Gagne set for preseason debut; Flyers make cuts

Winger Simon Gagne will make his preseason debut Tuesday night against the Detroit Red Wings at the Wachovia Center.

Gagne was on the team's opening three-game road trip but did not appear in any of the games.

He had offseason hip surgery and then injured a groin during Team Canada's orientation camp. After skating Friday, he said the tightness in his groin and hip are "normal" and "to be expected."

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The Flyers released Mark Bell, who was invited to training camp on tryout contract. Bell was trying to make a comeback to the NHL after spending last season in the AHL with Toronto and Hartford. General manager Paul Holmgren said the Flyers had seen enough of Bell to know it was not going to work with him.

The team also released Adrian Foster, another player signed to a tryout contract.

In all, 30 players were cut, trimming the roster from 59 to 29. That leaves 18 forwards, eight defensemen and three goalies.

Also, 19 players were assigned to the Adirondack Phantoms: Josh Beaulieu, Rob Bellamy, Matt Clackson, Ryan Dingle, Jonathon Kalinski, Garrett Klotz, Jonathan Matsumoto, Andreas Nodl and Tomas Sinisalo; defensemen: Oskars Bartulis, Marc-Andre Bourdon, Joonas Lehtivuori, Kevin Marshall, Mike Ratchuk, David Sloane and Logan Stephenson; and goaltenders: Jeremy Duchesne, Nic Riopel and Michael Teslak.

Eight players were returned to their junior teams: forwards: David Labrecque (Shawinigan, QMJHL), Zac Rinaldo (London, OHL), Mike Thomas (Saint John, QMJHL) and Eric Wellwood (Windsor, OHL); defensemen Tyler Hostetter (Erie, OHL) and Brennan Yadlowski (Lethbridge, WHL); and goaltenders Adam Morrison (Saskatoon, WHL) and Jacob DeSerres (Seattle, WHL).

Hostetter, 19, signed a 3-year entry-level contract with the Flyers, prior to returning to junior. A native of Lititz, Pa., Hostetter had 23 points and 49 penalty minutes in 61 games with Erie last season.

Mika Pyorala, David Laliberte, Danny Syvret, James van Riemsdyk, and Blair Betts are all still in camp with the Flyers.

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To read our earlier post about some players flying under the radar, click here.