When Mark Friedman was recalled on January 8, 2020, the Flyers were hoping he would be able to solidify the bottom Defense pairing until one of Justin Braun or Shayne Gostisbehere returned from injury. What did Friedman establish in his recall? Well, he has made a defenceman expendable if Chuck Fletcher needs trade bait.
Friedman, a Right-Handed defenceman, finally got a shot to make an imprint with the orange and black, and boy did he deliver. Drafted by the Flyers in 2014 at 86th overall. Friedman was one of the Phantoms best defencemen before his recall, after a really strong training camp with the big club. For the Phantoms, he registered three goals, to go along with 18 apples in 45 games played this season. Moreover, Friedman may have received an earlier call-up, but seven, at times eight defensemen, blocked him from seeing time with the big club. For his efforts, the Flyers have re-signed Friedman on the first day of training camp to a two-year one-way contract with an annual cap hit of $725,000, “It’s definitely a relief,” Friedman says, “In four months of me thinking about it, sitting in quarantine and not knowing what was going to happen next season, it’s definitely nice to get this out of the way.”
The fact is Friedman doesn’t make mistakes. He plays a solid, mistake free game, “I’ve had a lot of guys help me down there in the AHL with Huffer and Gordo and especially the older guys like Pross and Spoons,” Friedman says, “They have been helping me and I’ve been trying to follow their lead off the ice just as much on the ice. You’ve got to be a good teammate just as much as a good hockey player. I know when I get to the NHL, I’m not going to be a massive point guy. I’m not going to be on the first power play or anything like that. I’ve got to use my strengths, that’s my speed, my smarts and puck moving ability.” Friedman tallied first career NHL point on Connor Bunnaman’s first NHL goal during the recall. He also finished his recall with averaging 13:01 in ice time, 4 hits, 4 blocks, and 1 Takeaway with 0 Giveaways. Simply put, the young man doesn’t make mistakes.
A 5’10, 192 pound native of Toronto in Friedman turned pro in 2017. The play of Friedman could allow Fletcher to make a defencemen expendable, so that Fletcher could use that cap space to obtain a top six Forward if need be, or to plug a hole elsewhere within the lineup, and his uncle now owns a BBQ business for those that love BBQ, “It’s going to be pretty bizarre going back home,” Friedman said, “I keep telling my family I’m so close, but yet I’m so far. I’m in Toronto, but I can’t see my friends or my family. My uncle just started his own barbeque business. I’ve been dying to try it and I can’t even do that. It’s going to be pretty weird being home and not being able to see anybody.”
Friedman can provide a much needed spark to this club when given the chance, and he can kill penalties, as well. All in all, this signing is a good one, and Friedman could be part of the future makeup of the back end for the Flyers, “I’m just going out there and playing hockey, trying 150 percent every time I’m on the ice,” Friedman said, “If I play, I play. If I don’t, I don’t. Just got to sit there and learn. Take everything in and soak it up like a sponge. To me, it’d be awesome to play, especially in Toronto, but I’m here for the learning experience. That’s something that I can take away from this trip.”
