Flyers prospect Samuel Morin again tears his ACL and is expected to miss rest of season

Samuel Morin’s season is probably over and no one knows if he will ever play in the NHL again.

Morin, the Flyers’ top pick in the 2013 NHL draft, tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee Wednesday for the second time in 18 months. The 6-foot-7, 230-pound defenseman will undergo surgery and have another long rehab in front of him

The injury occurred while he was playing for the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms in a 4-2 win Wednesday over Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

Morin, 24, played in one game for the Flyers this season and was sent to the Phantoms on a conditioning stint.­­­

Flyers coach Alain Vigneault met with Morin before the team’s 3-2 overtime win Thursday over visiting Montreal.

“There’s no doubt that we feel for him,” Vigneault said. “There’s a kid that spent the whole summer here trying to get himself back to playing. He accepts to go to the minors to play some games and I guess on a nothing play, he heard his knee pop. Very unfortunate. Hopefully he’ll want to put himself through all that yearlong rehab and give himself another chance to play.”

Morin is expected to eventually be put on the long-term injured list, giving the Flyers $700,000 of cap relief. They will need even more cap room when Scott Laughton comes off the long-term injured list.

Morin went through an arduous rehab to get ready for this season. He had a solid training camp, made the roster, and patiently waited for his turn in the lineup.

“You never want to see one of your good buddies get hurt,” Flyers defenseman Phil Myers said. “After what he’s been through, I’m here for him. You never want to see anybody get hurt.”

In the win over Montreal, the Flyers had no penalties in a game for the sixth time in franchise history -- and the third time in the last two seasons. ... Justin Braun and Carsen Twarynski each had six hits, and Kevin Hayes had six shots and was 7-for-13 on faceoffs.