The Philadelphia Flyers were caught off guard when Matt Niskanen decided to retire at the beginning of the offseason. The veteran defenseman was penciled in as the team’s top right defenseman after helping form a strong top pair with Ivan Provorov last season. However, Niskanen rode off into the sunset and the Flyers are hoping that it won’t be too big of an issue for them this season.
Niskanen played nearly 22 minutes a night, including on the power play and penalty kill. He was a steady presence on the top pair that could be relied on in all situations.