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Stuck on Nine, Stuck on One; Rookie Free Agents |
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FLYERS-CANUCKS WRAPUP: FLYERS STUCK ON NINE, MASON STUCK ON ONE
Time and time again, the 2014-15 Philadelphia Flyers have found ways to lose on the road. When there is a game for the taking, especially in the third period, it is almost inevitably the Flyers who crack first.
On Tuesday night in Vancouver, the Flyers fell to 9-19-9 on the road -- the second-worst pace in franchise history -- as they suffered a 4-1 loss. The game was evenly played through two periods and entered the third period tied at 1-1. The Canucks took over in the third period, scoring three times to seal the outcome.
Alexandre Burrows scored twice for Vancouver in a span of 17 seconds (6:44 and 7:01) to put the Canucks in full control of the game. Vancouver went on to outshoot the Flyers, 16-10, in the final period after shots were 19-18 in Vancouver's favor through two periods. The Canucks also blocked 16 Flyers shot attempts for the game to six blocks by Philly.
Alexander Edler and Radim Vrbata (empty net goal in the final 10 seconds) also scored for the Canucks. Eddie Läck turned in an excellent game in goal, stopping 27 of 28 Flyers shots.
After a scoreless first period, the Flyers briefly held a 1-0 lead midway through the middle frame. With Jakub Voracek in the penalty box after a spirited fight behind the play with Vancouver defenseman Dan Hamhuis, a revised top line of Wayne Simmonds and Michael Raffl flanking Claude Giroux stepped up to score Philadelphia's lone goal of the game.
Strong work down low by Simmonds keyed the goal, along with Raffl going to the net. The Austrian tipped home a shot by Giroux for his 17th goal of the season. Giroux earned his 46th assist and Simmonds' secondary helper was his 21st.
Flyers goaltender Steve Mason fell to 1-11-6 in road decisions on the season, despite a respectable 2.62 road GAA and .913 road save percentage. Mason stopped 31 of 34 shots against the Canucks.
Mason has chronically had very little goal support in road games, giving him no margin for error. That was the case yet again on Tuesday.
When playing on home ice (20-9-6 record), the Flyers have scored an average 2.89 goals per game while allowing 2.34 per game. On the road, Philly has mustered just 2.24 goals per game while yielding 3.11 per game.
Edler's goal, scored at 14:28 of the second period came about as the defenseman was able to pinch in untouched and claim the puck on the backhand at point blank range near the net to Mason's left. The sequence started with a Vincent Lecavalier turnover under pressure on the defensive half boards.
Burrows' first goal was scored off a line change and a stretch pass from Edler to Daniel Sedin with the middle of the ice wide open to attack with speed. Burrows received the puck in the right circle and used a quick shot release from the right faceoff dot to beat Mason through the five hole. The goal was potentially stoppable as Mason read the play and got over. He just didn't get set quite well enough.
Seventeen seconds later, the Canucks attacked with speed again and Burrows potted a Daniel Sedin rebound to forge a 3-1 lead. Former Flyers defenseman Luca Sbisa received the secondary assist.
Each team had one power play in the final period. For the game, the Flyers went 0-for-2 on the man advantage and the Canucks were 0-for-1. Vrbata's late empty netter was scored with the Flyers skating 6-on-5 with Mason pulled for an extra attacker.
Rookie center Nick Cousins made his NHL debut on Tuesday night. He skated 10:04 of ice time, recording one shot on goal with a missed shot. Cousins went 5-for-6 on faceoffs. He was also credited with a takeaway.
The Flyers return to action on Thursday night. In the third game of their four-game road trip through Canada, the team will take on the Calgary Flames.
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FLYERS IN MIX FOR ROOKIE FREE AGENTS
Last week, the Flyers signed 20-year-old Blainville-Boisbriand (QMJHL) center Danick Martel and 21-year-old Cornell Universty senior center Cole Bardreau to entry-level contracts. Both deals kick in for the 2015-16 season.
Although severely undersized, Martel is a highly skilled player with good speed, creativity and playmaking skills. He has produced 102 points (48 goals, 54 assists) in 64 games for the Armada this season. Junior-level offensive stats and especially overager numbers must be taken with a fistful of salt but Martel is very good with the puck on his stick.
Flyers general manager Ron Hextall indicated to the media that "it's a possibility" Martel could play wing at the pro level. The big question mark for the 5-foot-8 forward is how well his skills will translate to the pro game.
Can he be effective with the puck on his stick less often and much less time and space to make plays when he does have the puck? Can he get to the scoring areas against bigger, savvier and more experienced players than he faces in a junior league? Can he handle the defensive demands that are placed on all players in today's pro game?
None of these questions can be answered until Martel is put to the test, and success may not happen overnight. Nevertheless, in a sport where there are occasional players like Martin St. Louis or Danny Briere or Johnny Gaudreau who make good at the NHL level despite giving away a lot of size, Martel has earned a fair chance to show what he can do.
New Hampshire native Bardreau, a member of Team USA's gold-medal winning 2012-13 World Junior Championship team where Phantoms defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere was a teammate, is also on the small side (listed at 5-foot-10, 194 pounds) but is deceptively strong and plays with a lot of grit and tenacity.
Bardreau made a remarkable recovery from a fractured vertebra in his neck suffered shortly after his return to Cornell from the World Juniors. Then a sophomore, Bardreau could have been paralyzed by the injury. He painstakingly worked his way to a full recovery and played his junior and senior seasons. Reece Willcox, a junior defenseman drafted by the Flyers out of the BCHL in the sixth round of the 2012 NHL Draft, is a teammate.
A responsible two-way player with agitating streak and a knack for winning puck battles against bigger players, Bardreau has attended NHL development camps in the past with the Boston Bruins and Detroit Red Wings. There was also interest in him from other clubs this season but Bardreau elected to take the Flyers' offer.
At the pro level, Bardreau projects as a bottom-six forward with the potential to be spotted in a variety of different situations. He will turn 22 on July 22nd.
After the signings of Martel and Bardreau, Hextall indicated that the Flyers are in the hunt for several other undrafted free agents, both in North America and Europe as they finish their seasons. The organization's strategy is to aim for specific targets of interest rather than putting out feelers to a wide array of rookie free agents.
"We don't carpet-bomb," Hextall told the Philadelphia Daily News. "There's a lot of teams that look at 50 guys. We don't. We try to narrow it down and hone in a little bit more on the guys that we want."
In an upcoming blog, we will look at a half-dozen potential candidates playing in Europe. Today, here is a thumbnail look at some of the top collegiate free agents. Some may be players in whom the Flyers have interest.
Troy Stecher (defenseman, North Dakota, 5-foot-10, 180 pounds): A teammate of senior forward Michael Parks, a Flyers' 2010 draftee whose rights are still held by the organization, sophomore defenseman Stecher has emerged as perhaps the most highly sought collegiate free agent this season. Although undersized, he has excellent mobility and first-pass ability. Stecher also shows good competitiveness in the defensive zone.
Drake Caggiula (center/left winger, North Dakota, 5-foot-9, 180 pounds): A highly skilled forward, the 20-year-old junior has come on strong as the 2014-15 season has progressed. He is creative with the puck and good around the net. He also has a knack for irritating opposing players, as is quite often the case with smaller players who find success.
Ahti Oksanen (left wing, Boston University, 6-foot-3, 210 pounds): The 22-year-old Finn is a converted defenseman who has had a big offensive season as a junior. At times, he has played with likely top-two 2015 NHL draft pick Jack Eichel. For the season, Oksanen has posted 23 goals and 34 points in as many games in his first year as a forward. Recently, he played defense for the first time this season. The biggest knock on Oksanen's game is his skating.
Evan Rodrigues (wing, Boston University, 5-foot-10, 175 pounds): As a senior, the 21-year-old has seen his offensive numbers jump while playing frequently with the likes of Eichel and Danny O'Regan. He's collected 36 assists among his career-high 54 points. Rodrigues makes good plays with the puck and is an above-average skater.
Matt O'Connor (goaltender, Boston University, 6-foot-5, 201 pounds) : Most every NHL team these days looks for size as well as athleticism from goaltending prospects, and 23-year-old BU junior O'Connor fits the bill in both regards. He's had a strong collegiate career on good teams and is reportedly being sought by multiple NHL clubs. As with virtually every young goaltender, O'Connor is still a work in progress in his development. He gets away with some preventable rebounds at the collegiate level that would probably end up in the net in the pros. He still needs refinement in reading plays. However, he appears ready to make the next step.
Casey Bailey (wing, Penn State, 6-foot-3, 195 pounds): The 23-year-old Alaskan junior forward has been a late-bloomer, coming up through the BCHL and USHL before arriving at Penn State. He has a knack for getting to scoring areas and is a good finisher who is not at all shy about pulling the trigger when he has an opportunity to shoot. For the season, Bailey has 22 goals and 40 points. He is a better skater than Oksanen and does not have the benefit of playing with the same caliber of linemates as the big Finn (although Penn State's hockey program is the real deal in its own right).
Hampus Gustafsson (center, Merrimack, 6-foot-4, 205 pounds): I have never seen the 21-year-old Swede play but the word on him is that he has two-way upside and some grit to his game as well as good size. In 38 games this season, the sophomore posted 11 goals and 25 points.
Brian Christie (center, Merrimack, 6-foot-2, 181 pounds): A familiar name to followers of the hockey scene in the greater Delaware Valley, the West Chester native and Junior Flyers product has had a breakthrough junior season at Merrimack after gestating in the NAHL and working his way up to a bigger role throughout his collegiate career to date. He has posted 10 goals and 23 points in 36 games.
Austin Czarnik (center, Miami Ohio, 5-foot-9, 160 pounds): Many of the same things that can be said of Martel can also be said of 22-year-old senior forward Czarnik. He skates well and is highly creative with the puck on his stick. Czarnik, originally a USA National Team Development Program product, is an excellent stickhandler and one of the best playmakers in the collegiate game.
Kenney Morrison (defense, Western Michigan, 6-foot-2, 205 pounds): The 23-year-old junior is another player who took a winding path to potential NHL interest, rising up through the BCHL and USHL before his collegiate career. There was some interest in him last season as well -- most notably from the Edmonton Oilers -- but he elected to return for his junior year and has made the most of it. A combination of good size and mobility with a booming righthanded shot from the point are his biggest assets.
Oleg Yevenko (Defense, UMass Amherst, 6-foot-7, 229 pounds): The hulking 24-year-old Belarusian, who represented his country at the 2014 IIHF World Championships, is a pure project player who plays a style that is somewhat similar to Flyers' recently acquired defenseman Radko Gudas. Yevenko took part in the Boston Bruins development camp last summer but returned to college for his senior season. Yevenko, who played junior hockey in Germany and spent two seasons in the USHL before starting his collegiate career, is not afraid to throw his weight around. Yevenko has a heavy shot but is pretty much exclusively a defensive defenseman.
Tom Parisi (defense, Providence, 6-foot-0, 195 pounds): The 21-year-old Long Island native has emerged as a reliable puck mover who defends well in his own zone and can occasionally jump into the play offensively. The junior spent a year with the USNTDP prior to matriculating at Providence. He frequently plays against opponents' top lines at the collegiate level.
Nick Saracino (center/left wing, Providence, 5-foot-11, 185 pounds): A double-digit goal scorer even in his freshman season, the 23-year-old St. Louis native is a USHL product who has always excelled on the offensive side of the puck and battled through injuries early in his development. He attended the New Jersey Devils' development camp a couple summer ago and has worked on bettering his overall game.
Grayson Downing (center, New Hampshire, 6-foot-0, 185 pounds): The 22-year-old senior forward has been a consistent offensive performer throughout his collegiate career and has peaked at the right time in his senior season. Downing has a quick shot release and can draw the defense toward him and dish to an open teammate for scoring chances.
Mike Vecchione (center, Union, 5-foot-10, 195 pounds): Union lost a lot of key personnel, including Shayne Gostisbehere, after winning the Frozen Four championship last year. Twenty-two year old sophomore Vecchione stepped up to help fill some of the void, posting 19 goals and 50 points in 39 games while excelling in the faceoff circle. He has shown plus speed and good two-way awareness for a young forward. He also has experience playing wing. Vecchione took ECAC player of the week honors in back-to-back weeks early this season.
Derek Pratt (defense, UConn, 6-foot-3, 185 pounds): The 21-year-old freshman defenseman is a no-frills defender with a good frame, solid first-pass ability and good mobility with a physical edge. Further seasoning would not hurt but the former Waterloo Black Hawks blueliner is a name to watch.
Dylan Margonari (left wing, Minnesota State-Mankato, 6-foot-1, 190 pounds): The 23-year-old western Pennsylvania native is a burgeoning power forward. He is at is his most effective when he gets to the net and has been adding strength to his frame. As a junior this season, the former USHL (Youngstown Phantoms) winger posted a collegiate career-high 14 goals and 18 points in 32 games.
Matthew Zay (center, Mercyhurst, 6-foot-1, 190 pounds): A Long Island native who played briefly for the Pembroke Lumber Kings (the same Ontario Junior A club where Dainius Zubrus was discovered by NHL scouts back in the mid-1990s), the 24-year-old senior plays a structured game and competes hard. He is not the fastest or most naturally gifted player but made himself into a very productive collegiate player (although his junior offensive stats outpaced his senior season).
Drew Brevig (defenseman, Ohio State, 6-foot-2, 195 pounds): A team leader who moved up from defense to the top forward line when the squad was riddled with injuries, Brevig is a natural defenseman who, through sheer hard work has come to play a fundamentally sound game -- reliable first pass, positionally reliable, poised under forechecking pressure and deceptive closing ability as well as an active defensive stick. Brevig himself wound up missing six games this season due to injury. Several NHL clubs have taken notice of the sophomore blueliner. The Minnesota native attended the development camps of both the Chicago Blackhawks and Washington Capitals last summer.
Kyle Baun (right winger, Colgate, 6-foot-2, 210 pounds): A powerfully built righthanded shooter, Baun is the grandson of longtime NHL player Bobby Baun, who played over 950 games in the league primarily with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings from the late 1950s to early 1970s. Baun has learned how to use his size effectively around the net and competes in the trenches. The junior scored 14 goals in 36 games.
C.J. Motte (goaltender, Ferris State, 6-foot-0, 176 pounds): A little bit undersized by today's standards of seeking bigger and bigger goaltenders, 23-year-old Ferris senior netminder Motte has been a workhorse in his collegiate career. He consistently performed at a high level for Ferris State, especially during his junior (Hobey Baker Award finalist) and senior seasons.
Note: Another standout collegiate goaltender, graduating Northeastern senior Clay Witt, recently signed an Amateur Try Out (ATO) contract for the rest of the AHL season with the Adirondack Flames but has not been signed by any NHL team to an entry-level deal.
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