Bobby Brink, Emil Andrae, Tyson Foerster, and Felix Sandström are all vying for one -two spots on the opening night roster. Sandström hasn’t been waived yet, as it appears the organization really likes the depth at the goaltending situation. Who can blame them after having to use eight goalies in one season a few seasons ago. It also appears that the organization likes the depth at the defensive position, so on one hand I can see Andrae winning that spot. Let’s breakdown Foerster’s camp, Andrae ‘s camp, Brink’s camp, and Sandström’s camp to see who deserves that last few spots, two should be cut or waived.
Bobby Brink
Brink answered the Flyers top brass and Rocky Thompson in a big way last week after registering an assist on Wade Allison’s goal, “He has some momentum going right now,” Flyers assistant coach Rocky Thompson said at his pre-game presser to the media. “It will be a little bit tiring. He played a lot of minutes last night (Friday), so it will be good for us to identify how he can do in those situations being a smaller player. He was battling hard, he was strong on pucks. We expect him to be able to do that tonight.”
Well, impress he did as he registered a beautiful assist on a backhand pass to set up Wade Allison for his first pre-season goal. Brink finished the pre-season with two goals and one assist. For his efforts, he has logged over 17 minutes of ice time in his past two pre-season games played, as well.
That was then and this is now. Brink could very well make the opening night roster, especially after the orange and black waived Wade Allison. Flyers’ Head Coach John Tortorella said yesterday, “He makes plays. He’s had a good camp, “Tortorella said of Brink. This comment right here could solidify Brink’s status of winning a spot for opening night.
Felix Sandström
John Tortorella has his backup goaltender to Carter Hart. Samuel Ersson has won the job, and Cal Petersen looks to be the guy in Lehigh. Petersen cleared waivers as expected, and was sent to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms last week.
Now what did this does this mean for Felix Sandström? Sandström will be part of the group somehow, as Tortorella alluded to last week. He said “Sandy” will remain with the team. I firmly believe that the Flyers could carry three goalies into opening night. The problem herein lies, Sandström is no longer waivers exempt, so he requires waivers to be sent back to Lehigh. Goaltending is one of those positions that requires a lot of depth, much like the defense position.
He has a good pre-season, coupled with a good training camp. Sandström, in my opinion, entered camp with the most pressure on him to succeed. If he did not, he would have been waived earlier. It appears the Flyers favor Ersson over Sandström at the moment, and if the Tampa Bay Lightning did scoop up a goalie in waivers. Possibly then Sandström would be waived, with the hopes he clears. Tampa Bay has been working the goaltender market for a few weeks now since the injury to Andrei Vasilevskiy.
One key injury to a goaltender could really alter some plans for the organization, so it’s always better to have more goalies than not. At some point Sandström could be waived, but this organization appears to be in no hurry to do such. Monday is a key day as rosters have to be submitted by 5:00 p.m. to the league, so keep an eye out for the waiver wire until Monday.
Emil Andrae
Andrae has been phenomenal at camp and in the pre-season, and it should come as a no shock. The Lehigh Valley Phantoms do not begin the regular season for a few more weeks, so that could play a fact in some of the roster cuts. Do you want Andrae going back to the Phantoms pre-season and camp, or do you want him to possibly play 17 to 20 minutes a night with the Flyers, while giving the vets like Walker or Staal a rest until the Phantoms season begins. One can make a case and point again for Sandström because of this.
John Tortorella really likes Andrae, “I thought he made a bunch of mistakes, but right after mistake he makes a good play. I don’t think he’s afraid of anything, I don’t think he’s afraid to make a mistake. I like a lot of things about him,” Tortorella said of Andrae.
Of course, Andrae opened some eyes to the Flyers top brass. Brent Flahr speaks heavily of him. If he gets cut, this will be a tough one, but one could understand the organization wanting him to play top pairing minutes of 20-25 with the Phantoms, which could be beneficial for his development.
Tyson Foerster
Foerster has one goal in mind…to win a spot on the Flyers roster on opening night. Foerster remained in Voorhees, NJ for the Summer in preparation of the upcoming season. It doesn’t matter if he has a new number of 71, making the team does not change regardless of the number (Old number 52). His first order of business is to continue to rock rookie camp.
Maturity
At only 21-years-old, Tyson Foerster is starting to show maturity at such a young age on the ice. Tyson is a strong playmaker and has a shoot first mentality. Foerster is unlike most Flyers prospects with his unique goal scoring abilities, coupled with his good playmaking skills, “I feel like I still have to work. Work my tail off and try to earn myself a spot on this team,” Foerster said.
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Skating is not a problem
Tyson is coming off a great season, a season in which he impressed in his brief stint with the Flyers. What was most impressive about his success in the big show was his skating. He actually had longer strides and skated well coming down off the wing for the orange and black. It appears all his hard-work paid off with his skating, and he is working on obtaining quicker steps.
Foerster proved he can skate with the big boys in his brief eight game stint with the orange and black. He won’t mow players down in the fastest skating competition , but he is a smart skater. One of our podcasts had Foerster’s skating coach Paul Matheson on a show and he didn’t think his skating would be an issue, as he moved up the ranks in the sport.
In the end, Forester has was won John Tortorella over with two-way play. It’s not just about producing, but it’s his play away from the puck that is important too. Realistically both Foerster and Brink can make the team. There are two spots up for grabs, whether it’s two forwards, one forward and one dman, or one forward and a goalie. Foerster has definitely won one spot.
Extra Credit:
Wade Allison cleared waivers yesterday, and will report to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. In the end, Garnet Hathaway beat him out of a spot.
