high 0.927 points per game.
However, as Bailey sees it, Konecny will need to surpass the point-per-game mark to truly enter the conversation among the league’s elite. By doing so, Konecny will likely maintain consistent play throughout the season. While the 4 Nations Face-Off may have slowed Konecny’s steam down the stretch, his hope to participate with Team Canada in the 2026 Olympics will force a similar situation next season.
Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference:
- While the organization has taken several steps forward in recent seasons, the New Jersey Devils believe they are now ready to truly compete for the Stanley Cup. Per NHL.com’s Mike G. Morreale, New Jersey assistant general manager Dan MacKinnon said, “To put it succinctly, it’s time to take another step.” MacKinnon acknowledged that injuries played a role down the stretch last season, which ended with a five-game, first-round loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. Injuries last season included Jack Hughes missing the remainder of the year after undergoing shoulder surgery in March, as well as defensemen Luke Hughes and Brenden Dillon going down in Game 1 of the playoffs. All three are expected to be ready to go to start next season, and the additions of veterans like Connor Brown and Evgenii Dadonov should only help the cause. “I think the one thing we were looking for is better 5-on-5 play, and you look at the goal totals of Brown and Dadonov, a majority come at 5-on-5,” said GM Tom Fitzgerald. “We feel we’ve definitely added to what we felt we needed in depth. But, again, you want players to level out and be consistent with their play from October to the end of the season.”
- Forward Trevor Kuntar, 24, signed a one-year deal with the Buffalo Sabres’ AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans, seeking not only a fresh start but also the opportunity to follow in his father’s footsteps and play for his hometown team, per team reporter Andrew Mossbrooks. Kuntar, a native of the Buffalo area, signed with Rochester after spending the last two seasons in the Boston Bruins organization. After three seasons at Boston College, Kuntar signed with the Boston and appeared in 124 games with the AHL’s Providence Bruins, posting 13 goals and 32 points. Kuntar is now set to wear the same jersey his father, Les Kuntar, wore for Rochester during the 1996-97 season.
Team Canada Announces Initial World Championship Roster
Hockey Canada has followed up news of their World Championship coaching staff by announcing the first 15 players on their tournament roster. The team is a healthy mix between veteran NHL experience and burgeoning stars. That includes reigning first overall draft pick Macklin Celebrini, who will receive his first chance to join Canada’s Men’s team. Celebrini will operate down a loaded center depth chart, behind NHL stars Bo Horvat and Ryan O’Reilly.
Celebrini is the headliner, but Canada will embrace a major youth movement with this lineup. They’re also bringing young forward Adam Fantilli and Kent Johnson, as well as defenseman Ryker Evans. All three players proved their worth as everyday NHL talents this season – Fantilli with a 30-goal season, Johnson with 57 points, and Evans with a routine top-four role in Seattle. Interestingly, the roster does not yet contain 2023 first-overall pick Connor Bedard, who scored eight points in 10 tourney games last summer.
Team Canada has also invited 22-year-old goaltender Dylan Garand – the only invitee to not spend the entire season in the NHL. Garand instead served as the starter for the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack, where he managed a .913 save percentage and 20-10-8 record. He’ll likely be the third-string goaltender once Canada adds more experienced pros currently in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Evans’ role on defense will be sheltered by major supports in the form of MacKenzie Weegar, Noah Dobson, Brandon Montour, and Travis Sanheim. All four players are top defensemen for their NHL clubs and collectively form a very experienced blue-line for the international lineup. None of Canada’s first five defense invites were on the World Championship roster last year.
The current roster is as follows:
F Macklin Celebrini (Sharks)
F William Cuylle (Rangers)
F Adam Fantilli (Blue Jackets)
F Tyson Foerster (Flyers)
F Barrett Hayton (Hockey Club)
F Bo Horvat (Islanders)
F Kent Johnson (Blue Jackets)
F Travis Konecny (Flyers)
F Ryan O’Reilly (Predators)
D Noah Dobson (Islanders)
D Ryker Evans (Kraken)
D Brandon Montour (Kraken)
D Travis Sanheim (Flyers)
D MacKenzie Weegar (Flames)
G Dylan Garand (Rangers)
Flyers Notes: Konecny, Sanheim, Grans, Ersson
There are only two days until rosters are announced for the 4 Nations Face-Off but we may already have a sneak peek at a couple of players that will play for Team Canada. According to Anthony Di Marco of Daily Faceoff, Philadelphia Flyers’ players Travis Konecny and Travis Sanheim will be named to Canada’s roster.
Konecny would be an unsurprising addition to Team Canada. He’s been a point-per-game player for the Flyers over the last three years with 77 goals and 159 points in 161 games and has represented Canada well in the past. Konecny tallied eight assists in 10 games during the 2017 IIHF World Championships and two points in five games for Team Canada’s U20 team during the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championships.
Sanheim’s inclusion on the roster would be an interesting development. Along with increased ice time, his scoring has increased over the last two years but Sanheim’s name typically isn’t mentioned with the top Canadian defenseman. He hasn’t suited up for Team Canada since the 2022 IIHF World Championships when he scored one goal and four points in 10 tournament games.
Other Flyers notes:
- The Flyers organization announced a small roster move earlier today by loaning defenseman Helge Grans back to their AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Grans’ demotion could correlate with the return of defenseman Jamie Drysdale or the team may not feel the need to carry eight defensemen on the active roster. The Ljungby, Sweden native tallied one assist over six games with Philadelphia averaging 14:28 of ice time per game.
- Philadelphia is nearing the reality of a full goaltending trio as Jackie Spiegel of The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that goaltender Samuel Ersson was a full participant at today’s practice. Ersson hasn’t played since November 11th due to a lower-body injury. Still, over 11 games with the Flyers this year, he’s managed a 5-2-2 record with a .902 save percentage and 2.70 goals against average.
Cam York To Miss At Least Two Weeks
The Flyers will find themselves without a key defender for the next little while. The team announced (Twitter link) that Cam York will miss at least the next two weeks due to an upper-body injury.
York sustained the injury late in Wednesday’s game against Washington on a hit from Nic Dowd. The 23-year-old had a breakout showing last season with 30 points in 82 games while recording 174 blocked shots, all career highs. His 22:37 ATOI was also his best by a considerable margin as he established himself as a top-pairing player alongside Travis Sanheim.
It has been more of the same for York in the early going this season. He has two goals and an assist along with ten blocks in seven appearances so far. Meanwhile, his playing time is up to 22:56 per night, good for the team lead in that regard (just ahead of Sanheim). Accordingly, his absence is a big one for a team that has already struggled out of the gate, winning just once through their first seven games.
For the moment, York has not been placed on injured reserve and veteran Erik Johnson will take his place in the lineup today against Minnesota. However, with the team now down to just six healthy rearguards, they’ll likely want to add a seventh in which case they may opt to put York on IR to create the roster spot to do so.
While York will be out of the lineup, the same can’t be said for winger Travis Konecny. Listed as day-to-day yesterday with what head coach John Tortorella termed a ‘body injury’, Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia relays (Twitter link) that Konecny will be in the lineup today. He’s tied with Matvei Michkov for the team lead in goals with three and sits tied for second in points with four.
Metropolitan Notes: Konecny Contract Details, Daws, Rempe
Earlier this week, one of the more prominent potential 2025 unrestricted free agents came off the market when the Flyers inked winger Travis Konecny to an eight-year, $70MM contract extension. The breakdown of the deal wasn’t announced at the time of the signing but PuckPedia reports (Twitter link) that it’s as follows:
2025-26: $2MM base salary, $9MM signing bonus
2026-27: $5.25MM salary, $3MM bonus
2027-28: $3.5MM salary, $7.5MM bonus
2028-29: $4.6MM salary, $6MM bonus
2029-30: $4.35MM salary, $5MM bonus
2030-31: $2.1MM salary, $4.5MM bonus
2031-32: $6.6M salary
2032-33: $6.6M salary
The deal also contains a full no-move clause for all eight seasons along with a 14-team no-trade clause in each season. In this instance, the NMC is protecting against a waiver placement.
More from the Metropolitan:
- The Devils have three restricted free agents still to sign, one of which is goaltender Nico Daws. His agent, Quartexx’s Paul Capizzano, told Kristy Flannery of The Hockey News that the two sides are getting closer to a resolution on a new deal. The 23-year-old posted a 3.15 GAA with a .894 SV% in 21 starts with New Jersey last season, numbers were nearly identical to his 25 appearances the year before. Daws also put up a 2.89 GAA with a .890 SV% in 10 games with AHL Utica. With Jacob Markstrom and Jake Allen in place, Daws will head into next season in a third-string role after Akira Schmid was moved to Vegas at the draft.
- After having a very limited role when he was in the lineup down the stretch last season, Rangers winger Matt Rempe told reporters including Larry Brooks of the New York Post that he’s hoping to secure a more prominent role for next season, singling out the penalty kill as an area he wants to work on. The 22-year-old averaged just 5:38 in 17 games during the regular season so even becoming a passable option shorthanded could allow him to play more of a regular role as he looks to lock down a full-time roster spot.