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Photo Credit: Our very own Rob Windfelder
With Matvei Michkov and Jett Luchanko set to make their NHL Debuts tonight. Most of the attention for this young Flyers team will be geared towards them, for good reason. However, let’s not forget about two other young players, and one who has grown into a leader in Joel Farabee, while Tyson Foerster is trying to improve upon his good 2023-24 campaign.
Joel Farabee’s 2023-24 season can be described as up and down, as he finished with 22 goals and 28 assists. He proved that he was healthy enough to withstand the rigors of an 82 game season, following an up and down 2022-23 season that was marred by injury.
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He managed to finish the 2022-23 season with 15 goals and 24 assists, but there was a sense of frustrations at times after a dry spell of points. This type of season was to be expected after having major summer surgery on his neck that Summer. However, Farabee is a perfectionist and he knows his craft well, so when he can’t perform at a level he knows he can play at, a sense of frustrations obviously ensued.
Through all of this, what Farabee has proven to the fans of Philadelphia is that the Flyers should build around him. Drafted by the Flyers in 2018 at 14th overall, Farabee has seen action with the AHL Lehigh Valley Phantoms and the big club, where he torched his opponents.
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Farabee’s style of play resonates with Philadelphia and Flyers fans in particular. He plays a 200 foot game, and is just so darn good at killing penalties. It becomes very attractive to stay up with the big club for good, based off those reasons alone. Killing penalties is a crucial attribute to have, and Farabee does it well.
What Farabee also brings is skating, and typically you know if he is a confident player with the way he skates. Farabee can skate at top speeds to push the play up the ice. He’s proven time and time again he is an excellent skater, with the agility and edge work to get by defenders in one-on-one situations, and he also possesses a great first step. Farabee is an outstanding playmaker off the wing, who possesses great vision of the ice. He is also a good defender, as Farabee remains focused and poised at killing penalties.
Farabee looks good in the pre-season, following a four point performance in the team’s first exhibition game against the Washington Capitals (1g,3a). He’s got that “Wow” factor back with taking the play up the ice, reading plays properly, and finishing it off with a snipe. Farabee is shooting well, and just looks like a player that is determined to prove his naysayers wrong.
The young 24-year-old in Farabee stayed in Voorhees, NJ all Summer, once again. This time he was fully healthy, as opposed to recovering from an injury. That’s a big difference, especially if one can properly train. Finally, he didn’t have to rehab, so Farabee appears to be ahead the eight ball with the season around the corner.
One last thing to note of Farabee is that he does not forget the ones that helped him get to this point at the NHL level, and it’s pretty cool of him to use a pay it forward system sort of speak for the youth that are trying to become mainstays at the professional level, “I think since I got here the older guys treated me great. Kevin, Scott Laughton, Michael Raffl really took me under their wing, let me stay with them, dinners. Now that I have a place in the city, I thought I would house a few young guys,” Farabee said. Young guys, such as, Tyson Foerster and Bobby Brink.
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Tyson Foerster
Tyson Foerster had one goal in mind last Summer…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, much like he did this Summer. It didn’t matter if he donned a new number of 71, making the team did not change his mindset regardless of the number (Old number 52). Mission accomplished, as he won a spot on the Flyers opening night roster.
It wasn’t all roses for him scoring wise, but he managed to finish tied for third with goals by a rookie with 20 goals. He also played very well defensively. Even so much so, he was involved in the play more often than not, his skating became a strength believe it or not. That was evident when he clearly negated and icing call against the New York Islanders just a few months into the season. The ref failed to see otherwise, however, on instant replay it showed Foerster negating the icing call, and it was made by strong skating strides and determination.
That same mentality gave the rookie a shot in the shootout, and he made no mistake with a nifty move and putting the puck in the back of the net. In the end, the Flyers beat the New York Islanders 1-0 in the shootout, thanks to great goaltending by Samuel Ersson and determination by Tyson Foerster.
Maturity
At only 22-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 back at training camp.
He is comfortable when he is in the face-off circle on the left side. Tyson feeds players extremely well and is always looking for where his target is. Foerster can bring qualities to the ice that the Flyers are lacking. He took advantage of playing in the AHL with uncertainty surrounding the OHL in 2020-21, and he followed that up with a good season with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in 2022-23. Tyson gained valuable professional experience, and tutelage from some veteran players like Cal O’Reilly and Garrett Wilson, whom he spoke of very highly of for helping him as he stated to us at Developmental Camp in 2021.
Skating is not a problem
Tyson is coming off a great season, a season in which he impressed 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. 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.
“It’s not easy out there, that’s for sure,” Foerster said. “Everyone’s sick players and that’s why they’re there (In the NHL). Every Summer it’s all about everything. This Summer, I’ve been here for a month. just my legs and my leg strength and my quick steps, I feel like I’m getting better at that. I feel like everything is improving.”
