The past three days have not been fun for Philadelphia sports fans. The Eagles lose and Brandon Graham suffers a season long Achilles injury. Phillies blanked by the 102-loss Baltimore Orioles. Ben Simmons refuses to play for the 76ers this season.

It’s about time we share some GOOD NEWS for one of the teams in this city, isn’t it? So if you see any good news let me know and I’ll gladly write it up.

Because until then I have even MORE bad news to share with all of you, as the Flyers announced today that center Kevin Hayes underwent abdominal surgery and will miss the next 6 to 8 weeks. Additionally, defenseman Samuel Morin will miss the next 6 to 8 weeks after undergoing knee surgery to remove loose particles from his joint.

Wade Allison, who suffered a right ankle sprain, will also be out of action indefinitely.

For a team just days away from starting training camp it’s not great to already be dealing with injuries, especially to a player as valuable as Hayes is to their success.

The Hayes injury is a surprising one, as it was believed he was healthy coming into the year. According to Flyers Coach Alain Vigneault, yesterday Hayes felt a groin issue while skating. He underwent an MRI this morning, which confirmed the injury, and had surgery today.

By all standards Hayes had a down year in 2020-2021. The season was shortened to only 56 games due to COVID-19 and Hayes registered 31 total points on the year, scoring 12 goals and notching 19 assists.

Here’s what Crossing Broad beat writer Russ Joy had to say on the injury implications:

“Following a successful first campaign with the Orange & Black, Kevin Hayes had a down year in the abbreviated 2021 season. Missing the “hair on fire” energy and failing to play the 200ft. game head coach Alain Vigneault preaches, Hayes was one of many disappointments for the team. Hayes appeared poised to leave that woeful effort in the past following the addition of friends Cam Atkinson and Keith Yandle, however the sudden passing of his brother Jimmy sent shockwaves throughout the hockey community. Vigneault said on Tuesday that Hayes has expressed a desire to remain around the team as he recovers from this surgery, and it stands to reason that he’ll have some added motivation to get back onto the ice as he’ll have to opportunity to make an immediate impact when he returns.”

Morin’s injury was a little less surprising. Our own Anthony SanFilippo reported Morin’s injury yesterday.

His report was met less enthusiastically by former Flyer Riley Cote.

But in the end it seemed Anthony was correct, as Morin will miss upwards of two months.