Flyers' Couturier undergoes another back surgery, out 3-4 months
Philadelphia Flyers center Sean Couturier underwent back revision surgery on Thursday and will miss approximately three-to-four months, the team announced Saturday, according to NHL.com's Adam Kimelman.
This marks Couturier's second back surgery in less than a year after his season-ending procedure in February.
He was originally expected to be a full participant at this year's training camp before getting hurt again. In late September, the team announced he wouldn't need another surgery.
Couturier hasn't played since Dec. 18 and was limited to 29 games last season.
When healthy, the 29-year-old is one of the game's premier two-way centers. From 2017-18 to 2020-21, he averaged 31 goals and 75 points per 82 games and only missed 13 total contests. He finished second in Selke Trophy voting in 2018 and won the award in 2020.
The Flyers have relied on Kevin Hayes, Scott Laughton, Morgan Frost, and Lukas Sedlak to fill out their center depth this season in Couturier's absence.
Philadelphia's forward depth in general has been tested this year. Cam Atkinson has yet to play due to an upper-body injury, and now James van Riemsdyk is set to miss six weeks after undergoing surgery to repair a broken finger.
Despite the injury issues and low expectations entering the season, the Flyers currently sit atop the Metropolitan Division with a 5-2-0 record.