Photo Credit: Frankie Steskal
Flyers’ General Manager Chuck Fletcher was left with a gaping hole on the blue line when Matt Niskanen officially announced his retirement one day before the NHL Draft was set to commence last year. Niskanen was a very reliable Right-Handed Defenseman that was on the top pairing, while being paired with a work-horse in Ivan Provorov.
Fletcher approached this offseason trying to replace Niskanen, and he accomplished that with obtaining Ryan Ellis and adding Rasmus Ristolainen to the mix. The Flyers were in a free fall, and beaten on a regular basis. Gone are those days as Ristolainen will not sit back and allow his fellow teammates to get pummeled and cheaply barreled into.
Ristolainen offers the Flyers another dimension this season, and that was made evident last night after Ristolainen hit everything that moved. He barreled players away from the front of the net of Martin Jones, and stuck up for Claude Giroux with a big hit at the end of the first as the horn sounded. Giroux was hit by a Capital moments prior, and Ristolainen didn’t like it. Gone are the days no Flyer sticks up for one another, as Ristolainen has registered seven hits in just two preseason games played, after laying five hits last night.
Moreover, Ristolainen wrapped up Conor Sheary preventing him from getting to a rebound opportunity in the first period last night against the Washington Capitals, last year the puck would have been deposited in the Flyers net, but not last night, “He brings that dimension there is no doubt that every time he is on the ice if I am the opposition I am making sure my head is up high because he is hard to play against and he makes the opposition pay and he is coming along, coming to a new team, new teammates, new way of playing, new style of playing,” Alain Vigneault said last night following the game
Risto eats minutes, and that is what the Flyers need for a 1A/1B defensemen. He pairs effectively with Travis Sanheim, as Ristolainen sees sort of a reduced role with the orange and black, “I think we’re a tight group and that’s what you want to see out there, and it was fun,” Ristolainen said.
“That’s a big part of my game. What I really enjoy, and just try to bring some energy out there. Obviously, we can’t be too physical, and can’t try to hit people all the time.” – Rasmus Ristolainen
26-years-old, Ristolainen, is a Right-Handed Defenseman that can be physical and pot a goal as the Flyers found out earlier this year. He can be seen as an underperforming defenseman for the Buffalo Sabres, but it is the Sabres, a team that was stockpiled with rich prospects and talent. Ristolainen is blessed with toughness, and possesses one heavy shot, and that could become a key on the power play for the Flyers.
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This former Sabres defenseman plays a really sound two-way game. He is a strong and well-balanced skater, and Ristolainen plays with a physical component to his game and has become more disciplined. Ristolainen stands at 6’4, weighs 218 pounds and can clear the porch in a big way. Carter Hart would see just about every shot with him on the ice, as he could be seen dragging players from the front of the net.
Ristolainen, plays with an edge and he possesses solid puck moving skills as he likes to be involved with the play. He logged an average ice time of 22:17 for the Sabres last season, and he registered four goals and 14 assists for 18 points in 49 games played. Ristolainen was recovering from Covid-19 (Which took a heavy toll on him physically), and he still had a solid season.
Fletcher has been on record saying, “I want us to be a tough team to play against,” well adding Ristolainen to the fold provides exactly that. Ristolainen should be given every shot, as he comes from an underperforming Sabres team. His analytics say he is bad, but he played for a Sabres team that has been awful for the past few seasons, and that’s being generous to say that. Let’s see how he does with the orange and black
Precisely! Well written.
Watching Risto last night gave me hope for a more physical style of play from this team than in recent years.
We’ll never be back to Broad Street Bullies style of play, but Risto offers a more finessed and justified show of force.
His powerful hits should be seen as a natural follow through for any opposing player’s unfortunate placement or infraction against a Flyers teammate. Let them be warned and hopefully fear it!