Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer reported today that Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren has stated James Van Riemsdyk will return to the line-up tomorrow night against the Buffalo Sabres.
JVR has been out since Thanksgiving with the ever-popular “upper body injury,” but thankfully the schedule has been fairly light in his absence. The Flyers’ record is 2-1-0 in that span, with the one loss coming from the New York Rangers, who have only lost on home ice in regulation this season to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Following Wednesday’s tilt in Buffalo, the team faces the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday for the first of six meetings. Although the defense is still fairly banged up, the forward lines will be the healthiest they’ve been since opening night.
JVR’s return will require that coach Peter Laviolette shuffle the lines once more. In all likelihood, either Wayne Simmonds, Max Talbot or Brayden Schenn will fall to the fourth line with Sean Couturier and Zac Rinaldo.
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Got to get JVR with Schenn.