Flyers deal Darroll Powe to the Wild

The Flyers have traded yet another forward! Ok, so this one isn't as big a deal as what happened a few days back, but the Flyers have dealt Darroll Powe to the Minnesota Wild for a 2013 3rd round pick.

Powe is a solid penalty killer and a great role player but the Flyers simply didn't have room for him on the roster. With the acquisitions of Brayden Schenn, Jakub Voracek and Wayne Simmonds and the recent re-signing of RFA Andreas Nodl, Powe was likely the odd man out. Factoring in the new guys gives the Flyers 11 forwards and when you add in the likely signing up Ville Leino, that makes the 12 forwards you need to suit up on a given night. Of course, the Flyers still might have something up their sleeves, like ridding themselves of Jody Shelley's contract or going out and signing a free agent forward with their available cap space.

With free agency set to start on Friday, I think the Flyers still have a few moves left in them. Nothing they will do can possibly be as shocking as what happened last week, though. Right?

Flyers re-sign forward Darroll Powe

To win a Stanley Cup, you need role players. According to CapGeek.com, the Flyers have brought back one of their role players, signing restricted free agent Darroll Powe to a one year deal worth $725,000. The contract will give him a slight raise over the $550,000 he made last season and will once again allow him to be a restricted free agent when it expires.

While Powe will never put up big offensive numbers, he is a solid 4th line forward who can kill penalties. Given that Blair Betts is likely to miss the first part of the season as he recovers from surgery, the Flyers will need a guy like Powe in the lineup. When Betts comes back, look for Powe to rotate being scratched with guys like Dan Carcillo and Jody Shelley.

In all, this is a solid signing for the Flyers because it gets them one step closer to getting rid of Riley Cote. As the team currently stands, they only have around $300,000 in cap space but once Cote is cut or sent to the minors, the Flyers will have close to $900,000 to work with.

Flyers lose Betts and Powe to injury

Just when you thought everything was looking up for the Flyers, they lose a pair of games and a pair of players in subsequent days. Philly had won 7 of their last 8 heading into Friday night's game with the Sharks, which they lost 6-3, then they headed to Phoenix on Saturday where they lost 3-1 to the Coyotes. A pair of losses on the road isn't necessarily a terrible thing but the team unfortunately also suffered a pair of significant injuries.

Blair Betts has been an unsung player for the Flyers, killing penalties and winning faceoffs in his checking line role. While Betts doesn't fill up a box score, he does all the little things that help hockey teams win. Unfortunately for the Flyers, however, Betts re-injured his right shoulder on Saturday night against the Coyotes, an injury that, according to Tim Panaccio, is expected to keep him out about a month. This will be the second time this season Betts has injured his right shoulder so concern has to be setting in about whether he will hold up at all this season.

The Flyers also will be without Darroll Powe, another forward who does the little things but has also had a scoring touch this season, for an undisclosed amount of time. Powe injured his left shoulder against the Sharks on Friday night and the Flyers believe that he will be out for several games.

It will be interesting to see who the Flyers call up and how they go about replacing Betts and Powe in the lineup. Youngster David Laliberte will likely remain with the team for a while but I am curious as to who else will step in and get some extra minutes. I wouldn't be surprised if Jared Ross is brought up for the first time this season.

No one the Flyers call up is likely to have the same positive impact that Betts has on the club, however.

List of injured Flyers, now nine deep, continues to grow

Okay, now this is just beyond ridiculous. The injury bug that has hit the Flyers this season has gotten completely out of control and has now inflicted over a third of the roster. The fact that the Flyers are even in second place in the Atlantic Division is a testament to just how deep and talented this team really is.

On Monday, GM Paul Holmgren went through the litany of injuries that the Flyers are dealing with, outlining the NINE players that are currently banged up. The latest major injuries are to winger Joffrey Lupul and goaltender Antero Niittymaki. Lupul is dealing with an abdominal pull and Niitty has a pulled groin and both players have been placed on Injured Reserve. Both figure to be out for about two weeks.

Adding to those latest injuries is news that Claude Giroux, Arron Asham, Josh Gratton, Darroll Powe and Jonathon Kalinski are all out with injuries. Giroux has a concussion and is day to day. Asham is dealing with a knee sprain but figures to return soon. Out with an abdominal injury is Gratton while Powe is dealing with a hip injury. Finally, Kalinski will be out the longest of this group as he was in the hospital getting blood drained from his left thigh. Look for him to be back in a week or so.

On top of all of these injuries, star players Simon Gagne and Danny Briere are still dealing with their own health issues. Gagne figures to try to play through the pain of his left shoulder but Briere will remain out for at least another week as he continues to recover from his groin injury.

All of these injuries leave the Flyers seriously thin at forward. With 7(!!) forwards likely out for the next game, several defensemen will continue to be forced to play offense. While the Flyers have called up Andreas Nodl to fill one of the forward spots and Simon Gagne will attempt to suit up, that still leaves three vacated forward spots. Luca Sbisa and Lasse Kukkonen are two likely candidates to move to the forward positions but the club is still one forward short. Goaltender Scott Munroe was called up from the Phantoms to replace Niittymaki in net so perhaps he could try his hand on the wings.

I have never before seen a hockey team have this many injuries. Luckily for the Flyers, key players like Mike Richards, Jeff Carter and Mike Knuble are still healthy along with their entire defensive unit. There is enough talent in this group to keep the team afloat for the next few weeks but it will be difficult for them to remain atop the Atlantic Division.

The best thing for the Flyers right now will be to finish up this road trip and head home and start healing up. None of these players are expected to be out for the entire season so the team should be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Let's hope that light isn't a train that will run into the rest of the players and knock them all out with injuries.