Philadelphia Flyers defensemen Kimmo Timonen, Andrej Meszaros out indefinitely-NHL News
The two key defensemen of the Philadelphia Flyers, Kimmo Timonen, Andrej Meszaros, are reported out of the side indefinitely with respective unknown lower body injuries.
Flyers were left without the two players in the game against the Washington Capitals on Sunday, March 04, 2012.
Now their general manager, Paul Holmgren, has said that the players were carrying lower body injures, but did not disclose the nature and current status of the injuries.
He broke the news of the injuries during the team’s warm-ups before the start of the weekend’s game.
Holmgren said that both of them are out indefinitely, and refrained from saying anything further with regard to their recovery and return.
Timonen has played all 63 games for the team this season and has appeared in the record-high 248 consecutive games for Flyers.
With a total of 34 assists, he is ranked at the third position on the league’s defensemen rating table. He has overall 8-plus rating, with two goals and 34 assists.
The player who had luckily remained healthy and fit during the entire current season is certainly going to miss quite a few games during the rest of the season, which is not a good development for the team.
Meszaros, in the meantime, is not far behind Timonen. He has only missed one game for the team this season, and is with 6-plus rating after scoring seven goals and 18 assists.
Both players have played immensely well into the team’s performance and wins and their absence at the time when the playoffs are closing in may affect the team’s run for the second round.
As a makeshift arrangement, the management has called Erik Gustafsson from their affiliate in the American Hockey League (AHL). The player has played 18 regular games for Flyers this season and has a goal and two assists with an 8-plus rating.
Flyers are another team with so many issues with its defensemen, as the Detroit Red Wings face the similar situation.
Even though there is no information if the players will be out of the team in the longer run, an extended period of time consumed on the recovery will certainly hit Flyers’ playoff chances hard.
There is no word from the management if they are working on the alternatives such as finding permanent replacements to the injured players if they remain uncertain.
Timonen will especially be their foremost priority, and if the player is unable to report back his fitness sooner, Flyers shall be looking to weigh their alternative options such as bringing in his replacement.
The situation around the chances of the players’ return is expected to be clear in next couple of days as the status of their injuries remains unknown at the present.
Tags: