Luke Schenn will play against his first NHL team, the Toronto Maple Leafs, for the first time on Monday. Schenn was sent to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for James van Riemsdyk. Between the two, van Riemsdyk is likely to get more attention on Monday because he's the flashy player, but Schenn has played a valuable role with the Flyers. Schenn leads the Flyers with 46 hits and ranks second with 27 blocked shots. He also is fourth on the squad with an average of 20:36 minutes of ice time per contest.

Luke Schenn played a big role in the Flyers' 4-3 win over the Hurricanes Saturday afternoon. Schenn, a bruising defenseman, had eight hits and six blocked shots in a team-high 24 minutes and 50 seconds of ice time Saturday afternoon. "Seven of eight points. We'll take it," said Luke Schenn, who will face his former Toronto teammates Monday. "It was good to get back on track a little bit, but we have to be a lot better on the road." Schenn won't dazzle fantasy owners with his offensive skill or his penalty minutes, but if hits are important and you need them from a defenseman then there aren't many players better.

Luke Schenn leads the Flyers with 19 hits after six games this season. His younger brother, Brayden, is just three hits behind him. Luke has registered one goal and one assist as well this season to go with 11 penalty minutes and nine shots. He won't dazzle fantasy owners with his offensive skill or his penalty minutes, but if hits are important and you need them from a defenseman then there aren't many players better.

Luke Schenn is expected to start the season alongside veteran Kimmo Timonen on the Philadelphia Flyers' top blueline pairing. "He's so smart out there and such a calm presence," Schenn said of Timonen. "He's an all-star in the league and a veteran presence-and to get the chance to practice beside him has been awesome." Schenn led NHL defencemen in hits last season with the Toronto Maple Leafs, but hasn't contributed much offensively in his first four seasons in the league. If he remains paired with the offensive-minded Timonen throughout the year, the 23-year-old may be the beneficiary of some unexpected points.

Luke Schenn is looking forward to finally getting to begin his fresh start as a member of the Philadelphia Flyers. "A change of scenery a little bit can maybe work out for the better," he said. "I'm excited to be here, and being familiar with some of the guys can only be a positive." Schenn will get to play on the same team as his younger brother Brayden in Philadelphia and of course that has him excited as well. If the Flyers start the year with a healthy group on the back end then Schenn will probably end up on the third pairing, possibly with Bruno Gervais as a his partner. He has been skating four or five days a week since early August in Kelowna, British Columbia during the lockout and is anxious to get going.

Luke Schenn will probably get a look on Philadelphia's second pairing next season with Andrej Meszaros sidelined following surgery to repair a torn right Achilles tendon. Meszaros is listed as being out indefinitely for now, with a better prognosis expected in about six weeks, but he could miss a sizable chunk of the 2012-13 campaign as a result of the ailment. Schenn could line up alongside Kimmo Timonen, with Braydon Coburn and Nick Grossmann as the top pairing. Off-season signing Bruno Gervais will probably enter the picture on the Flyers' third pairing with either Marc-Andre Bourdon, Erik Gustafsson, Andreas Lilja or Brandon Manning.

The Philadelphia Flyers have acquired Luke Schenn from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for James van Riemsdyk. The Philadelphia Flyers had some question marks defensively going into the summer with Chris Pronger (concussion) questionable for the start of next season and Matt Carle still unsigned, so this is a huge boost for them. This deal will also unite Luke with his brother, Brayden Schenn. Unfortunately, Schenn is one of those players that will always have more value to his team than he will most fantasy players. He only has significant value in leagues that use hits and blocked shots as categories.

Toronto GM Brian Burke refuted a report that would see him trade defenseman Luke Schenn to acquire the first overall pick from Edmonton for the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. "I have never discussed this trade or any trade involving Luke Schenn to Edmonton," said an unhappy Burke. The 22-year-old defenseman has already played in 310 NHL games and he has probably been mentioned in more trade rumors than that.

Chances are the Maple Leafs' Luke Schenn - with his brother Brayden in Toronto with the Flyers - will play after being a healthy scratch against Pittsburgh. Toronto coach Randy Carlyle met with Schenn Friday, reminding the veteran defenseman of how much of a force he had been when he played against the coach's former team in Anaheim. Carlyle said for Schenn to be successful again, he has to be physical. "He has to create space for himself with his aggressiveness," Carlyle said. "I told him when I was coaching in Anaheim, he was always in Corey Perry's face. Corey was one of our elite players. He was challenging Corey. He has to be more challenging to the opposition."

Luke Schenn was a healthy scratch on Wednesday, which will surely fuel trade speculation again. The 22-year-old defender has been the subject of several rumors the past couple of years and they seem to have intensified in 2011-12. It was the first time he has watched a match from the press box since Nov. 5, as call-up Keith Aulie took his place on the back end. Schenn has 17 points, 183 hits, 89 blocked shots and a plus-7 rating in 56 games this season.