FLYERS PROSPECTS IN ACTION
Numerous Flyers draft picks are playing this week for their national teams in early competition for spots at the 2014-15 World Junior Championships. Friendlies are underway both in Lake Placid, NY, and Montreal/Sherbrooke, Que. Participants include first-round picks Samuel Morin and Travis Sanheim (Canada), Robert Hägg and Oskar Lindblom (Sweden) and Radel Fazleev (Russia).
Yesterday in Lake Placid, Team Sweden downed Team USA White by a 4-3 score. Flyers prospects Oskar Lindblom and Robert Hägg notched one assist apiece for the Swedes.
Lindblom skated on a line with Axel Holmström (Detroit Red Wings' seventh-round pick in 2014) and Adrian Kempe (Los Angeles Kings first-round pick in 2014). The trio combined to open the scoring in the game at 7:46 of the first period. Lindblom and Kempe worked the puck along the wall. Lindblom got the disc to Holmström, who took the puck to the net after a toe-drag around the defense and scored on an impressive individual effort.
Already a two-tournament veteran of the WJC and a player with of pro experience in the SHL/AHL, Hägg skated on the Swedes' top defense pairing with fellow WJC vet Robin Norell (Chicago Blackhawks prospect). Hägg played both on the power play and penalty kill, and earned the secondary assist on Lucas Wallmark's power play goal in the latter portion of the season period. Hägg passed the puck from the center point to Niklas Hansson near the left half boards. Hansson then made a cross-ice pass to Wallmark, who had room to skate the puck into the right slot and score.
Sweden built a 4-0 lead by late in the second period. The Americans finally got on the board in the final 10 seconds of the middle frame. Auston Matthews scored the first of his two goals in the game to give the Americans some life. In the third period, USA White rallied for power play tallies by Anthony Louis and Matthews to cut the deficit to one goal with nearly six minutes remaining in the game. Despite a few near-misses, the Americans were unable to find the equalizing goal.
The Swedes are back in action today in Lake Placid, taking on USA Blue at 1:00 p.m. EDT. On
Wednesday at 4 p.m. EDT, Sweden plays a combined Team USA squad featuring players from both the extended USA White and USA Blue squads. On Friday, the Swedes take on Finland at 4 p.m. EDT.
All games from Lake Placid are being streamed live on
Fasthockey.com. Viewership prices vary by the number of "game credits" purchased but start at $7.99 for a single game.
After finishing up in Lake Placid against Finland, the Swedish squad heads to Canada to take on Team Russia in a 7 p.m. EDT tilt.
All games from the camp friendlies in Montreal/Sherbrooke are being streamed for free on the Hockey Canada official site. To access the live streams, click on the box score of the live game, then click the "watch live" tab. The schedule of games is as follows:
Mon Aug 4: Russia (Fazleev) vs. Czech Republic (7 p.m. EDT)
Tue Aug 5: Canada (Morin and Sanheim) vs. Czech Republic (7 p.m. EDT)
Wed Aug 6: Canada vs. Russia (7 p.m. EDT)
Thu Aug 7: Rematch -- Canada vs. Russia (7 p.m. EDT)
Fri Aug 8: Canada vs. Czech Republic (noon EDT)
Sat Aug 9: Sweden (Hägg and Lindblom) vs Russia (7 p.m. EDT)
Unlike Team USA in Lake Placid, the Canadians are not using a split-squad format for any of their games. As such, it remains to be seen which games Morin and/or Sanheim actually appear. The Canadian team will hold practice yesterday. One practice item of note from yesterday was that the 6-foot-7 Morin skated against first overall 2014 Draft pick Aaron Ekblad in a sprint drill and it was Morin who won.
MONDAY QUICK HITS
* Today in Flyers history: On this day in 2005, the Flyers traded Jeremy Roenick and a 2006 third-round pick (George "Bud" Holloway) to the Los Angeles Kings for future considerations. The move was necessitated to clear salary cap room after the Flyers signed Peter Forsberg as an unrestricted free agent ahead of the first season of salary cap era of NHL hockey.
* On Aug 4, 2006, the Flyers traded Michal Handzus to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for forward Kyle Calder. A monumental bust with the Flyers during the disastrous 2006-07 season, Calder was traded back the Blackhawks on Feb. 26, 2007 in exchange for defenseman Lasse Kukkonen and a 2007 third-round pick (Garrett Klotz). Coincidentally, Chicago initially drafted Calder with a fifth-round 1997 draft pick that originally belonged to the Flyers. The pick was acquired along with defenseman Bob Wilkie in the 1995 trade that sent former first-round pick Karl Dykhuis to the Flyers. During his brief and forgettable stint as a Flyer, Calder scored just nine goals and 21 points in 59 games despite averaging 15:06 of ice time (including 2:09 of power play time) per game. He was a minus-31.
* On Aug 4, 1977, the Flyers got two of their 1977 draftees under contract, inking second-round pick Tom "T.J." Gorence and third-round selection Dave Hoyda.
Gorence went on to be a valuable role player in five seasons with the Flyers, highlighted by a knack for stepping up the playoffs. Gorence scored nine playoff goals in 37 postseason games. As a rookie, the two-way forward notched 13 goals in just 42 games. He had his best season in 1980-81, chipping in 24 goals and 42 points while also being among the non-winners to receive a vote for the Selke Trophy. His performance dipped in the next two seasons. Philadelphia released Gorence after a failed trade to Hartford in October 1983, making him a free agent. He signed with the Edmonton Oilers on Nov. 1, 1983.
Hoyda was one of the more underrated pound-for-pound fighters in Flyers history. At 6-foot-1 and 205 pounds, the Edmonton native had above-average size and strength for the the era and knew how to handle himself in a fight. Hoyda played two seasons for the Flyers (1977-78 and 1978-79), notching four goals, 20 points and 257 penalty minutes in 108 regular season games. The Flyers lost Hoyda to the Winnipeg Jets in 1979 expansion draft following the NHL's merger with the WHA.
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