MAJOR: Flyers Defenseman Joins the Military
The Philadelphia Flyers head into the 2023-24 season with another rebuilding year ahead, and while they seem far away from becoming a threat in the East, they've certainly got some promising young pieces.
A consistent force
One of those players is Rasmus Ristolainen, who has been a consistent player at the NHL level over the past decade, spending the past two years with the Philadelphia Flyers.
In 682 games at the NHL level, Ristolainen has tallied 51 goals and 281 points, and now, a surprising off-season for the veteran defenseman has been revealed by John Tortorella.
A Finnish tradition
According to his Head Coach, Ristolainen is going to take some time to get integrated with the team, because like other stars, he spent the summer engaging in mandatory military activities with the Finnish military.
This is the same mandatory activity that the Utah Jazz's Lauri Markkannen, Colordo Avalanche's Mikko Rantanen and so many others have undergone in recent years, and now, he'll look to get back in hockey shape ahead of the 2023-24 season.
| POLL | ||
SEPTEMBRE 26 | 79 ANSWERS MAJOR: Flyers Defenseman Joins the Military Can the Flyers become a playoff team over the next five years? | ||
| Yes | 52 | 65.8 % |
| No | 27 | 34.2 % |
| LIST OF POLLS | ||
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Jason Robertson | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Chandler Stephenson | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Sebastian Aho | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jalen Chatfield | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Mikael Granlund | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Roope Hintz | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Wyatt Johnston | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Brandon Montour | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| William Nylander | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Mitch Marner | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Jaden Schwartz | - | 2 | 2 | |
| John Tavares | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Jamie Benn | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Evgeny Dadonov | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Yanni Gourde | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Pontus Holmberg | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Fraser Minten | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Ryan Poehling | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jack Roslovic | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Daniel Sprong | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Jets | 19 | 16 | 3 | - | 32 | |
Hurricanes | 18 | 14 | 4 | - | 28 | |
Capitals | 18 | 13 | 4 | 1 | 27 | |
Wild | 18 | 12 | 3 | 3 | 27 | |
Maple Leafs | 20 | 12 | 6 | 2 | 26 | |
Devils | 21 | 12 | 7 | 2 | 26 | |
Rangers | 17 | 12 | 4 | 1 | 25 | |
Panthers | 19 | 12 | 6 | 1 | 25 | |
Stars | 18 | 12 | 6 | - | 24 | |
Golden Knights | 19 | 11 | 6 | 2 | 24 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||