Flyers' Tippett Misses Game 1 vs. Hurricanes with Injury

RALEIGH, N.C. Philadelphia Flyers forward Owen Tippett, the team's regular-season leading goal scorer, missed Game 1 of their second-round Stanley Cup playoff series against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday night due to an undisclosed injury announced about 30 minutes before puck drop.

The 27-year-old winger tallied 28 goals and 23 assists during the regular season and contributed one goal and one assist in the Flyers' six-game first-round victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins, their first playoff appearance since 2020. Philadelphia listed Tippett as day-to-day. He had played through postseason wear, including a shake-up during the series-clinching win over Pittsburgh on April 29, but skipped Friday's practice and lingered on the ice after Saturday's optional morning skate with the scratches, signaling his absence. Garnet Hathaway returned to the lineup in Tippett's place after sitting out the Flyers' 1-0 overtime victory in Game 6 against Pittsburgh.

The Hurricanes, who swept the Ottawa Senators in the first round a week earlier, also entered without defenseman Alexander Nikishin. He sustained a concussion from a hit by Ottawa's Tyler Kleven in Game 4 and has progressed in...