Over the next year or two, the Philadelphia Flyers' roster is likely to look significantly different than the current one. That is especially true on the blueline, where multiple young defensemen on the AHL's Lehigh Valley Phantoms are progressing at encouraging rates this season.
Speaking recently to ESPN's Craig Custance, Flyers assistant general manager Chris Pryor said of third-year defenseman Robert Hägg that the 21-year-old Swede has "made big strides" this season and is "just about NHL ready." Drafted by the Flyers in the second round of the 2013 Draft, Hägg started to turn a corner in the last 15 to 20 games or so of the 2015-16 season and has carried the progress through the first three and a half months of the current season.
Hägg got off to a strong start even as the Phantoms played inconsistently in the early going. On Nov. 5, however, Hägg took a puck to the face and missed the next six games while reportedly suffering headaches. Understandably, it took Hägg a little time to get untracked again but he has done so to become one of the Phantoms most reliable two-way defensemen.
With Hägg, the challenge has always been to figure out just who he is as a defenseman and to improve his pacing and decisiveness. He does well with structure, and has simplified his game to good effect. The 6-foot-2, 200-pounder does have some offensive ability but has increasingly found his niche as a defensively reliable player who makes a good first pass and is simultaneously more assertive but also more effective in managing risk than he was in earlier phases of his development.
Arguably the most exciting of the current Phantoms contingent is rookie defenseman Travis Sanheim; the Flyers' first-round pick in 2014. The Flyers organization already knew he had offensive ability and very good mobility but he faced major adjustments in adapting the run-and-gun style he played the last two seasons with the Western Hockey League's Calgary Hitmen to one that was more likely to succeed at the professional level.
Sanheim had a litany of areas that needed further refinement: his play without the puck, use of his frame (now about 200 pounds on a 6-foot-4 body) to develop a more consistent physical element, willingness to challenge at the blueline rather than backing in and giving up real estate and allowing his offense to flow from his defense rather than forcing plays and trying to lead the rush from the back end.
With veteran offensive-minded defensemen T.J. Brennan and Will O'Neill added to the Phantoms' roster this season along with a host of veteran scoring forwards, Sanheim entered the season with less offensive burden than he had in Calgary and a chance to focus on his two-way development.
The good news: his overall game, while still a work in progress, is coming along at an encouraging rate. In the meantime, he has started to add the offensive punch that he was known for in junior hockey -- seven goals, nine points in his last 14 games -- while balancing it with his ongoing development as a more complete player. Over on
Highland Park Hockey, there is an in-depth analysis of Sanheim's progression to date, with candid commentary from Phantoms head coach Scott Gordon on the player's successes and ongoing opportunities for improvement.
The biggest challenge for any young defenseman, whether it's Sanheim, Hägg, 2013 first-round pick Samuel Morin or anyone else is to develop a professional mindset -- including the ability to bounce back from a big mistake or a rough game while replicating positive results on a shift-in and shift-out basis.
Fans tend to perceive players differently than coaches and GMs, focusing more on a few plays within a game -- whether good or bad -- rather than on the weight of what they see over the course of 20-plus shifts per game. This tendency has particularly affected popular perceptions of Morin, where the focus is often on a big hit, a fight or else a turnover or misread play that ends up in his team's net rather than on his overall play.
The message the organization has tried to impart in Morin is "less is more", given his intimidating size, reach and long strides. He still has slip-ups where he's trying to do too much and gets over-aggressive or impatient but his consistency is moving in the right direction. He had a couple of rough games right after Christmas but has come on again of late.
Morin is a very enthusiastic and emotional player, which can sometimes work to his detriment. Overall, though, the 6-foot-7, 229-pounder is adapting to playing more under control and has been becoming a go-to player when there's a lead to protect or a penalty to kill. The learning curve is ongoing, but he's been someone from day one whom the organization has understood may have a more protracted development cycle before his arrival in the NHL. Morin is getting close to the point where he could benefit from some NHL games before potentially challenging for a top-six spot in the near future.
Flying beneath the radar is rookie defenseman Reese Willcox. the 6-foot-4, righthanded shooting 22-year-old rookie has started 27 of 37 games for the Phantoms this season. The return of veteran Mark Alt to the lineup after missing the first half of the season has meant a reduction of playing time for Willcox.
While things haven't always been seamless -- there have been times where the Cornell graduate has very much looked like a rookie -- Willcox grows on you the more you see him; which has been the case ever since he was drafted in the fifth round in 2012.
He moves well, usually makes an accurate first pass and, when he keeps things simple, is a pretty good defender. There's even rare teases of offensive ability, but that will likely never be his forte (it was the same way in collegiate hockey as well).
Willcox is a plus-10 at even strength. While this number can sometimes be deceptive and is also a reflection of Lehigh Valley's offensive prowess, it at least suggests that Willcox is on the right track as a late-blooming first-year pro. He's had some injury issues in his past development -- a high ankle sprain a couple years ago significantly affected his play for awhile -- but he seems to gradually end up as a better player by the end of each season from his starting point at the beginning. Willcox returned to the Phantoms' lineup on Monday to play just his second game in January. Before Alt returned, Willcox dressed in 22 of 28 games.
Come next season, highly touted prospect Philippe Myers (still sidelined with a concussion suffered in the World Junior Championships) will be added the mix at the pro level. Among players on the current NHL roster, there are two unrestricted free agency candidates in Michael Del Zotto and Mark Streit. The organization will likely expose either Andrew MacDonald or Brandon Manning (or both) to the expansion draft.
In other words, there should be an NHL job or two available to be won, and plenty of competition for an opening night spot. The transition toward youth has already begun with the infusions of Ivan Provorov and Travis Konecny -- both deemed NHL-ready at age 19 and both nagivating the highs and lows that come with being a teenager in the NHL but doing well overall. That's especially true for Provorov.
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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