This is the time of year where we hear all about the injuries players were playing through in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. But we also have some offseason injury news and updates regarding Florida Panthers forward Anthony Duclair and Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Ryan Ellis that are going to be potentially significant going into next season.
Duclair suffers Achilles injury while training
Let’s start with Duclair and the Panthers.
Word first leaked out on Wednesday that he was dealing with a potentially significant Achilles injury that could require surgery and sideline him for a significant amount of time. Duclair confirmed that news on Instagram and it is pretty bad news for both him and the Panthers.
Duclair has found a home in Florida the past couple of years and is coming off a fantastic 2021-22 season that saw him score 31 goals.
He is reportedly going in for surgery on Thursday.
That will be a significant loss for the Panthers offense. It would open up around $3 million in salary cap space if he ends up on LTIR (which he presumably will) but they are not going to find a better, more productive player than Duclair would be.
Still no timetable for Flyers’ Ellis
Ryan Ellis was one of the main additions for the Philadelphia Flyers defense this past offseason, but injuries limited him to just four games during the 2021-22 season. The Flyers still have no idea when he will be ready for games again.
General manager Chuck Fletcher addressed that on Wednesday and said he is not sure if the defender will be ready for training camp and that he is dealing with a “multi-layered injury” and any speculation on a timeframe would be premature.
Perhaps most concerning was Fletcher’s assessment that Ellis is not even skating yet and is still facing “the bulk” of his recovery ahead of him.
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Adam Gretz is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @AGretz.