It’s another year and another injury for the back-end of the Philadelphia Flyers, which should make for interesting battles ahead of training camp.
Defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen underwent successful surgery on his triceps tendon rupture in late March after participating in one of his best seasons as a member of the Flyers. Unsurprisingly, they were quick to point out that he was expected to miss training camp and would be sidelined for about 6 months.
The worrying factor here is that Ristolainen underwent triceps surgery the year before after suffering the same injury. Recovery was tabbed to be three months in length and he was expected to be fully recovered by training, which he was. Now after re-aggravating his triceps, he’s out for twice as long.
2024-25 was Ristolainen’s first season in the Orange and Black where he suited up for Opening Night, but it sounds like for now the fourth time in five years he will miss the start of the new season. That in turn leaves a massive void on the back-end that will need to be filled in either by depth signings or internal options.
General manager Daniel Brière signed defensemen Noah Juulsen and Dennis Gilbert in the first few hours of free agency in order to shore up their depth at the position. Both players have NHL experience under their belt and Juulsen has spent the last 4 years in Vancouver – 3 under Rick Tocchet’s tutelage.
Internal options would include Emil Andrae and Yegor Zamula as well as potential prospects like Helge Grans or Hunter McDonald. The latter two seem unlikely, at least at this stage of the season, but a strong camp could push them further above on the totem pole.
The top-4 is all but solidified after Cam York’s 5-year extension was agreed upon. York, Jamie Drysdale, Travis Sanheim, and Nick Seeler will patrol the top two pairings, leaving the last pair up for grabs.
Andrae and Zamula should have an inside track on at least one spot. However, their performances last year, especially near the end of the season, left a lot to be desired for the front office. Nevertheless, the long-term outlook for Andrae remains promising and it might take a disappointing training camp to bump him off the pedestal for a spot.
Of the remaining options, Juulsen probably has the best chance to suit up, especially factoring in his ability to play the right-side of the defense like Ristolainen. The 6’2”, 200-pound defensive defenseman provided the Canucks with 16:17 ATOI, 101 hits, and 60 blocked shots in 35 games last season, as well as 82.1 minutes while shorthanded.
The British Columbia native suffered a season-ending lower-body injury at the end of February that had an initial timeline of 12 weeks. He had been placed on injured reserve earlier in the season as well after sustaining an undisclosed injury.
The expectation is that he will be ready for training camp and should that be the case, look for Juulsen’s steadiness to potentially win him a spot over Zamula and Gilbert.
That’s not to say that either defenseman doesn’t have a shot. Juulsen and Andrae have to still win out those spots in the bottom-4 with a strong training camp but Zamula does have a whole lot more NHL experience, which could be beneficial in the long-run, and Gilbert should be seen as a safety net in case of further injuries.
The 28-year-old Gilbert has 111 games under his belt across 6 seasons with Chicago, Colorado, Calgary, Buffalo, and Ottawa. In 2024-25, he suited up for 29 games and added 6 assists, 50 PIM, 10:29 TOI, 63 hits, and 36 blocked shots.
Zamula poses the most interesting debate amongst the group because he has been a consistent part of the defensive group over the last two years. He suited up in 66 games during the 2023-24 season and 63 games in 2024-25 but he had a noticeable dip this past season.
Zamula does carry a 1-way contract, which perhaps keeps him on the NHL roster at the very least as a 7th defenseman, however much more is needed from the 25-year-old who will be playing for a new contract in the summer of 2026.
Training camp should feature some intense battles amongst the quartet who will all be vying for a spot with the big club. Andrae, Gilbert, Juulsen, and Zamula all have legitimate claims to making the team, but they will need to put their best foot forward with a new coaching staff in place and Ristolainen’s spot needing to be filled.
