At least one Philadelphia Flyers player has needed an offseason surgery to have them ready for next season. The first was to do so was Rasmus Ristolainen.
He has surgery on a ruptured triceps tendon and is expected to recover in three months. He is expected to be ready for training camp in the fall. The surgery was performed at TMI Sports Medicine Institute in Arlington, Texas by Dr. Keith Meister. He is the head orthopedic surgeon for the Texas Rangers
With Ristolainen waiting until after the season to have surgery despite missing the last two months of the season, one has to wonder what his availability would've been for the playoffs. By waiting this long, it can be assumed that he could've played at that point. If not, there was no reason to wait this long for surgery. While we'll never know the answer to that, we do have an answer on what was ailing Ristolainen when he went out in February.
It wasn't an easy season for Ristolainen. He was limited to 31 games this season where he posted one goal and four points. He missed the beginning of the season, spending time on IR and LTIR with an undisclosed injury. Ristolainen made his season debut on Nov. 25 and played in 31 straight games before missing the rest of the season. There was word he underwent a procedure in February that would help determine the extent of the injury. He has not been ready for an opening night start since joining the Flyers in 2021.
Ristolainen's 31 games are his lowest total since his first year in the league with the Sabres in 2013-14. He has only played in all 82 games once. That was his third season in Buffalo in 2015-16. During the season, there was talk that the Flyers could be interested in trading him. We know that the Leafs had a potential interest in him at one point. He has three years remaining on his contract that carries a 5.1M cap hit. He does not have a no-move clause, giving the Flyers flexibility if they were to entertain a trade.
With the surgery, it's unlikely the Flyers can move him right now. But with the young defensemen that have come up and are in the pipeline, it's not out of the question for Philadelphia to see if the interest is still there once he recovers. Ronnie Attard and Adam Ginning faired well in their limited minutes. Emil Andrae could earn a full-time roster spot soon, while Oliver Bonk has shown promise with the London Knights. Nick Seeler signed an extension so he isn't expected to go anywhere.
Space is tight on the backend and the Flyers may want to see what else they have.