Philadelphia Flyers forward Nikita Grebenkin is expected to be “fully ready” and healthy for the team’s training camp in September, reports PHLY Sports’ Charlie O’Connor. Grebenkin suffered an upper-body injury in late March, one that ended his 2025-26 season prematurely.
In May, Flyers GM Danny Briere told the media, including O’Connor, that Grebenkin was at risk of not being ready for the start of the next season. According to Briere, the Flyers originally had believed Grebenkin’s injury was not serious, only for him to not recover as expected, which altered his return timeline as the team considered treatment options.
Now, it seems Grebenkin has put the worst of his injury behind him and will be ready to return to the ice.
Grebenkin, 23, is a 2022 fifth-round pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs who was traded to Philadelphia at the 2025 trade deadline, as part of the Scott Laughton deal.
The 6’2″, 210-pound Russian winger attracted renewed NHL interest in 2024, after he won a KHL title with Metallurg Magnitogorsk and scored 19 goals and 41 points in 67 games along the way.
Grebenkin was more than midway through his debut season in North America with the Maple Leafs when he was traded to Philadelphia, but it seems that move has served him well. He was a training camp and preseason standout, and his early progress helped him break camp on the Flyers’ NHL roster. Grebenkin then spent all of 2025-26 in the NHL with the Flyers, skating in 55 games and scoring 14 points.
Grebenkin was a mainstay on the team’s fourth line, giving the line some continuity as it experienced some turnover at the two other positions. He averaged 11:17 time-on-ice per game, and did not see time on special teams.
Moving forward, the hope will be that Grebenkin can maintain his high compete level and willingness to engage in the physical side of the game, while also taking a step forward offensively. Now that he’s back to full health, he’ll be able to focus his energy on development, rather than recovery.
Photos courtesy of Jerome Miron-Imagn Images