Joel Farabee back in lineup for Flyers, Carter Hart out with illness

It’s good timing for Flyers interim head coach Mike Yeo as forward Joel Farabee will return to the lineup tonight, the head coach confirmed Saturday morning in his press conference.

Farabee missed the last week after suffering a shoulder injury, putting him on injured-reserve. The forward has recorded seven goals and three assists for 10 points in 21 games played this season and will be an added boost to the roster going into the busy Christmas period.

“Joel will be in the lineup tonight and it’s good timing not only with the people missing, but also because he is an important player for us,” Yeo said. “He’s a guy we’re not going to take lightly, he’s going to be playing with Coots [Sean Couturier] and TK [Travis Konecny] tonight. Not only is he good offensively, but he does a lot of smart things without the puck. He is comfortable going against top players as well.”

“He’s been doing well this week and been able to get into some practices so he’s been feeling well.”

“I’m glad to see him back, he’s brought some good energy and right now we need everyone here so I’m excited to see him back available tonight,” Couturier said about Farabee’s return.

Carter Hart out with undetermined illness

The Philadelphia Flyers will be without goaltender Carter Hart for at least Saturday’s home game against the Ottawa Senators.

Flyers interim head coach Mike Yeo confirmed Saturday morning that Hart is sick with an undetermined illness, ruling him out for tonight’s game. Forward Max Willman is also unavailable for the team after being placed in the league’s COVID-19 protocol.

“We learned about Max last night and he won’t be with us for the time being, but Carter we found out this morning,” Yeo said in his morning press conference. “We know he is sick, but we don’t know yet what it is that is bothering him.”

Hart has posted a 7-8-4 record for the Flyers this season, starting in 19 games and also registering a 2.74 goals against average. Martin Jones will start in goal for the Flyers at the Wells Fargo Center, while the team is also aiming to call up a back-up goaltender for the game.

Derick Brassard’s return still unknown

The Flyers have been without two of their offseason acquisitions for most of the season, but one should be making his return soon.

Forward Derick Brassard returned to action from a lower-body injury last week in Vegas, but has been back on the sidelines due to a hip issue. Yeo confirmed while Brassard isn’t fully ready to jump back into the lineup, he’s making progress which is a good sign for the Flyers offense.

“I know he had a good day yesterday and with him it’s about making progress and we seen some bright lights at the end of the tunnel,” Yeo said about Brassard. “Obviously we have some guys out of the lineup, but whenever you see guys moving closer to returning, it’s a good feeling. I’ve had some good thoughts about where we are and how we want to play our game.”

The 34-year-old Brassard has scored four goals and contributed seven assists for 11 points in 18 games for the Orange and Black, but has been a huge loss for the depth on the lower offensive lines.

Philadelphia is looking to rebound from Thursday’s shootout loss to the Montreal Canadiens.