By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor 
The Flyers hit the ice at Heinz Field for practice on Friday afternoon in advance of Saturday night's Stadium Series game against Pittsburgh.
To say it's been a rough stretch for the Flyers is an understatement. They are 3-6-1 since the All-Star break and falling behind in the playoff race. In fact, the Flyers are both five points out of the final playoff spot and five points away from being 15th in the Eastern Conference.
Typically GM Ron Hextall is tight-lipped about his plans regarding any potential roster moves, but there was more transparency in Hextall's remarks on Friday.
"We're not buying," Hextall said on Friday. "We'll be making calls and getting calls, and we'll see what's out there and see where we're at as a team in the standings and make the appropriate moves."
It's not a shocking statement from Hextall and while it doesn't reveal what the Flyers plans will be for Wednesday's deadline, it's obvious the Flyers were in no position to risk any part of their future for what would likely be a one-and-done playoff run.
Still, it's nice to see the GM offer such a statement this early before the deadline. It takes all speculation out of the picture. Forget the big names floating around. It isn't happening. And the Flyers are just as close to being heavy players in the draft lottery to being the final playoff team. It's too early to tell if the Flyers will focus more on getting what they can for pending free agents who won't be returning or if they will stand pat with the current team and see if there is a March rally in the them.
But decision time is coming soon and it at least looks like Hextall has made his mind up about one thing, protecting the Flyers future.
Weal Cleared to Play, Konecny 7-10 Days Away
The Flyers may be getting some forward help back. Jordan Weal has been cleared to play and may return to the ice on Saturday night. Weal didn't factor into the scoring in his first couple of games with the Flyers, but seemed to provide a jolt with his up-tempo, energetic play.
Meanwhile, forward Travis Konecny has also been skating lately. His return is about 7-to-10 days away, according to Hextall. Konecny has seven goals and 15 assists for 22 points in 51 games and has been out with a lower-body injury since Feb. 6. Konecny was originally ruled out for four-to-six weeks, but seems to be on the shorter end of that time frame.
