Flyers Defenseman Fulfills Mandatory Military Service

The Philadelphia Flyers will still be a rebuilding team throughout the 2023-24 season. While they are still quite a ways away from being true competitors in the Metro division, they are slowly acquiring solid young talent.

A Consistent Presence On The Blueline

Rasmus Ristolainen has been in the NHL for quite some time now, racking up 682 games in which he scored 51 goals and 281 points since he joined the league in the 2013-14 season.

He Spent the last two seasons with Philadelphia, putting up 5 goals and 36 points in 140 games. Flyers head coach John Tortorella recently revealed that the veteran blueliner had a rather interesting off-season.

Duty Calls

Finland, like many European countries, has mandatory military service requirements for all able-bodied men within a certain age range. For NHL players like Ristolainen, these requirements can be tricky to fulfil as they typically spend most of their year outside the country. It is for this reason that players must complete these obligations during their off-seasons.


Ristolainen fulfilled at least part of his obligations this offseason so he should be in extra good shape coming into training camp.