The Philadelphia Flyers are in an interesting place as the 2013 NHL Draft approaches. They are loaded with young talented forwards who have graduated to their main team, but haven’t been able to set that D-core straight since Chris Pronger was injured. I won’t even touch on the Ilya Bryzgalov situation because it will just turn into a massive waste of time.
The main point is that the Flyers prospect cupboard is bare compared to many teams around the league. Ostensibly, Philadelphia has one major piece, Scott Laughton who projects as an all-around defensive centre should he make the NHL as a full-time player (he had a five-game cup of coffee with the big team after the lockout). After him comes longshots like Nick Cousins, Jason Akeson, Marcel Noebels and Tye McGinn who all have various levels of NHL upside.
Forwards are not the organization's problem. Defense is a major weakness not only on the Flyers main roster, but within their prospect pool.
The Flyers' system boasts no legitimate top-4 defense prospects and haven’t yet been able to draft and develop anything resembling a full-time NHL defenseman since Luca Sbisa, who was dealt in the Pronger deal. Erik Gustafsson, Oliver Lauridsen and a pre-concussion Marc-Andre Bourdon have shown signs of being solid options on the bottom-pairing. Collegiate prospect Shayne Gostisbehere has excellent offensive instincts, but the Flyers really need a strong all-around prospect on defense.
It is interesting to note that the Flyers might be the best first round drafting team in recent history. Most every forward they have drafted in the first has turned out to be an above-average to star-caliber player: Dainius Zubrus, Simon Gagné, Justin Williams, Jeff Carter, Mike Richards, Steve Downie, Claude Giroux, James van Riemsdyk and Sean Couturier.
While their defense and goaltending picks with their firsts have been, well, mediocre. Luca Sbisa and Joni Pitkanen lead that list and both were gone quickly. The club wasted a first round pick on future borderline NHLer Jeff Woywitka and later traded a first-round pick to (briefly) acquire failed Washington 1st rounder Steve Eminger, who was soon traded to Tampa Bay for Matt Carle in what proved to be a good trade for Philly for several years.
The point I’m trying to make here is that whoever is scouting the QMJHL and OHL forwards is a bloody genius, the Flyers scouting staff have an unbelievable track record with forwards in the first…but they truly need a major defense prospect.
There are several options for Philly in the 11th slot. Do they draft another forward that they feel comfortable with and trade away one of their talented young scorers for defense help, or do they try again to draft and develop a defenseman?
Darnell Nurse : The nephew of Donovan McNabb (Oh, the media fun that could be had with that one) has climbed up the draft exponentially since the beginning of the season. The 6’3" 186 lb defenseman is big, mobile and getting meaner each season. He is already a very capable defensive defender who is used to hard minutes and plenty of PK time. The key is his mobility and strength on defense which has allowed him to excel in all three zones. For a bigger defender he moves well and anticipates the plays strongly with good puck carrying skills. The major improvement to his game which has seen him rise is his offensive potential. Nurse has a heavy, but erratic shot which helped him score 12 goals on the year. With the whole package of size, mobility, physicality, emerging offensive instincts and solid defensive zone awareness you have an enticing pick that should he drop to the Flyers should be an automatic pick.
Rasmus Ristolainen : Personally he’s my favourite defender in the 6-20 conversation (yes it’s that wide for dmen this year) and I personally can’t see him slipping past to 11th, but weirder things have happened like consensus 3rd overall pick Cam Fowler going all the way to 13. Like Nurse, Ristolainen brings size (6’3), physicality and growing two-way play in all zones. He’s extremely strong at running a power play due to his mobility and shot selection skill, it’s hard to describe but he runs a PP similar to Mike Green in how he’s constantly trying to change the angle and isn't afraid to lob a snap shot instead of standing still waiting for one-timers. He’s a lot more polished than any defense prospect in the draft in my mind and he was excellent at the U20’s, filling in on the top-pairing for Finland alongside Ville Pokka. Defensively he’s pretty strong and is known for his nasty crosschecks in the crease and his board battles more than anything. Despite being 18, he’s one of the more physical defenders in the entire SM-liiga and you have to think that when he gets bigger and stronger that trend will be on the upswing. The major issue with Ristolainen is that he has shown some poor judgement plays like awkward pinches, going for the massive open ice-hit leading to a breakdown or just a sloppy pass here and there…but these are minor complaints that every defenseman has been known to do.
Ryan Pulock : With Timonen at 38, you have to wonder that if Nurse and Ristolainen are gone that the Flyers might go for one of the most offensively gifted defensemen in the draft. Pulock brings the best point shot in the draft and a PP mind that is far better than anyone else in the conversation. He led the lowly Wheat Kings in points and came close to leading in goals all while being their captain and leader. He’s a physical player and has shown some great open-ice hits during the year. He has the vision, skills and skating to be a strong puck carrying defenseman. He does have to work a bit on his defensive zone coverages, but he's on the right track and it’s important to note he played forward until his midget hockey where they switched him. Unlike many offensive defensemen he does have good size at 6’1" 209 lbs and has shown a good mind for the game. You can't teach hockey sense, and he has it. You also can't teach a 100 MPH slapshot, and he has that, too.
Nikita Zadorov : Primarily he’s a shutdown defenseman and probably the best in his own zone of the myriad of defenders expected to go early. At 6’5" and 224 pounds, he’s an extremely big guy who despite that has excellent skating ability. He moves very well and maintains excellent gap control. He’s physical and hard to beat one on one in his own zone. He offers some excellent penalty killing skills and smarts. The major question mark is that…does he have more to give? He’s shown some flashes of offensive flair, including a great strength at moving the puck through the neutral zone, but his breakout passes (the long pass) are pretty poor. He has a very hard shot that he hasn't gotten to use much as London primarily plays a 4 forward PP which Zadorov is not a part of. He has the potential to be a major steal if that side of his game can develop, yet he is also one of the safest picks in getting a NHL player out of the first round.
Josh Morrissey : A strong performance at the U18’s has certainly helped Morrissey who brings serious offensive talent and a mean streak. Elite skill and excellent skating make him very dangerous to go along with a major slap shot. The thing I really like about him is that despite his fancy play in the offensive zone, he keeps things very simple in the defensive zone. He makes smart little plays and keeps himself in good position for the most part, which has made him highly effective. I like the physical play, I love the offensive flair and I like that he can play in his own zone without being overwhelmed. Overall I think he has really stepped up and while the 11-hole might seem a bit early for him to be chosen, his steady rise is very hard to ignore.
Sean Monahan : If he fell to the Flyers it would be pretty entertaining considering how they got Couturier. Monahan is a talented two-way centre with some solid size (6’2") that played on one of the worst teams in the CHL and still dominated despite losing the only two teammates worth a damn in Graovac and Ceci. He has decent speed, though it’s not his strong suit. His main asset is his smarts and vision. He thinks the game extremely well and finds gaps that he can exploit. He’s not overly physical as a player, but he does do well on the boards and is willing to compete for the puck. He’s got some of the better hands in the draft and it is fun to watch him twist and turn from players like he was some small skill player. Due to his team being…er…garbage he played in all situations and essentially played 30+ minutes some nights and while I wouldn't call him a defensive centre he’s certainly above-average in his own zone. He will likely go in the top-10, though the fact that most of his points came off the PP might scare off some teams.
Other possibilities are Max Domi (C) of the London Knights, Bo Horvat (C) of the London Knights, Hunter Shinkaruk (LW) of the Medicine Hat Tigers, Adam Erne (RW) of the Québec Remparts or, if they're really going bold, Samuel Morin (D) of the Rimouski Océanic.
Thanks for reading. Up next is the Oilers, boy what a treat not to draft 1st. I received good feedback for previous Draft Spotlights. these so I’m committed going forward to at least do the Sabres and Canadiens after Edmonton. As I said in the Leafs edition, these are my own opinions and they certainly have many flaws, so feel free to speak your minds.
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