The Philadelphia Flyers’ extended look at Morgan Frost is going to have to come at a later date.
On Thursday, the team announced that the 21-year-old center will be out indefinitely with a dislocated shoulder that he suffered during the Flyers’ 3-0 win on Tuesday against the Buffalo Sabres when he collided with defenseman Jake McCabe. He was placed on injured reserve.
The 2017 first-round draft pick (27th overall) played in 20 games last season with two goals and five assists was called in for the Flyers’ second two-game series of the 2020 season against the Sabres after Sean Couturier suffered a rib injury.
He did not record a point in the two games he played against Buffalo. Connor Bunaman has stepped in for Frost since and was placed on the fourth line to work with Michael Raffl and Nic Aube-Kubel. Scott Laughton was promoted to a top-nine role.
Bunnaman, 22, made his NHL debut last season, appearing in 21 games with a goal and an assist along with a plus-7 rating.
On the blue line, the Flyers also lost Philippe Myers to a fractured rib that will keep him out “week-to-week.”
“Injuries are part of it; [it’s] next man up,” Flyers head coach Alain Vigneault said. “We’re ready to go.”
The 23-year-old has been working as a second-pairing defenseman and will be replaced by Mark Friedman, who has just seven career NHL games under his belt over the previous two seasons.
“He was extremely hard as far as competing and battling,” Vigneault said of Friedman. “This year, I would say his camp was just OK, and we made that very clear to him, and he’s picked it up since then, even though he hasn’t had a chance to play. He’s been waiting for this opportunity, so I expect him to play real hard and to compete.”
