Wanna blog? Start your own hockey blog with My HockeyBuzz. Register for free today!
 

Meltzer's Musings: Prospects, Timonen, Draft Maneuvering and More

July 21, 2015, 9:01 AM ET [386 Comments]
Bill Meltzer
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • RSSArchiveCONTACT
MELTZER'S MUSINGS: JULY 21, 2015

1) Longtime Flyers defenseman Kimmo Timonen will finally have his scheduled day with the Stanley Cup on Tuesday. Due to a severe thunderstorm and other travel complications, the most famous trophy in team sports went instead to Stockholm, where Cup keeper Phil Pritchard was unable to immediately get a connecting flight to Finland.

Upon the Cup's arrival in Helsinki on Monday, young Chicago Blackhawks forward Teuvo Teräväinen was the first Chicago Finnish player to get a day with the trophy. Timonen's turn is on Tuesday in his hometown of Kuopio.

The now-retired five-time NHL All-Star will be the guest of honor in the town's market square in a celebration that will be broadcast on YLE Areena in Finland. The Cup will then make the rounds to restaurants Timonen owns in Kuopio.

Timonen, who plans to maintain his American residence in the Delaware Valley for several years to come, may come to work for the Flyers now that he is retired as an active player. Last month, both Flyers general manager Ron Hextall and Timonen said they would sit down at some point and discuss a potential role in the organization.

2) A year ago at this time, the Flyers believed that defenseman Mark Alt was on the cusp of making a serious challenge for an NHL roster spot. Unfortunately, the righthanded shooting 24-year-old saw much of his second season with the Phantoms lost to a separated shoulder and a broken hand. He was limited to 44 games (two goals, 10 points, 18 penalty minutes, minus-15) and never really got in sync.

The 2014-15 season was not a total loss for Alt, however. The former Carolina Hurricanes second-round pick (2010) made his NHL debut on March 28. Alt skated 9:25 over 13 shifts in a 3-2 home shootout loss to the San Jose Sharks.

Next season -- the final one of Alt's entry-level contract -- will be a crucial one for him if he is to have a future role on the Flyers' defense. Being righthanded helps his cause but the numbers game on the depth chart increasingly works against him as the window of opportunity closes.

3) Generally speaking, I dislike compiling ranking lists of the top prospects in the farm system. There are two important criteria at work, and they do not necessarily overlap: Long-term projected pro upside versus their current degree of NHL/AHL readiness.

Prospects such as Nick Cousins, Scott Laughton and Taylor Leier are now playing at the pro level, and Laughton in particular is in the mix to challenge for a regular NHL job at some point in the 2015-16 season and showed flashes of offensive potential as a rookie. Cousins and Alt will be be third-year pros next season. Cousins had a breakthrough AHL campaign for the Phantoms in 2014-15 but struggled a bit during the latter part of an 11-game call-up to the Flyers.

The younger the prospect, the more unpredictability there is in projecting their future role. This is true for players of all positions but especially for goaltenders. Could Felix Sandström or Matej Tomek wind up being equal or superior NHL prospects to Anthony Stolarz? It's possible but, right now, no one can predict their respective long-term futures with any degree of reliability.

Likewise, forward prospects such as Nicolas Aube-Kubel, Oskar Lindblom or Mikhail Vorobyov may wind up having equal or superior NHL careers to current Phantoms forwards who are currently further along in their development. Then again, maybe they won't.

4) Over on the Flyers Alumni website, the newest installment of the "Then and Now" series looks at former first-round pick Kerry Huffman and his journey from NHL player to NHL player agent. Huffman, who was one of the youngest players in franchise history to make his NHL debut, did not benefit from being rushed to the NHL as a teenager. As an agent and youth hockey director, he emphasizes the importance of patience both by teams and by young players themselves. Click here for more.

5) The Columbus Blue Jackets website has an interesting video taken at the team's draft table during the first round of the 2015 NHL Draft. Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekäläinen talks with several teams about the possibility of moving up a few spots. Along the way, the Columbus GM reports to team president John Davidson that Flyers GM Hextall told him Philadelphia has an opportunity to move back two spots to the ninth position (held by San Jose). The Flyers want to know whom the Blue Jackets plan to take.

Kekäläinen, who hopes to select defenseman Zach Werenski and had several discussions about moving up, conjectures that the Flyers "are fishing" because they think Columbus "is going to take a Finn" (Mikko Rantanen, who eventually goes 10th overall to Colorado). Actually, the Flyers seem to want to be sure Columbus will not take Ivan Provorov if they move back. Kekäläinen asks Hextall to tell him first if the Flyers are aiming to select a forward or defenseman but the Flyers GM declines.

Ultimately, both the Flyers and Columbus stood pat with respective first-round selection spots. Both teams got the player they want, as the Flyers took Provorov seventh and the Blue Jackets selected Werenski with the next pick.




*********


TODAY IN FLYERS HISTORY FROM FlyersAlumni.org

1987: The Flyers sell the contract of Jeff Brubaker to the New York Rangers.

1989: The Flyers trade Shawn Cronin to the Winnipeg Jets in exchange for future considerations.

2008: The Flyers sign Joffrey Lupul to a four-year contract extension.

2010: The Flyers sign Matt Clackson to a one-year, two-way contract.

ALUM BIRTHDAY

The late "Cowboy" Bill Flett was born in Vermillion, Alberta on July 21, 1943. Acquired from the Los Angeles Kings in the same multi-player deal that brought Ross Lonsberry to Philadelphia. The big (6-foot-1, 205 pound) Flett was not a fast skater or deft puckhandler but had good hands and an ability to score goals when paired with a skilled playmaker.

Playing right wing on a line with Bobby Clarke and Bill Barber in 1972-73, Flett produced a 43-goal, 74-point campaign in 74 games. The next year, hindered by injuries and off-ice issues, he slumped to 17 goals and 44 points and was moved down in the lineup. Flett dressed in 17 playoff games (zero goals, six assists) as the Flyers won their first Stanley Cup. Flett assisted on Clarke's famous overtime goal in Game Two of the Final against Boston; one of the most iconic moments in franchise history.

The Flyers traded Flett to the Toronto Maple Leafs on May 27, 1974 in exchange for Dave Fortier and Randy Osbourne. Flett passed away on July 12, 1999.


*********



FLYERS ALUMNI FANTASY HOCKEY CAMP

 photo unnamed.jpg


The Flyers Alumni will host a fantasy hockey camp from August 21-24 in Atlantic City, open to anyone age 21 and older. Instructors and Alumni participants will include Bernie Parent, Brian Propp, Ian Laperriere, Todd Fedoruk, Andre "Moose" Dupont, Dave "the Hammer" Schultz, Joe Watson and Bob "the Hound" Kelly.

Participation costs $3,000 apiece and you can register a spot online. Over on the Flyers' Alumni website, there is more information on camp-related activities and on-ice schedules.
Join the Discussion: » 386 Comments » Post New Comment
More from Bill Meltzer
» Wrap: Flyers Lose 6-5 OT Game to Rangers
» Flyers Gameday: 3/26/24 @ NYR
» Quick Hits: Flyers-FLA Wrap, Flyers Daily, Phantoms, Bigger than Hockey
» Flyers Gameday: 3/24/2024 vs. FLA; Phantoms Update
» Wrap: Flyers Pass Huge Test, Beat Boston