Photo Credits: FNG’s Rob Windfelder
The Flyers capped off the final day of Development Camp Friday morning with a 3-on-3 round robin tournament. The session took place at the Flyers Training Center in the 67 Arena. The 67 Arena is the newer third rink inside the facility. The truncated ice surface is perfect for 3-on-3 action but unfortunately the smaller viewing area was no match for the level of enthusiasm the Flyers faithful have for their favorite hockey club.
Hockey Town
Philly truly is one of the great hockey towns. Not many areas are going to fill a rink to capacity for a prospect 3-on-3 tournament on a 103 degree Friday morning in July. Before the posted start time the 67 Arena was already at capacity. The only way to gain entrance was to stand in the lobby and wait for someone to leave. One out, one in, and the lobby was still packed with Flyers Fans willing to wait for the possible opportunity to get inside.
The staff at the facility handled the situation perfectly. They knew folks were disappointed and they did their best to keep everyone informed and upbeat. Even Flyers governor Dan Hilferty came out to apologize to the crowd.
Standouts
Maksim Sokolovskii
The Flyers 2026 1st round pick has been introduced to us as a “shutdown” defenseman. Before I say this let me qualify my statement, a 3-on-3 contest is going to feature explosive offence over conservative defense. That being said, Sokolovskii was not your “stay-at-home” D-man Friday morning, in fact he was quite the opposite and he was dominant. There were stretches where it seemed every time the puck went in the net he either put it there or set the situation up.
At 6′-7″ he covers a lot of ice very quickly. This asset was exaggerated on the smaller ice surface. He’s got great hands and was easily carving his way through the opposition. His performance was clearly one of the highlights of the morning.
Of course the current young Flyers who were invited to take part in camp all stood out, as they should. They took the level of play to a higher level throughout the week which had a positive effect on everyone involved. It surely raised the bar for the younger prospects.
Denver Barkey was a dog on a bone as usual. A spark plug in perpetual pursuit of the puck. Porter Martone‘s size and skill create a daunting presence on the ice. But as I said you should expect no less out of these guys, they have already proven themselves at a much higher level.
Noah Powell was impossible not to notice during the tournament. He was pulling off moves that had defenders scrambling to get their bearings back. He was quick, confident, and in all the right places at all the right times. Powell also did not shy away from the physical aspects of the game. He was impressive.
Jack Nesbitt also put in a proper skate throughout the tournement. He uses his size and strength to get himself into the dangerous areas. He’s relentless with the puck, maintaining ownership through some pretty sticky situations. Jackson Edward was another player that you just kept noticing time and again.
Kudos
At Dev Camp you have a variety of players all at different levels of their development taking their best shot at becoming part of the most elite ice hockey league on the planet. The skill level is very high. The competitive enthusiasm and commitment is obvious. All of these guys are here for a reason.
No matter what the future has in store for these young players making it this far is an absolute accomplishment that most hockey players can only dream of. Many will be back for Rookie Camp in mid September. Flyers Development Camp 2026 is in the books, now onto the dog days of Summer.
This place sounded great at the end of the day. The mutual recognition between the team and the fans really is something special.
About Author
