German Rubtsov, the Flyers' top pick from last summer's draft, underwent surgery on Monday to repair a broken nose, his agent Mark Gandler told CSNPhilly.com's Tim Panaccio.
Rubtsov suffered the injury last week competing for Russia during the World Junior Championships.
"He got a stick to the nose and his nose is banged up pretty good," Flyers general manager Ron Hextall said last Saturday.
Just as noteworthy, Rubtsov now has a new team. Per Gandler, the 18-year-old center is joining the Chicoutimi Saguenéens of the QMJHL. Gandler has negotiated Rubtsov's release from the KHL, which was rumored this weekend.
"Well, it has nothing to do with the Philadelphia Flyers," Hextall said then. "This is German's agent, Chicoutimi and Russia. So we are really just a bystander here."
Chicoutimi selected Rubtsov in the CHL import draft on June 28, and therefore owned his rights. The move will allow Rubtsov, the 2016 No. 22 overall pick, to play greater minutes at a more developmental level with a junior club. The KHL is regarded as the second-best professional league in the world to only the NHL and includes former NHLers, most notably Ilya Kovalchuk and Pavel Datsyuk.
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Rubtsov went pointless in 15 games with HC Vityaz of the KHL, as well as five games in the World Junior Championships for Team Russia. In 15 games for Russkie Vityazi Chekhov, a junior team in Russia, Rubtsov posted seven goals and eight assists.
"I saw a little bit of him," Hextall said of Rubtsov in the World Junior Championships. "I thought he was good. He played a lesser role as an 18-year-old, they usually do. A checking role and he was good at it. He didn't have a ton of responsibility or a ton of minutes but we liked what we saw. He was given a role and he played it."
Hextall said over the weekend that Rubtsov would likely miss weeks if surgery were needed. When Rubtsov returns, he'll be playing in Canada and with a new team.
