The Philadelphia Flyers finally provided an update on the status of injured defenseman Philippe Myers and forward Morgan Frost. The prognosis, however, isn’t exactly positive.
Myers suffered a fractured rib in Tuesday night’s victory over the Buffalo Sabres and is considered week-to-week. Frost, meanwhile, is out indefinitely with a dislocated left shoulder. The Flyers placed Frost on IR.
Injury updates:
Morgan Frost suffered a dislocated left shoulder and is out indefinitely. He has been placed on IR. We will provide further details about his return to play timeline in the near future.
Philippe Myers suffered a fractured rib and is considered week-to-week.
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) January 21, 2021
The loss of Frost will certainly test the Flyers’ depth at center. The Flyers are already without Sean Couturier, and Frost’s absence likely means more line juggling is on the horizon. Does this mean Claude Giroux will temporarily slide back to center? Could Scott Laughton be promoted to 3C as a taxi squad player — perhaps Connor Bunnaman — fills in on the fourth line? Both are legitimate options, though far from ideal.
Losing Myers doesn’t do the Flyers any favors either. The 23-year-old — set to turn 24 on Monday — was playing valuable minutes for the Flyers at 5-on-5 and on the penalty kill. While the 6’5 defender hadn’t registered a single point in the Flyers’ first four games of the season, his defensive abilities alongside Travis Sanheim paid dividends.
Replacing Myers will be no easy task. Robert Hagg and Erik Gustafsson have not proven reliable on the Flyers’ third defensive pairing, and Shayne Gostisbehere is currently out of commission due to COVID-19 protocols. This may be an opportunity for 25-year-old Mark Friedman to earn an extended look with the big club, but he’s only appeared in a grand total of seven games in his NHL career.
The Flyers are facing some early adversity to start the season. Now, they’ll have a chance to prove if they can still compete even without some of their key pieces.
