‘Nothing short of spectacular’: Sean Couturier named Flyers’ Masterton Trophy nominee

BUFFALO, N.Y. — It’s been a rollercoaster of a season for Sean Couturier.

The Flyers forward inched up the track when the puck dropped on Oct. 12 and picked up steam. He looked like the Sean Couturier of old, the guy who won the Selke Trophy in 2020 as the NHL’s best defensive forward. He was seeing time on the power play and the penalty kill and was centering the Flyers’ top line.

He skated in 31 of the first 33 games of the season and notched 23 points (nine goals, 14 assists), had a plus-minus of plus-5, and was tied for 25th in the NHL in takeaways (25). He was playing almost 20 minutes a night, No. 1 on the team among forwards.

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Unfortunately, like any rollercoaster, what goes up must come down, and since the holiday break, Couturier has struggled. In 39 games, he has 13 points (two goals, 11 assists) and is a shocking minus-15. And last month Couturier was a healthy scratch for the first time in his 12-year career. He is currently day-to-day with an upper-body injury.

But while his season has been like a cyclone — amid all that, he was shown love by the Flyers and named the 20th captain in team history on Feb. 14 — just the fact that he is on the ice is an accomplishment in itself. On Oct. 12 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, Couturier stepped onto the ice for a regular-season game for the first time in 663 days.

It is why the 31-year-old forward was selected as Philadelphia’s contender for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, an annual nod to the player “who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey.” Each of the 32 Professional Hockey Writers Association chapters selects a nominee and members vote. After three finalists are named, the winner will be announced in June.

“Even before he got hurt, he was so important to the team,” winger Joel Farabee said. “You just see how hard he’s worked these last two years just to get his body back and a lot of stuff that you guys probably don’t see, just how hard he’s worked and the time he’s really put in to get back into the NHL and to be back playing. He’s definitely someone I’ve always looked up to since I came into the league, and he’s been a great friend and a really good leader. So having him back is awesome.”

The road back to the NHL was not an easy one. Back problems that began in 2020-21 continued to plague him the following season; Couturier played on Dec. 18, 2021, and then not again until this season. The New Brunswick native underwent two surgeries, including back revision surgery in October 2022. Questions began to surface if he’d ever play again, but after missing 135 games for the Flyers, he fought his way back.

“It was definitely tough,” Couturier said. “The first time I wasn’t too worried. I was just like, OK, done for the year, I’ll be back next year and it’s time to get ready for next season. But then, when that got taken away from me right before camp, that was kind of tough to accept. Started having, obviously, doubts and questions. ... Just happy that it’s behind me now and I can just focus on playing hockey and enjoy playing the game that I’ve been playing since I was a kid.”

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John Tortorella has called Couturier a “crusty old pro,” and has repeatedly said how much he respects the Flyers captain for how he has handled the last two years.

“He was a pain in the [butt] for me last year, because he wanted to play,” Tortorella said back in February when Tortorella began skating with the team in practices. “He did nothing but complain to me like this, that, and the other thing.”

“I’ve had to do it in the past and I couldn’t imagine two years,” said Erik Johnson, who missed his sophomore season after tearing his knee in a golf cart accident. “It’s a testament to just the resiliency that you have to have and really your grind and your work ethic. So, the way he’s come back, I mean, it’s nothing short of spectacular, I think. He’s got to be proud of what he’s done. And I know he’s still hungry for more.”

Couturier is definitely a gamer and there is no denying how important he is to the Flyers on a nightly basis. A captain who calls himself “more the quiet, try lead by example” kind, he was elevated from the fourth line back up to the top one on Monday, before suffering his upper-body injury on a hit from Ryan Pulock of the New York Islanders.

But it’s what he does away from the spotlight that makes him so integral. Farabee pointed out the time and effort he puts in, and how much he cares. That’s also something that Egor Zamula noticed about Couturier, whom he credits with helping him from the moment he became a Flyer.

“He’s always tried to help younger guys. You can speak with him, one-on-one if you want. He tries to help you. ... After I make a mistake, he comes to me and he tells me, ‘It’s a mistake. It’s a tough position to play, [defense], and those are good players,’” the blueliner said. “And Coots, a lot of respect to him after two years, no playing hockey, back surgery. It’s not easy. I know. I know how hard, I had two back surgeries too. I know how hard it is to recover the back and play hockey again. So I have a [heck] of [a lot of] respect for him.”

Perseverance. Sportsmanship. Dedication to hockey. Couturier surely checks all three.

“It’s hard for people to understand really,” said defenseman Marc Staal, who dealt with a debilitating eye injury that cost him almost an entire season during his New York Rangers days. “You could talk about it a lot, but I think just the amount of work that goes into that, you don’t really know unless you’ve gone through it. Not only is it physical, [it’s] mental and just staying with it every day and preparing yourself, it’s not an easy thing to do.”

Couturier is happy to be back on the ice and is pushing himself to get back to his best level.

“I know there were still doubts and questions all year long if my back would be able to sustain a full season,” Couturier said. “Now that’s behind me — and it was a tough, tough period in my career, in my life, the last year and a half. To kind of get over it and just focus on playing hockey and doing what I love most, that’s the most [enjoyable] thing.”