Flyers Activate Cam York; Recall Jacob Gaucher

The Philadelphia Flyers have added reinforcements ahead of tonight’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets. According to a team announcement, the Flyers activated defenseman Cam York from the injured reserve. Philadelphia also recalled forward Jacob Gaucher from the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms.

Unfortunately, the transaction comes with some bad news. The Flyers have also moved defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen to the injured reserve with an upper-body injury. Yesterday, reports revealed that Ristolainen is expected to miss the next few weeks after re-aggravating a left-hand injury that has already cost him nine games this season.

York, 25, has faced a similar absence with his upper-body ailment. The former first-round pick has gone scoreless in five games before the injury, earning a -6 rating while averaging 21:49 of ice time per game. Although he hasn’t scored, York has blocked 10 shots and delivered five hits.

He will presumably reunite with Jamie Drysdale on Philadelphia’s second defensive pairing. Assuming Nick Seeler moves down to the bottom pairing, York’s return means either Simon Benoit or David Jiříček will be a healthy scratch tonight.

Although York’s return gives the Flyers more defensive depth, they didn’t need to rush him back to play with Travis Sanheim on the top pair. Fellow first-rounder Oliver Bonk has become one of Philadelphia’s few bright spots this season, registering four assists in seven games and averaging 56.6% xGoals% with Sanheim.

Meanwhile, Gaucher returns after being reassigned on Sunday. The Flyers aren’t dealing with any new injuries to their forward corps, so Gaucher will likely serve as an extra tonight. He has gone scoreless in three games with a +1 rating, averaging 9:11 of ice time per game.