Flyers prospects, named Tyson Foerster and Emil Andrae did very well yesterday Semi-Finals of the WJC tournament. Each and every one of them provided hope for the future, with some of them some Flyer fans were salivating asking the Flyers top brass to include them on this season’s roster. Whom am I speaking of, well that would be Tyson Foerster as the Flyers have nothing to lose this season.
Tyson Foerster
Foerster yielded another good game, and you can tell he’s a confident player. For his efforts, he has now scored in the past three out of four games, and Foerster ranks tied for 19th in points for the tournament with six (3g,3a). His skating is noticeable (In a good way), and he has longer strides to develop more separation.. When he doesn’t overthink his skating, he drives or powers to the net where he makes his bread and butter. Foerster has worked hard this Summer with a skating coach Slava in Voorhees, NJ, and this is the one area that he has worked that hardest. He knows what could possibly hold him back from the next level.
The young prospect in Foerster is enthused with confidence, and it’s oozing through his smile. It was great seeing him doing an arrow after scoring yesterday just 1:07 into the game, I miss that type of stuff with the Flyers after scoring a goal. Foerster comes down off the wing, and fires the puck past the Latvian netminder. Shooting the puck is his strength and that’s what he’s been doing more of as the WJC tournament has progressed. Foerster is a first shot mentality player that is something most rave about, so it is good to see him back firing away with confidence.
Foerster should challenge for a spot at Flyers Training Camp in the Fall. He should be one of the last cuts. It’s time to take the gloves off some of these young prospects, and push some of these veterans aside. There is absolutely nothing to lose.
Elliot Desnoyers
Desnoyers just didn’t find his niche in the first four games of the tournament. Desnoyers has been relegated to the 4th line, just not having that tournament like I expected. For his efforts, he finally got on the score sheet with an assist in the last game, but Desnoyers is struggling to say the least. Desnoyers is working his way back from an injury that he did have surgery for this past season, and I don’t know if that has affected his comfortability in this tournament.
Much like Foerster, Desnoyers is used to making quick decisive decisions with the puck. However, I just haven’t seen that crispness yet from him. I personally was expecting more, especially against some lower level teams. He only logged 8:58 of ice time, and was a -1.
Emil Andrae (The Captain)
Andrae is now tied for seventh in scoring for the tournament with eight points (4g,4a). He really put forth another good game in a Semi-Final 1-0 loss against Finland at the WJC. He logged the most ice time of any player for both teams with 24:22. That’s what Andrae does, he logs minutes. Andrae would be coveted by most nations as he eats minutes, regardless of his size.
He only stands at 5’9 and only weighs 176 pounds, but he is still a talented left-handed shot defenseman. Even with his size he doesn’t shy away from physicality. His hockey IQ has vastly improved, and he plays in any situation the coaching staff asks with no complaints. Andrae found his niche and became a versatile player that has impeccable gap control, and he has showcased that on numerous occasions for Sweden. His skating is top notch, and really provides depth on the left-hand side defensively in the Flyers system.
