31-year-old veteran blueliner may be forced to retire
It was only a year ago that the Philadelphia Flyers acquired defenceman Ryan Ellis from the Nashville Predators in exchange for Philippe Myers and Nolan Patrick. What looked like a great deal for the Flyers almost immediately backfired when a hip injury held Ellis to only 4 games last season.
Early reports suggested that Ellis would be ready for training camp with the Flyers this fall, but according to Flyers writer Anthony SanFilippo, things have not been going well for Ellis. During an appearance on the Stick to Hockey podcast, SanFilippo had this to say about Ellis' progress:
100%, he's not playing. I know he's not gonna be ready for the start of the season. I don't think he's playing at least through the first half of the year, probably not all year, and could be for his career. That's kind of where I was told where it was at.
Losing Ellis would be a massive blow to the Flyers' plans to bounce back and compete this season. As it stands, the Flyers are not likely to be in the playoff picture and with their current cap structure, won't be competitive for several years.
As for Ellis himself, it's always sad to see a player's career end before they're ready. I sincerely hope that this report proves to be wrong and that Ellis can return to hockey at some point this season.
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