Flyers' Kevin Hayes out three to four weeks after procedure

The Philadelphia Flyers announced that center Kevin Hayes underwent a procedure Tuesday morning to drain fluid from his adductor region. He will miss the next three to four weeks, another bump in what has been a nightmare season for the veteran forward.

Hayes has played in just 20 games this season, including Monday night’s loss to the New York Islanders. He has just three goals and nine points while dealing with several stints on injured reserve and a bout with COVID-19. All of that followed the tragedy of his brother’s death in the offseason, when Jimmy Hayes suddenly passed away.

Speaking about his teammate, Scott Laughton told reporters including Jordan Hall of NBCS Philly that he “commends him for playing through what he has” and called him an incredible teammate. With a three- to four-week absence now in front of him, Hayes will miss at least the next seven games and likely many more, as the scheduled Olympic break is filled with previously postponed matches.

It’s been a disaster for Philadelphia this season, and the lack of a full-strength Hayes has been a big part of that. In his first two seasons with the Flyers, he registered 35 goals and 72 points in 124 games, playing on both the power play and penalty kill. The team is now 13-18-7 on the year and owns the third-worst goal differential (-34) in the Eastern Conference. Now on an eight-game losing streak, the Flyers will have to find a way to get back in the win column without Hayes in the lineup.