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The Philadelphia Flyers had a scare on Friday evening when Alex Lyon had to be called up on an emergency basis after Carter Hart left practice early with back spasms. On top of that, defenseman Philippe Myers was also absent from the lineup on Friday night. There were some worries that these could be more serious issues, but fret not. Both players were on the ice for practice on Saturday.
In fact, it must’ve just been a minor issue for Hart as he was announced as the starting goalie for Sunday afternoon’s game against the Capitals. He said that he is “definitely feeling a lot better today” and that he “erred on the side of caution” on Friday.
While Myers returned to practice, he wasn’t on his usual pair with Travis Sanheim. Instead, he was on the fourth pair with Mark Friedman.
Pairings:
— Charlie O'Connor (@charlieo_conn) February 6, 2021
Provorov-Gostisbehere
Sanheim-Braun
Hagg-Gustafsson
Friedman-Myers
So Myers might not be back tomorrow. Couturier looks like he's in, though. Just led center ice end-of-practice stretches and got the stick taps and cheers from his teammates.
As Charlie mentioned in his tweet, Myers may be nearing a return but not exactly ready to go for tomorrow. Both he and Couturier are listed as day-to-day, per the Flyers.
Couturier was a very welcomed addition at practice. He is one of the Flyers’ most important players and his return would do wonders for the whole team.
Not only was Couturier on the ice, but Alain Vigneault wanted to get him on a line with James van Riemsdyk and Jakub Voracek. He also practiced on the top power-play unit. This is great news for Couturier, who was “seven to 10 days” away from returning on February 2nd, just four days ago. However, Vigneault isn’t sure when Couturier will be a full-go to return to the lineup.
Coach Vigneault on Sean Couturier's availability: "There is no doubt he's getting closer. Whether that be tomorrow, Tuesday or a short time after that, I'm not sure...I'll have a better idea in the next couple of hours." pic.twitter.com/PDSlHBrpHx
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) February 6, 2021
Couturier and Myers both might be a few days away still, but it’s great to see Hart playing it safe and ready to go for Sunday. Outside of Morgan Frost, the Flyers have been able to avoid long-term major injuries early in the season. Couturier was a tough loss, but it looks like he’ll be back before too long.
The Flyers will try to get back to their winning ways on Sunday in Washington, D.C. Hart will be between the pipes and we’ll have to wait and see if Couturier or Myers return to the lineup.