Carter Hart, Morgan Frost to return for the Flyers against the red-hot Ducks

IRVINE, Calif. — It was an easy decision for John Tortorella. Carter Hart is good to go and will start against the Anaheim Ducks on Friday night.

Hart left halfway through the first period against the Buffalo Sabres on Nov. 1 and missed the next three games with a back injury.

“[Kyle Okposo] was trying to get up and he fell on the lower half of my back and it just kinda hurt getting up,” Hart said. “I couldn’t really move for a few days and I feel a lot better now.”

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The goalie needed a few days for his back to calm down and did feel better over the weekend. He was a full participant in practice on Monday in San Jose and again on Thursday. Hart is 2-1-0 in three career games against Anaheim with a 2.03 goals-against average and a .941 save percentage.

With the Flyers traveling three goalies deep, who will be the backup is yet to be determined. Cal Petersen was in net for the 5-0 loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday. Sam Ersson started two of the three games Hart missed — a win against the Sabres and a loss to the San Jose Sharks — and was in net for a 7-4 shellacking by the Ducks on Oct. 28.

It is not just the weather that has gotten warmer as the Flyers headed south to Orange County. Morgan Frost, who found himself iced out, has been thawed out and is also set to return to the lineup.

By now, everyone knows the relationship between Tortorella and Frost has been ... frosty. The 24-year-old forward has suited up for just six of the Flyers’ first 13 games — four straight before Tuesday — but has yet to register a point. It’s a far cry from last year when he notched 40 points over the final 54 games.

“Probably put the puck in the net would be a good start,” Frost said when asked what he can do to maintain a presence in the lineup. “I don’t know, I think just play better in general. ... I thought the last couple of games I played, I was getting better but obviously sat out the last one and now back in. So, just trying to make an impact.”

In front of a sprinkle of fans at Great Park Ice & FivePoint Arena, Frost was sporting the same gray jersey as Owen Tippett and Travis Konecny at another spirited Flyers practice. Tortorella acknowledged that he has been happy with Frost’s play away from the puck but wants to see him step up his offensive game.

“It’s always hard to sit someone out,” Tortorella said. “Frosty’s in a spot where, if he’s not playing in the top-six I don’t have a spot for him. He’s not killing penalties. I’m not going to put him in between [Nic Deslauriers] and [Garnet Hathaway]. I just don’t think he fits there. So it kinda limits sometimes situations as far as where I find him.

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“So, he’s going to play on the power play, he’s going to be put in an offensive situation and I just need to be able to hang my hat on something as we go through there.”

It’s a key spot for Frost to showcase the offensive punch and high hockey IQ he’s been known to have. And despite being a guy who has been in and out of the lineup, he’s not going to sit back now that he’s back in.

“Obviously you’re on a bit of a shorter leash than some other people. ... Of course, it adds a little bit more pressure but I think the way that I play the game of hockey, if I am out there scared to try stuff then I’m just an average player out there. I need to try and make things happen,” he said.

The Ducks are hot. A shutout loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday ended a six-game winning streak that included wins against the Boston Bruins, Vegas Golden Knights, and Penguins. ... Nic Deslauriers, who spent 169 games wearing a Ducks jersey, will play in his 600th NHL game on Friday. ... It is a homecoming for Anaheim Hills native Cam York. The defenseman played in his 100th NHL game on Tuesday and will have a cheering section in place at Honda Center. ... Mike Richards is back in Orange and Black. The former Flyers captain will play in the team’s alumni game against the Bruins old-timers on Jan. 26 as part of the build-up to the Flyers Hall of Fame induction of Mark Recchi. Drafted by the Flyers with the No. 24 pick in the 2003 draft, Richards played 453 of his 749 NHL games with the Flyers and potted 349 points (133 goals, 216 assists).