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 | Samuel Morin was signed to a three-year entry level contract on Tuesday, but before the ink was dry on his contract, he was sent back to Rimouski Oceanic of the QMJHL. It was a move that was expected considering Morin is still very raw as a skater and all phases of his game need polishing. | | Philadelphia - September 19, 2013 - • The Flyers trimmed their training camp roster down to 28 players. Some of the surprises that were sent to the AHL are Tye McGinn, Nick Cousins, and Jason Akeson who were thought to have a chance to win a spot on the third line. Cousins was one of the best Flyers players in preseason, chipping in offensively and bringing an agitating game. The deciding factor in sending him down was likely his lack of attention to the defensive game, which was apparent in the few games he played. Looking at who remains, the third line wing position appears to be a competition between Scott Laughton and Michael Raffl. My guess is Laughton wins the job, and he is moved to wing, which is something I do not agree with. I would rather see him return to Oshawa in the OHL for one more year to develop offensively and play in the World Junior Championships instead of being forced to play a new position at the NHL level, while playing relatively few minutes.
• A few names that are surprisingly still sticking with the NHL club for now include career AHLer Kris Newbury, Chris VandeVelde, and Ben Holmstrom. After recovering from a torn ACL, Holmstrom appeared to have been passed over by a number of players as the go-to AHL call-up when there was an injury on the Flyers. Tye McGinn got the call from the Flyers multiple times last year ahead of Holmstrom, but now it appears Holmstrom has jumped ahead of him again.
• Samuel Morin was signed to a three-year entry level contract on Tuesday, but before the ink was dry on his contract, he was sent back to Rimouski Oceanic of the QMJHL. It was a move that was expected considering Morin is still very raw as a skater and all phases of his game need polishing. Morin’s contract has the ability to “slide” for the next two years, meaning none of the years on the contract will be used, and he will not count towards the 50 contract limit that NHL teams have. The most likely scenario for Morin is that his contract slides for two years, and by then he will have learned all he can at the Junior level, and will then be eligible to play in the AHL. Despite being cut fairly early, Morin impressed in camp, logging heavy minutes in preseason games, and being a standout performer in the Flyers Prospects’ 1-0 win over the Washington Capitals’ prospects.
• The Flyers have played four preseason games so far, and have a 1-1-2 record so far, with the lone win coming in a 7 round shootout against the Maple Leafs. Very little stock should be put into the outcome of these preseason games, as the team playing hardly resembles what the opening night roster will look like.
• One of the biggest problems the Flyers have had the last two years is the inability to break out the puck effectively, which is largely because the defensive corps is mostly defensive defensemen. The addition of Mark Streit will help in this area, but in the preseason I haven’t seen any indication that this issue has been greatly remedied. The fact that Luke Schenn is the only right-handed defenseman expected to play regularly means that some defensemen will be forced to operate from their backhand when retrieving the puck below the goal-line. This is something that goes unnoticed by most, but could be an underlying reason as to why the Flyers struggle to break the puck out. Another aspect that could help move the puck better is that the Flyers boast two goalies in Mason and Emery that are good at playing the puck. Being able to corral dump-ins and set them up for defensemen will help alleviate the pressure of the heavy two-man forecheck so effectively used against the Flyers by the Devils and Rangers in the recent past.
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