Lefferts said:
Flyers news - Kapanen hurt, out 10 weeks (shoulder) and Brian Savage signed to one year deal.
Here are the reports...
Kapanen to miss 10 weeks after surgery
Associated Press
9/15/2005 5:38:08 PM
VOORHEES, N.J. (AP) - Philadelphia Flyers forward Sami Kapanen needs surgery on his injured right shoulder and is expected to miss 10 weeks.
The 32-year-old Kapanen said he was hurt several weeks ago in a scrimmage. The Flyers said he will have surgery on Tuesday in Philadelphia.
The Flyers now have three players sidelined. Centre Peter Forsberg is out for about two weeks after undergoing surgery to remove an infected bursa sac in his ankle, and defenceman Derian Hatcher is also recovering from a slightly sprained knee.
Kapanen said he was frustrated by the shoulder injury, which involves torn cartilage. The native of Finland had just spent the summer rehabilitating a surgically repaired knee.
''Last month I finally started feeling good,'' he said Thursday. ''Not being able to play in the next couple months will be hard.''
Kapanen can begin to skate again in about eight weeks, team strength and conditioning coach Jim McCrossin said.
''It's better to face it now,'' Kapanen said. ''There's a couple weeks now where we don't play any regular season games. It kind of shortens up the time you're going to miss. It's better to fix it now than try to play with a bad shoulder.''
Kapanen had 12 goals and 30 points in the 2003-04 season.
Flyers sign free agent Brian Savage
Sports Ticker
9/15/2005 4:22:29 PM
PHILADELPHIA (Ticker) - The Philadelphia Flyers wasted little time finding a replacement for Sami Kapanen.
After discovering Kapanen would be lost for 10 weeks with a shoulder injury Thursday, the Flyers signed left wing Brian Savage to a one-year contract.
Financial terms were not disclosed, but Savage made $3.25 million in 2003-04.
Kapanen, who played a major role during Philadelphia's run to the Eastern Conference finals in 2004 by switching from right wing to defense, suffered a partially torn right rotator cuff after colliding with a teammate during a workout last week. He initially injured the shoulder while falling down last month.
"It's been sore ever since then," said Kapanen, who underwent an MRI on Wednesday and will have surgery next week. "I still have been able to do the scrimmages and all that, but I guess it's time to fix it. ... I think it's better to fix it now than to try and play with a bad shoulder and get to the point where it needs to be fixed in the middle of the season and be in a bad spot going into the playoffs."
Kapanen, who scored 12 goals and 30 points in 2003-04, also underwent knee surgery over the summer.
"(I) have been feeling really good skating-wise and feel like I'm in good shape," the Finn said. "I'm just anxious to get back with the new signings and the new rules. Being away from the game for a year, adding all of those up and not being able to play in the next couple months is going to be hard."
The Flyers already have lost newly acquired center Peter Forsberg and defenseman Derian Hatcher due to injury. Forsberg underwent surgery to remove a bursa sac on his right ankle Monday and is expected to miss two weeks, while Hatcher suffered a sprained left knee during the United States Olympic Team's training camp and will be sidelined at least three weeks.
A four-time 20-goal scorer, Savage recorded 12 tallies and 13 assists in 61 games with Phoenix in 2003-04 before being traded to St. Louis at the March trade deadline. He was claimed off waivers by the Coyotes three months later but had his contract bought out this past July.
"We felt that he has been a really good goal scorer in the National Hockey League, has good speed and is a skilled hockey player," Flyers general manager Bob Clarke said. "Losing Kapanen for at least two months leaves us shallow at forward, so we thought that getting a player like Savage would really help our team."
An eighth-round pick of Montreal in 1991, the 34-year-old Savage has appeared in 608 career games with the Canadiens, Coyotes and Blues, registering 183 goals and 162 assists.
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