Quick Hits: July 22, 2020
1) The early departure of goaltender Carter Hart from the Flyers' scrimmage on Tuesday afternoon quickly overshadowed the scrimmage itself. There was no obvious play where an injury occurred, such as a collision around the net or a save attempt from which the goalie struggled to get back up afterward. However, Hart never looked comfortable or settled in before returning to the dressing room midway through the first period. He gave up three goals on five shots before giving way to Alex Lyon.
Due to the NHL's policy -- per the terms of their return-to-play agreement with the NHLPA -- of teams not revealing anything about the nature of a player's departure of absence, all the Flyers were allowed to do was acknowledge that Hart had left the scrimmage. They couldn't even confirm the obvious that it was an injury (much less even using the upper/lower body designator and especially not the specific injury) as opposed to illness.
Flyers center Kevin Hayes offered a little bit of reassurance, albeit with no specifics.
"I think it's nothing too serious," Hayes said. "Obviously, it's important to get in game shape and get game-ready but if you have something that's minor that you don't want to push, it's not a big deal to get off the ice like that. I don't think it's anything major."
Added assistant coach Ian Laperriere, "I know that he left the ice, that's all. That's what the league wants us to say and that's all I know."
Later in the day, NBC Sports Philadelphia's Colby Cohen tweeted out that a source told him Hart had suffered mild back spasms and removed himself from the scrimmage as a precaution against it worsening. If that is the case, the goalie should be able to return within a few days.
However, the info that Cohen obtained is not allowed to be confirmed or refuted by any coach or front office source. If Hart is missing from Wednesday's practice, the most the team can say is that he's "unfit to practice". Get used to it, because that's how it's going to be for the duration of camp and postseason play.
In the case of Flyers right winger Jakub Voracek, the player himself volunteered the information that his absence from last Saturday's scrimmage was due to a delayed and inconclusive Covid-19 test before a retest confirmed that the player (who felt fine) was not a potential asymptomatic carrier. In the case of Boston Bruins star David Pastrnak, it was the player's agent who went public with the information that he was not Covid-positive or being disciplined by the team but, rather, had been exposed to someone who was Covid-positive and was held back as a precaution.
Voracek defended the new mandatory secrecy policy. On Sunday, he said that players should have a right to medical privacy and it should be up to the individual to choose whether or not to publicly disclose the information. In his case, he did not mind sharing it because it was an innocuous situation.
2) Team Orange defeated Team Black in overtime, 7-6, in Tuesday's scrimmage. Claude Giroux scored twice, including the OT winner, to lift his side. Kevin Hayes notched a hat trick for Team Black in a losing cause. A scrimmage recap, observations and quotes will be available this morning on the Flyers' official website. Jason Myrtetus also has a rundown on today's edition of Flyers Daily on the Flyers Broadcast Network.
3) Hockey Hall of Famer Chris Pronger has been added to the list Flyers Alumni who will be participating in a "Night Out at Home" -- a Zoom-based wine-tasting event being held by the Flyers Alumni Association on July 29, with proceeds going to benefit Snider Hockey. The list of participating Flyers Alumni already included Danny Briere, Scott Hartnell, Bill Clement, Brad Marsh and Steve Coates with Lou Nolan serving as emcee.
With many of the Flyers Alumni's signature fundraising events waylaid this year by Covid-19, the Association has had to get creative on coming up with ways to raise money and continue to serve charities and community organizations throughout the Delaware Valley. That need was the genesis of the "Night Out at Home" event; a way for Flyers Alumni to interact with fans, for everyone to taste the same Wines Til Sold Out (WTSO) selections chosen by a professional sommelier from the comfort and safety of their own homes, and to raise money for the one primary charities for whom the Flyers Alumni work year-round to support in any way possible.
For more information on "A Night Out at Home" and the available packages for the tasting, click here.
4) July 22 Flyers Alumni birthday: Gord Hynes (1966)
5) Chris Therien and I had a blast last Friday as the special guests on the weekly Flyers Warriors virtual happy hour Zoom call, where we ran down our views on the Eastern and Western Conference playoff picture and give predictions for the qualifying round series. We were joined not only by Flyers Warriors players but also by members of the newly created St. Louis Blues Warriors as well as members of the Flyers PowerPlay wheelchair hockey team.
Last night, I had the pleasure of going on the Flyers PowerPlay call and talking with Brad Marsh and team members about the Flyers' training camp and outlook heading into the postseason.
Both conferences were a lot of fun, and I'm looking forward to doing another soon: hopefully to discuss a victorious run for the Flyers in the playoffs.