|
Quick Hits: Hart & Flyers/Phantoms Goalies, All-Star Game, Prospect Updates |
|
|
|
|
|
Quick Hits: January 25, 2019
1) Last Friday, before the Flyers departed for Montreal, there were hints that the club might plan to briefly assign Carter Hart to the AHL's Lehigh Valley Phantoms over the latter part of the team's subsequent bye week and NHL All-Star break. Flyers interim head coach Scott Gordon and Hart himself each made statements along the lines of wanting the 20-year-old to keep as sharp as possible after he took a few days off to visit family and friends at home in Alberta.
One look at the Phantoms and Flyers respective schedules, with the Phantoms playing back-to-back games this Friday (home vs. Laval) and Saturday (road vs. Bridgeport) and the Flyers having a Sunday afternoon practice ahead of Monday's home against Winnipeg, presented a logical avenue for doing so. However, with Anthony Stolarz on a conditioning stint with the Phantoms at the time and current Phantoms No. 1 goalie Alex Lyon playing well, it was not clear how the Phantoms would divide the work.
The picture became much clearer after Stolarz's rehab assignment was completed following two starts with the Phantoms, including a 44-save effort in Monday's 2-1 overtime loss in Wilkes Barre/Scranton. Lehigh Valley recalled Branden Komm from the ECHL's Reading Royals to back up Lyon for Wednesday's game. On Thursday, the Flyers announced that Stolarz had been activated from IR and Hart had been assigned to the Phantoms.
Flyers general manager Chuck Fletcher released a statement on Thursday afternoon to explain the purpose of the moves as such: "We are happy with the progress Anthony has made in his rehab and two recent games in Lehigh Valley. With a full week off the ice due to the NHL bye week and All-Star breaks, we would like Carter to continue getting ice time and game action with the Phantoms.”
In other words, Fletcher confirmed what was suspected. The plan is for Hart to join the Phantoms for the weekend back-to-back games and then return to the Flyers.
There is no word on which game he will play for the Phantoms. However, logically, one would figure that after being off the ice for several days, Friday would be a day to put in some work at the Phantoms' morning skate in Allentown and to back up Lyon in the evening after getting loose in the pregame warmups. Then, on Saturday against Bridgeport, he'd figure to be sharper to get a start for Kerry Huffman's team before returning to the Flyers.
What's less clear is how the Flyers will handle the No. 2 job with the NHL club. Do they carry three goalies for the time being and keep 35-year-old Mike McKenna around to be sure Stolarz holds up physically? Or do they try to put McKenna through waivers once Hart returns. If he clears, the veteran netminder would then report to Allentown to work in tandem with Lyon. McKenna has played (as a starter) in the last two Calder Cup finals.
The Flyers have a 2 p.m. ET practice on Sunday in Voorhees. On Monday, after they had nine idle nights on the schedule, they embark on a tough slate of three games in four nights. After hosting the Jets on Monday, the Flyers are at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday to play the Rangers. On Thursday, the club visits TD Garden to play the Boston Bruins.
It does not seem likely that Hart would be asked to start all three games. One, with the MSG match seeming to be the most logical target, would likely go to Stolarz.
2) There has not been an update from Fletcher since Jan. 18 on the statuses of injured veteran Flyers goaltender Brian Elliott and Michal Neuvirth. Elliott was on the ice last Friday with the team, although Hart and McKenna took all the reps in net, while Fletcher said the plan was for Neuvirth to start skating late this week. The GM said in his last injury-update statement that there is not currently a timetable yet for Elliott or Neuvirth to play.
3) The 2019 NHL All-Star Skills Competition will air live from the SAP Center in San Jose on Friday night starting at 9 p.m. ET. It will be shown nationally in the USA on NBC and nationally in Canada on the CBC. Saturday's All-Star Game 3-on-3 tournament starts at 8:15 ET (Team Central vs. Team Pacific) with the second game at 9:15 p.m. (Team Metro vs. Team Atlantic) and the "championship" game thereafter to pit the Eastern Conference winning divisional team against the Western Conference winner. Flyers captain Claude Giroux, a sixth-time selection, is the team's lone representative this year.
4) Ontario Hockey League: Flyers 2017 second-round pick Isaac Ratcliffe returns to action on Friday night, looking to extend his point streak to 11 straight games when his Guelph Storm club takes on the Owen Sound Attack (fellow Flyers prospect Maksim Sushko's club) in a 7:30 p.m. ET game. Over his last 10 games, Ratcliffe has compiled 13 goals and four assists for 17 points in that span.
5) OHL: On Thursday night, Flyers prospect Matthew Strome recorded a pair of power play assists as the Hamilton Bulldogs skated to a 3-2 road win over the Barrie Colts. For the season, left winger Strome has 54 points (21 goals, 33 assists) in 47 games played. Hamilton, the defending OHL champion but in a transitional phase post-championship, is tied in points (48) with the Peterborough Petes but the Petes hold third place in the East Division.
6) OHL: Coming off a career-best five-goal game in his last outing, Flyers 2017 first-round pick Morgan Frost's Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds are idle on Friday night. The team hosts Peterborough on Saturday evening (7:05 p.m. ET).
Frost leads the OHL in points-per-game (1.97) but, due to missing seven Ontario League games in December and early January with WJC commitments to Team Canada, ranks fourth in the league scoring race. In 38 games played, he has 30 goals (T-11th), 45 assists (2nd) and 75 points (4th). His 9 shorthanded points (3 SHG, 6 SHA) lead the league, and he also has 24 power play points (8 PPG. 16 PPA).
Frost, who will turn 20 on May 14, led the entire CHL last season with a +70 rating to go along with his 112 points. The Greyhounds aren't as dominating as they were last season, when Frost had Tampa Bay Lightning prospects Boris Katchouk (all season) and Taylor Raddysh (post trade deadline) as his primary wingers and the likes of Colorado Avalanche prospect Conor Timmins and 2018 Toronto Maple Leafs draftee Rasmus Sandin on the blueline.
Nevertheless, Frost's production has actually increased in his draft-plus-two season, which is exactly what one would want to see. Even last year, when he played with linemates other than Katchouk and/or Raddysh, whomever he played with inevitably saw their point-production spike during the time they were together. The same has been the case this year: Frost makes his linemates better with his playmaking talents, whether he's playing with 2018 Arizona first-round pick Barrett Hayton on special teams or need-a-goal situations or in his more typical deployment centering other players at 5-on-5.
For example, before an NHL team signs undrafted overage left winger Keeghan Howdeshell to an entry-level contract this spring, the organization's scouts will first have to make a judgement call on how much of Howdeshell's 33 goals and 53 points in 45 games stems from being a physically mature 20-year-old (6-foot-2, 210 pounds) who is centered by Frost and playing against less experienced competition versus how much he's advanced as a pro hockey candidate. Now in a scoring-oriented role for the first time, he's by far surpassing any of his production with the USNTDP, the USHL or as a supporting cast member with the Greyhounds this season. There has also been a "Frost effect" in spurring productivity when players such as Cole MacKay, Ryan Roth and Zack Trott have played on one of Frost's wings.
The criticism that Frost lacks pacing and doesn't utilize his natural speed consistently enough (except in shorthanded situations when he sniffs out a chance to go off on a breakaway or start a 2-on-1) has not been as valid this season as last. There seems to be a conscious effort on his part to push the pace just a little more.
In terms of his all-around play, Frost's +70 last year was largely a product of his line usually having control of the puck -- the nifty stickhandling of Frost, of course, was a big part of that -- and pushing the attack rather than defending. This season, with somewhat lesser talent around him, Frost has been tested more on the defensive side of the puck. He's progressing, although checking bigger centers still presents a challenge for him. Statistically, his +25 ranks second on the Greyhounds this season and 15th in the league.
At the recent World Junior Championships, Frost played wing rather than his customary center position. While probably most effective at center, if he can make the transition to wing at the pro level, it may speed up his Flyers ETA and place him higher in the lineup due to the somewhat lesser defensive demands and potential for mismatches. All of that remains to be determined. For now, it's simply fun to watch the player virtually toying with OHL-grade opposition in his final season of junior hockey.
Below are clips from two recent non-scoring plays, including one from the five-goal game, that show off some of the player's creativity with the puck. Generally speaking, as I've written before, he is more surgical than spectacular and he is more geared toward setting up teammates than looking to solo. But when Frost wants to dangle one-on-one or pull out some fancy moves from his arsenal when he's near the net, it often works against CHL-level competition.
7) Western Hockey League: Both of the Flyers' prospects in the WHL are in action on Friday night. Yegor Zamula's Calgary Hitmen host the Prince George Cougars (9 p.m. ET), while Wyatte Wiley's Everett Silvertips visit the Tri-City Americans (10 p.m. ET).
8) Following is the weekend game schedule for Flyers prospects in the NCAA:
* 2018 first-round pick Jay O'Brien's Providence College Friars begin a weekend home-and-home set by hosting Northeastern on Friday. The venues switch on Saturday with 7 p.m. ET start times for both games.
* Fellow 2018 first rounder Joel Farabee's Boston University Terriers host Arizona State on Friday (7:30 p.m. ET) and Saturday (7 p.m. ET).
* Power forward prospect Wade Allison (upper-body injury) is expected back in the Western Michigan University lineup on Friday and Saturday when the Broncos host Denver (7 p.m. ET starts for both games).
* Freshman forward Noah Cates and the University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs host University of Nebraska Omaha (Flyers draftee Matej Tomek, a junior, is the backup goaltender) for 8:00 p.m. ET games on Friday and Saturday.
* Flyers defenseman prospect Jack St. Ivany's Yale Bulldogs visit Union College on Friday (7 p.m. ET) and RPI on Saturday (7 p.m. ET).
* Fellow defense prospect Wyatt Kalynuk's Wisconsin Badgers visit the University of Minnesota for games on Friday and Saturday (8:00 p.m. ET starting times).
* Freshman forward Gavin Hain and the University of North Dakota Fighting Hawks host St. Cloud State on Friday (7:30 p.m. ET) and Saturday (7:00 p.m. ET).
* Senior forward Brendan Warren's Michigan Wolverines play Penn State on Friday (7:00 p.m. ET).
* Junior standout right winger Tanner Laczynski's Ohio State Buckeyes are idle until next Friday.
9) Swedish Hockey League (SHL): Flyers 2018 second-round pick Adam Ginning logged 19:59 of ice time with an even plus-minus (+1, -1) and one credited hit on the Linköping blueline as LHC dropped a 3-2 home decision to Frölunda on Thursday. Teammate Olle Lycksell skated 13:34 with two shots on goal and one missed shot attempt.
10) SHL: Felix Sandström earned the win in goal for HV71 Jönköping in a 3-2 road victory over Brynäs IF Gävle on Thursday. Sandström, who last started on Jan. 12 and had a 26-minute relief appearance on Jan. 17, improved his season totals to 5-5-2 with a 2.16 GAA and .909 save percentage in 13 appearances. HV71 hosts the defending SHL champion Växjö Lakers (featuring Flyers defense prospects Linus Högberg and David Bernhardt) on Saturday.
11) Allsvenskan: After outdueling World Junior Championships teammate Olle Eriksson Ek in a 3-2 win on Wednesday, Flyers goaltending prospect Samuel Ersson and his Västerås IK team return to action on Friday in a road game against IF Björklöven. For the season, the 19-year-old Ersson (19-4-0, 1.82 GAA, 3 shutouts, .937 SV%) ranks atop the league goaltending chart.
12) Allsvenskan: Marcus Westfält, who appeared in 19 SHL games with Brynäs in a fourth line role (0 goals, 1 assist) earlier this season, centered the fourth line for minor league team Karlskrona HK on Wednesday in a 4-1 road loss in Örnsköldsvik to Modo Hockey. He has played in seven games to date for Karlskrona, recording one assist. The team returns to action on Sunday, hosting HC Vita Hästen (White Horse) Norrköping.
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
Join the Discussion:
»