Flyers defenseman Cam York a healthy scratch vs. Kings

You know the mantra by now: No one is bigger than anybody else.

John Tortorella has said it ad nauseam over his two-and-a-half years in charge of the Flyers. And whether you agree with it or not, the Flyers bench boss’ actions have backed up his words.

Thursday provided the latest example as Tortorella revealed pregame that top-pair defenseman Cam York will be a healthy scratch against the Los Angeles Kings. The decision comes after York was benched for the final half of Wednesday’s 6-4 loss to the Detroit Red Wings.

York is far from the first prominent player to be a scratch under Tortorella with the Flyers. Travis Sanheim and captain Sean Couturier have been benched in previous seasons, while Matvei Michkov sat for two games earlier this year.

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“I’m not going to get into all the details,” Tortorella said of sitting York. “He has struggled since he’s come back. I just think he is kind of stuck in neutral a little bit. So he’s going to be out tonight.

“This is a player that hasn’t played well, that’s out of the lineup. You guys try to read into it. Hasn’t played well. I’m taking him out. I’m putting [Emil] Andrae in. There’s nothing else to it.”

York, 23, played just one shift after being culpable on a Detroit goal during the second period. On the play, the defenseman made an ill-advised pass that was picked off and resulted in a Red Wings 3-on-1 and an eventual goal by Alex DeBrincat. York finished a minus-one for the game, which followed a minus-two outing at the weekend in Minnesota.

Tortorella referenced York’s struggles since returning on Nov. 23 from an upper-body injury that kept him out for 13 games. In his 12 games back, York has one goal, one assist, and is a minus-one. The 2019 first-rounder has three goals, two assists, and is a minus-two in 19 games overall this season.

York, alongside a resurgent Sanheim, has established himself as one of the Flyers’ top two defensemen over the past two seasons. That said, he and Tortorella haven’t always seen eye to eye. York was a surprising cut ahead of the 2022-23 season by Tortorella, who said at the time that York needed to play more decisively and hadn’t shown him enough to deserve an NHL spot. After a spell in the minors, York eventually earned a permanent place on the Flyers blue line that season.

As far as Andrae, who has sat the past three games, Tortorella wants to see him stick to what has made him successful so far this season. He called Thursday against a bigger Kings team a good “test” for the 5-foot-9 defenseman.

“I want to see him make some plays,” Tortorella said. “The defending, he’ll make mistakes, he may lose a battle or two. But I want to see him get us up the ice and get our transition game going because that is the strength of his game.”

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