A month ago, Brandon Manning seemed like a long shot to be in the Flyers’ defensive rotation, but there he was Tuesday against Anaheim, playing alongside Travis Sanheim on the team’s third pairing.
It’s a testament to Manning’s hard work to recover from offseason back surgery — and to his solid play when called upon. That enabled the Flyers to insert him into the lineup instead of recalling Samuel Morin from the Phantoms.
Andrew MacDonald is sidelined for four to six weeks because of a leg injury suffered blocking a shot Saturday. Manning was part of a shuffle that saw all three pairings changed Tuesday.