Ristolainen missed the first six games of the regular season but is set to make his season debut on Thursday. In his first season with the Flyers in 2021-22, Ristolainen had 16 points (2G / 14A), a minus-9 rating, 125 blocked shots and 230 hits in 66 games.
Wayne Simmonds will see his first NHL action of the 2022-23 season Saturday as the Maple Leafs head to Winnipeg to take on the Jets. After being waived early in the season, Simmonds is expected to slot into a fourth-line role for the struggle Maple Leafs. Simmonds became a member of the 1000 games club last season and currently sits on 1019 games played. Throughout his 14-year career, he has 263 goals, and 524 points to go along with 2121 PIMs.
The two-year extension will start at the beginning of the 2023-24 season, with an AAV of $2,200,000. He will continue to back up Jacob Markstrom until at least 2026 after collecting 14 wins in his first 20 starts since coming to Calgary in 2021-22. He holds a career .902 SV% and 2.88 GAA in three NHL seasons.
Ristolainen missed the first two games of the season, and moving him to IR opened up a roster spot for the Flyers to call up Louie Belpedio from Lehigh Valley (AHL) for the Flyers' three-game road trip.
Simmonds cleared waivers and was assigned to the Marlies to open the season. However, with Matt Murray landing on LTIR, the Maple Leafs had enough cap space to bring him back. He skated as an extra on Sunday, so don't expect him to be in the lineup vs. the Coyotes on Monday.
Tucker Poolman was hurt in Saturday's game against the Flyers, so Juulsen comes up to serve as the Canucks No.7 defenseman in Washington. Juulsen did not record a point and had nine PIMS in his first two AHL contests of the season.
Vladar will surprisingly get his first start of the 2022-23 season Saturday in the Battle of Alberta for the undefeated Calgary Flames. Vladar enjoyed a decent first season in Calgary last season, posting a .906 SV% while winning 13 of his 19 starts backing up Jacob Markstrom.
Vladar will surprisingly get his first start of the 2022-23 season Saturday in the Battle of Alberta for the undefeated Calgary Flames. Vladar enjoyed a decent first season in Calgary last season, posting a .906 SV% while winning 13 of his 19 starts backing up Jacob Markstrom.
Tippett suffered an upper-body injury in the Flyers' season opener and was placed on IR on Saturday. Tippett now has to miss at least one week and the move created a roster spot for the Flyers to recall Olle Lycksell from Lehigh Valley (AHL).
Ristolainen was nicked up in practice earlier this week, missed the season opener and will miss their second game as well. Unsurprisingly, John Tortorella did not provide many details on Ristolainen's injury, so keep an eye on if he travels to Tampa for next week's road trip.
Tippett played just 4:20 TOI before exiting Thursday's game with an upper-body injury. With Tippett ruled out for Saturday's contest, Jackson Cates was recalled from the AHL and look for Joel Farabee to remain in his spot on PP1, after taking over for him there on Thursday.
Owen Tippet left Thursday nights game against the Devils with an upper-body injury. The 23-year-old 2017 first-round pick was only able to play 4:20 before heading to the Flyers' dressing room to end his night. Tippett produced seven points (4G/3A) in 21 games after being dealt to the Flyers as part of the Claude Giroux mega deal in 2021-22.
The 26-year-old defenceman signs a $50 million extension with the Philadelphia Flyers after collecting 116 points (29G/87A) in 335 games while averaging over 20 min TOI (20:18) throughout his career. He starts his sixth season with the Flyers Thursday as they take on the New Jersey Devils at home.
Ristolainen left Wednesday's practice early and did not participate in Thursday's morning skate. Ristolainen is considered day-to-day and will not play in the season opener. Justin Braun will move up to the top-4 and Nick Seeler will suit up with Ristolainen unavailable.
Dvorak was not on the ice for Friday's practice and is considered day-to-day. Until the Canadiens provide more details, consider Dvorak questionable for their season opener vs. the Maple Leafs next Wednesday.
Zegras left the game after he was crunched at centre ice by Coyotes' forward Jan Jenik. Zegras was slow to get up and did not return to the game. Expect the Ducks to provide an update on his status in the coming days, but with the start of the Ducks' season just 13 days away, he could be in danger of missing the start of the campaign.
Brink underwent hip surgery in July after being injured in off-season workouts. Brink turned pro following his Junior season, where he had 57 points (14G / 43A) in 41 games with the University of Denver. Brink had four assists in 10 games with the Flyers.
