After a lost season to injury, Rasmus Ristolainen is finally ready to go for a Flyers season opener

VANCOUVER, British Columbia ― The leaves are turning colors along the Vancouver seawall, and the air is filled with the cool crispness of a cold rink. Hockey returns for the Flyers on Friday night, albeit after dark, as they hit the ice for their season opener against the Vancouver Canucks.

The first of 82 games, it’s always special. For Matvei Michkov and Jett Luchanko, it marks the beginning of what will hopefully be long and fruitful careers. But the new kids on the block aren’t the only ones set to have a special night.

Rasmus Ristolainen may be a veteran of 713 NHL games but it marks a new chapter for him too. For the first time since being acquired in the summer of 2021 from the Buffalo Sabres, Ristolainen will skate in a Flyers season opener.

“Yeah, it’s been a while,” he said. “It feels great to be healthy and be with the guys again. And you know, it felt like forever since I played my last game, so I’m very excited and ready to go.”

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The blueliner missed the last three lid lifters because of injury, and skated in only 31 games last season. He didn’t make his debut until Nov. 25 because of an undisclosed lower-body injury and then suffered an upper-body injury in mid-February, causing him to miss the rest of the way.

Ristolainen underwent two surgeries, including a repair to a ruptured triceps tendon in April. Following the first day of on-ice activity at training camp, he revealed that he had the surgeries involving “two injuries in the same place.” He tried to rehab and get back after the first one during the season but had to undergo another one after the season.

“Big key was first to be healthy and to be able to train and play 100 percent,” said Ristolainen, who spent the summer rehabbing split between Voorhees and home in Finland. “I had a good offseason and time to get prepared mentally and physically. So I’m feeling very good.”

Ristolainen will play in his first game since Feb. 10 and the blueliner is just focusing on being hard to play against, taking care of his own net, and chipping in offensively. He has 285 points (52 goals, 233 assists) in his career, including posting four straight 40-plus point seasons with the Sabres.

“He had a great camp, a really good camp,” coach John Tortorella said. “Out of all the guys, I thought his camp was one of the better ones I’ve seen. I think he’s a little aggravated with some of the injuries he’s gone through, [and] how little he played last year. I think he’s ready, and it’s a big plus for us in having a big right-handed defenseman being ready to go. He’s been all business during camp.”

Whether or not there will be some nerves, it should help that he’s slotted alongside Egor Zamula who, according to Natural Stat Trick, he skated with for 23 of 31 games in 2023-24. Of the three pairings who played more than 190 minutes together, Ristolainen and Zamula had the second-best Corsi For percentage at five-on-five with 50.5% of the shot attempts in the Flyers’ favor; the No. 1 pairing was Nick Seeler and Sean Walker at 53.53%.

“We started playing [together] last year, and we have better communications this year, and we are friends off the ice ... and he helped me a lot,” said Zamula.

“I know him 100 percent, his style of the game,” he added. “I feel very comfortable playing with him.”

The Flyers will be without Seeler on Friday as he remains day-to-day with a lower-body injury. The Flyers placed Seeler on injured reserve Friday and recalled Emil Andrae. The move is retroactive to Oct. 1, so the transaction doesn’t necessarily mean Seeler will be out for an extended period.

Seeler watched the team’s practice on Thursday at the University of British Columbia. It was his fifth missed practice since he blocked a pass late in the second period of the Flyers’ preseason game against the Boston Bruins on Oct. 1.

Tortorella acknowledged the hole Seeler leaves on the blue line from penalty killing to blocking shots — “just our whole identity.” The bench boss now expects other guys to step up.

“[Ristolainen’s] obviously a giant, big boy, and throws his body around well and [is] real physical,” said Jamie Drysdale, who is expected to play with Erik Johnson with Seeler out. “[He] can contribute in all areas of the game. So he’s a [heck] of a player, and should be fun to watch.”

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Big boy indeed. At 6-foot-4, 208 pounds, he brings a formidable presence on the blue line.

“What he does, he brings a skill set that a lot of us don’t have,” defenseman Travis Sanheim said. “Big body, a physical presence, just a nice stability piece back there who makes good plays at the puck. He’s hard on the offense, and he’s going to be a big add for us, obviously. We missed him last season, and sure, he’s ready to get going.”

Indeed he is. Eleven years and nine days ago he skated in his first NHL game at the age of 18; yes he was nervous going up against the Detroit Red Wings. Friday night he’ll skate in game No. 714.

“It’s kind of crazy how quickly it [goes],” Ristolainen said. “I remember being a rookie and young, and now you look around [and I’m] one of the most experienced guys. So, just try to help the young guys out and lead by example.”

Sean Couturier and Ryan Poehling did not participate in morning skate. Noah Cates skated in Couturier’s place and was expected to be a healthy scratch against the Canucks. Both Couturier and Poehling were expected to play in the game. ... Luchanko’s parents made the trip and will see him skate in his first and second NHL games.