Flyers Place Konecny on IR; Recall Hotshot Prospect

The Philadelphia Flyers placed star right winger Travis Konecny on the injured- reserve list Saturday and recalled left winger Elliot Desnoyers from the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms.

Philly (23-27-10) is now without four of its best players: Konecny, Sean Couturier, Ryan Ellis, and Cam Atkinson.

Desnoyers, who has had an excellent rookie season with the Phantoms, will wear No. 73 and make his NHL debut Saturday night in New Jersey.

Konecny, 25, leads the Flyers in goals (27) and points (54). He was injured Monday in Calgary and was wearing a sling during the road trip. The Flyers are only calling it an upper-body injury.

Desnoyers, 21, leads the Phantoms in goals (19) and points (36) in 48 games. He is third among AHL rookies in goals.

On scoring tear

Nicknamed “The Destroyer,” he has 12 points (five goals, seven assist) in seven February games. He had a career-best four points Sunday against Hartford.

“I’m working hard every day to to win some games and get my teammates better and improve myself,” Desnoyers said. “… Right now it’s going great and my teammates have been helping me a lot.”

The 5-foot-11, 183-pound forward was drafted by the Philadelphia Flyers in the fifth round (No. 135 overall) in 2020. He is the first Flyer to reach the NHL from that draft class.

The Flyers could have recalled right winger Tyson Foerster, but decided to promote Desnoyers. Desnoyers and Foerster both helped Team Canada win the World Juniors in August.

“Desi is just improving,” Phantoms coach Ian Laperriere said, using another of Desnoyers’ nicknames. “He’s playing the right way; he’s doing the right things. He’s a good pro in practice and in games.”

Laperriere said the “sky is the limit” for Desnoyers. “I know the other young guys around him learn from Desi even if he’s only 21 years old. They see his approach to the game every day and his approach to life.”

Sam Ersson and Olle Lycksell are other Phantoms who made their NHL debuts with the Flyers this season.

As for Konecny, he was was injured Monday in the second period when he took a hit from Calgary’s MacKenzie Weegar. He sat out the rest of the game — a 4-3 Flyers win — and missed Tuesday’s 4-2 loss in Edmonton and Friday’s 5-2 defeat to Montreal.

The Flyers have lost six of their last seven games.