The Flyers made their way back on the ice for another high-octane, intense, grueling practice, with an aim at focusing to condition the team for an intense run for Lord Stanley’s Cup. Of course, Carter Hart was a no show after a scrimmage yesterday that saw the franchise Goaltender leave midway through, as he apparently was suffering from back spasms. Also, Sean Couturier was absent from practice today “Due to personal reasons,” as Flyers General Manager Chuck Fletcher exclaimed. Coots and his wife are having a baby girl, some names are Selke, Elite, Razzle, and Dazzle:
First things first. Oskar Lindblom signed a new deal after practice which was a three-year deal for a $3 million AAV ($9 million total). Connor Bunnaman, and Kirill Ustimenko were no shows, and given the title of “Unable to participate.” However, do not read too much into this as they could have just been maintenance days. Maintenance days do happen over time as training camp wears on. Alain Vigneault brought the team together today with a focus on Special Teams. The end of camp is nearing, and the players and staff are well aware of such, “This is closing in, the next couple of days,” Vigneault said following Sunday’s practice, “There’s a phase of camp here we’ve got laid out that we haven’t penciled in exactly where we want and that’s one of them. I would suspect starting Tuesday we’re going to start seeing some specialty teams work.”
This young Flyers team will be forced to trim their roster as they have 18 forwards on the moment, to include 12 defencemen, and 4 Goaltenders. They have to trim their roster from 34 to 31, as the team can only carry 31 players total to travel to the hub city. Yes, teams have unlimited Goaltenders, and they might have to cross that barrier when the case arises.
Are the 5 on the Phantoms ice vying for spots? You better believe it. Only 31 players can travel to Toronto.
Practice today was uptempo and intense, just as Vigneault said it would as camp wore on. Lots of Special Teams work, as indicated earlier in this article. Both PP Units looked to be just fine, but I will caution it’s hard to gauge in non game action. Brian Elliott was a star for sure today.
Power Play lines:
PP1: Giroux, Konecny, Voracek, Frost, Provy
PP2: JVR, Hayes, Farabee/NAK, Niskanen, Ghost/Sanheim
A few things to note. Giroux was on the LEFT SIDE, thankfully. The right side experiment might be a thing of the past folks. In addition, this shows you how the coaching staff feels about Ghost. He seems to always get reps on the PP when he is healthy. No Coots, so Frost takes his spot.
Today, Brian Elliott shined, and Morgan Frost was quick with his skates, as well. Frost threaded the needle on multiple occasions to Voracek while on the top PP Unit. Frost, of course, was subbing in today for Couturier, and Frost made the best of this golden opportunity.
It was great to see the Veteran netminder in Elliott really step up his game in the absence of Carter Hart. These type of days will happen as the tournament wears on, and the Veteran is MORE THAN CAPABLE of stepping in for Hart when need be. Elliott will continue to improve as it gets closer to the playoffs. No one will be perfect every day, but Elliott fortunately was just dialed in today.
Joel Farabee is really being showcased here as camp wears on, as he was showcased on the second Power Play Unit today, while splitting time with NAK. Quite an honor, but a well deserved one for Farabee, who has been flying, and really come back to camp in great shape. Joel has hit the net accurately, and the puck has been exploding off his stick. He’s just so composed, and makes the right decisions on the fly. Make no mistake about it he WILL be in the opening lineup when the playoffs begin. In addition, it’s an honor for NAK to be thought of on the PP Unit, as he saw time on PP2 down the successful stretch run for the Flyers before the season was halted due to the Coronavirus. Frost said yesterday that NAK is one of the most improved prospects for the Flyers.
Alain Vigneault Presser:
“Next time we see him, he’s going to be a father.”Sean Couturier missed today’s practice because his wife was in labor, and they are expecting a baby girl.
“I would say to you I’m not concerned,” in regards to Carter Hart’s status.
Connor Bunnaman, and Kirill Ustimenko were given the “Unable to participate” by Vigneault.
“For the exhibition, we are allowed to dress thirteen forwards and seven D’s, which is what we’re going to do. They give us an extra forward and extra D for that exhibition. After that, it goes to the normal four lines and six D.”- AV
Matt Niskanen Presser:
Niskanen on Lindblom:
“Everyone loves him. He’s just the greatest kid to have around. He’s a hell of a player. Normally in playoffs I would say you don’t need any extra motivation. That’s a nice little story that everybody can rally around. We think about him. We talk about him all the time. Oskar’s with us in this. Everyone feels that. We talk about it, so what a great story that he’s been just a champion through this. We can’t wait to see him again.”
Chuck Fletcher Presser:
Fletcher on Lindblom playing in Toronto:
“Absolutely. I don’t know what’s out of the question. I wouldn’t certainly put any limits on Oskar. We’ll obviously do everything that we can to protect him. He’s looking forward to restarting his life and his career. Whatever that means, we’ll find out. We’ll work very closely with his medical team and our medical team. We’ll make the right decisions for him.”
Fletcher on Lindblom: “Sure, I mean why not. He’s been cleared by his oncologist, by the medical team that worked with him and by our medical team to start resuming activities, to train and to skate. He’s getting stronger all the time. Certainly at the right time, he’s not skating now because obviously we are giving him a little bit more time. At the right time, he absolutely will be able to participate with our group.”
