The Philadelphia Flyers announced a pair of transactions on Friday afternoon ahead of their season-opener against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena at 10 p.m.
Flyers defenseman Nick Seeler was placed on injured reserve retroactive to Oct. 1. (Photo: AP)
First and foremost, the Flyers have placed veteran defenseman Nick Seeler on injured reserve, retroactive to Oct. 1.
The 31-year-old defenseman has been unable to practice since taking a puck to the knee against the Boston Bruins in a preseason game, which has subsequently caused Seeler to experience numbness in his leg.
Because Seeler has been unable to practice and the Flyers open the season on a four-game road trip across western Canada and Seattle, top defense prospect Emil Andrae was re-called from the Lehigh Valley Phantoms (AHL) as a corresponding transaction.
Andrae, 22, notably made the Flyers’ NHL roster outright last season, but only survived four games with limited ice time before spending the rest of the season in Lehigh Valley. After finishing an impressive AHL debut campaign with five goals, 27 assists, and 32 points in 61 games, Andrae was again considered to be a favorite to break through and stick in the big leagues in 2024-25.
Because the Flyers already had seven defensemen on their roster, including Seeler, Andrae was the victim of the numbers game despite making it all the way to the final round of cuts last week.
The young Swede has a golden opportunity to stake claim to a spot in the lineup, as it is currently unclear how much time Seeler will miss with this mysterious leg injury.
Associate coach Brad Shaw, who works closely with the team’s defensemen, indicated that the Flyers were befuddled by Seeler’s prolonged recovery.
Additionally, as one of the team’s younger and less experienced prospects, Andrae is likely to play a significant amount if and when he plays.
The Flyers would prefer Andrae to play loads of minutes in the AHL rather than sit and watch as a reserve player, so look for the 22-year-old to draw into the lineup sooner than later.
