Chuck Fletcher looking towards next season with Flyers injured players

Even with the big bomb dropping with the Sean Couturier news, there was plenty more to come when Chuck Fletcher spoke on Friday morning. Injuries were a big topic of choice and there was a lot to cover. Ryan Ellis is one of the biggest topics and has been since the Flyers’ biggest offseason trade piece has only appeared in four games this season.

There hasn’t been a lot of updates with it comes to Ellis and what he has been dealing with. He hasn’t been skating at all and has only been coming into the building for his treatments. It’s tough to be part of a new team and hardly get to see your teammates at all. It also makes it hard to evaluate what the Flyers have on defense when they’ve only been able to see Ellis and Ivan Provorov in limited minutes together.

At this point in the season, it is a longshot that Ellis could make his return. The team is trying to avoid surgery if they can, one that even if it took place a few months ago, would end his season. They will look at a few other treatment options but will have to make a decision very soon on what they would like to do. The expectation would likely be that we won’t see Ellis again until next season.

"“We’re starting to get to a point in the year, though, where obviously his health is first and foremost. And the second issue is making sure he’s ready for next year. We’re getting close to that point.”"

That seemed to be how Fletcher viewed most of the players that have been recently sidelined. As of the moment, Couturier is the only one who has been completely ruled out for a return this season. A decision on Ellis is certain to follow in the next few weeks. Kevin Hayes is another one that could see his season come to an end as well.

Already having three surgeries on his core, there’s a possibility that a fourth surgery could be in his future. Hayes has been seeing different specialists in order to determine the next course of action. For now, he has been receiving treatments and taking part in numerous rehab skates. Fletcher called it a 50/50 situation on if he would return to play this year.

Ellis and Hayes are in similar situations in which both players did come back from the injuries they sustained, only to be forced back out of the lineup. It’s been a much longer stretch in Ellis’ case, but Hayes has dealt with numerous issues that seem to all stem from the same problem. Fletcher didn’t seem to be concerned that Hayes returned too early. But it’s a similar situation on how they are viewing all of the players that are currently sidelined.

"“The focus for all these guys, A, what’s in their best long-term interest in terms of their health and B, can we get them ready for the 2022-23 season.”"

At the moment, the Flyers only have 12 healthy forwards with them. Joel Farabee, who was expected to be out for four weeks after an upper-body injury, has been skating with the rehab group prior to practices. He’s been out of the lineup since he last played on January 25th. His current timeline appears to still be on track.

Patrick Brown last played on January 8th and after missing the Flyers’ next practice, he was soon diagnosed with an MCL sprain that would see him out for about four weeks. There had been some hope that he could return after the All-Star break, but things haven’t necessarily progressed in the right direction. Not a setback, but not positive news either.

With the Flyers currently last in the Metropolitan Division and 17 points out of a playoff spot, it may be time for the team to start seeing what they may have in some of their other prospects. Isaac Ratcliffe is an example of someone who has been given a chance recently with the lack of forward depth the team currently has. Max Willman and Gerry Mayhew have also been given more minutes as well.

The team has essentially been forced to take a look at what they have, but they also need to make sure to focus on their long-term development as well. So while there may be some more players who get the opportunity to show what they can do, playing in Lehigh Valley right now will be beneficial for players as well.

Some players that could see a return to the NHL during the next few weeks would be Morgan Frost and Cam York. They were sent down during the ASG break but did not return when the Flyers came back. There doesn’t appear to be a rush to get them back and with their minutes dropping recently, the Lehigh Valley option seemed to be the right one.

Fletcher has a lot to evaluate with the trade deadline coming up next month. It’s clear this team has all but run out of time to make a serious push. Looking at next season for more than just the injured players should be the way moving forward.