The Philadelphia Flyers just can't catch a break on the injury front.
Saturday’s matchup against the New York Rangers took another tough turn when center Rodrigo Abols went down early in the first period. Just over six minutes into the game, Abols took an awkward fall into the boards - the kind that makes you wince before the replay even starts.
It looked like his skate got caught in the ice, trapping his right ankle beneath him as he went down. The result wasn’t pretty, and the Flyers quickly ruled him out for the rest of the night with what they’re calling a lower-body injury.
Abols, skating in his 42nd game of the season, had been carving out a steady role on the Flyers’ fourth line. While not a headline-grabber, he's chipped in 3 goals and 10 points so far - the kind of contributions that don’t always make the highlight reel but add up over the grind of an 82-game season.
This latest setback is another blow to a Flyers squad already dealing with its fair share of injury woes. Abols is one of four Flyers named to their respective Olympic rosters this past summer, representing Latvia.
But now, three of those four are on the shelf. Goaltender Dan Vladar (Czechia) and defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen (Finland) are both currently sidelined, leaving the Flyers not only shorthanded in NHL play but also potentially in Olympic representation if these injuries linger.
The team hasn’t provided a detailed update on Abols just yet, but based on how the injury looked and the immediate decision to rule him out, this could be more than just a day-to-day situation. For a Flyers team trying to stay afloat in a tightly packed Eastern Conference, the timing couldn’t be worse.
We’ll keep an eye out for more information as it becomes available, but for now, the Flyers are down another key depth piece - and the injury list keeps growing.