Rathje to retire

A story on philly.com's Web site indicates Flyers defenseman Mike Rathje's back and hip injuries may force him to retire.

Rathje missed last night's game against the Islanders -- his seventh of the season -- and will meet with Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren today to discuss his future.

Rathje retiring or being placed on the long-term injury list would clear up $3.5 million of cap space for the Flyers.


Phanatic's Take:

Michael Rushton: You hate to say good riddance when it is chronic pain that is bothering someone, but getting rid of Rathje and his money is very beneficial for the Flyers. Essentially, the team will be able to dump Rathje's money without trading him, which would have been impossible to do.

Expectations for the club are low right now -- though I still believe it is to early to just give up -- and eliminating Rathje from the equation allows the Flyers to play their young defenseman of the future, earning them valuable experience. It will also give the Flyers some more flexibility in the trade department, though acquiring a quality defender in today's NHL is tough.

The one downside of course is that without the veteran Rathje, it leaves the Flyers with a very inexperienced group of defenders, making the slow Derian Hatcher indispensable.