THE OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES OF AHL DEVELOPMENT
It is a testament to the depth of the Philadelphia Flyers farm system that the organization not only has had its top two prospects playing in the National Hockey League all season and experiencing success, it also has nine affiliated prospects -- the most of any team in the NHL -- participating in the 2016-17 World Junior Championships.
For good measure, there is a significant contingent of first-year, second-year and third-year pros on a powerhouse Lehigh Valley Phantoms roster that has the look of a Calder Cup contender this season. That does not even include the likes of 20-year-old Oskar Lindblom, who has aged out of WJC eligibility and opted to play one more season in Sweden but who could be available for the Phantoms this spring depending on how far his second-place Brynäs team advances in the SHL playoffs. Lindblom is current tied for second in the SHL's overall scoring leaderboard.
At the American Hockey League level, there can be a delicate balancing act between trying to win now (often via a veteran-heavy roster) and simultaneously trying to develop young talent in preparation for the NHL. The current Phantoms, while heavily populated with American Hockey League veterans at forward and atop the blueline, is also bringing along a group of youngsters.
In terms of veterans-to-youth roster composition, the current Phantoms fall somewhere in between the two squads that won Calder Cup championships during the team's years of playing at the Spectrum in Philadelphia. The current Phantoms are generally quite veteran heavy up front but much of the blueline (beyond veterans T.J. Brennan and Will O'Neill) is young and the team is also young in goal.
When the Philadelphia Phantoms won their first Calder Cup championship in 1997-98, the club had a handful of young NHL prospects such as forwards Colin Forbes, Brian Wesenberg, and Paul Healey, defenseman Andy Delmore and goaltender Brian Boucher. However, the crux of the team was comprised of players in their mid-20s and AHL veterans. Key roles were filled by the likes of Peter White, Craig Darby, Jim Montgomery, Mike Maneluk, Shawn McCosh, Bruce Coles, Jamie Heward, 25-year-old goalie Neil Little (who started 20 games during the playoffs) and enforcer Frank "the Animal' Bialowas.
The Phantoms' second Calder Cup champion, coinciding with the lockout-canceled 2004-05 NHL season, had a much more prominent cadre of exceptional younger NHL prospects as primary contributors. The playoff nucleus ranged from Jeff Carter, Mike Richards, R.J. Umberger at Patrick Sharp up front, to Joni Pitkänen, Dennis Seidenberg, Freddy Meyer and Randy Jones on the blueline and third-year pro Antero Niittymäki in goal.
Generally speaking, however, it is not the norm for AHL teams to simultaneously be able to contend for a championship while such a large contingent of players in primary roles are in the early developmental phases of their professional careers. More typically, there is a mix of veterans and youth -- often leaning toward the veteran side -- with the roles of the top youngsters expanding over the course of the season and playoffs.
During the years the Phantoms were based in Glens Falls, NY, it was the worst of times for the team. The Flyers lacked prospect depth within the system, and the overall talent level of the youngsters coming through Adirondack on their path to the NHL was correspondingly modest.
In recent years, as the Flyers have steered away from trading draft picks and instead have been collecting assets, the prospect cupboard has been restocked -- in both quality and quantity -- on the blueline and in goal. While the forward depth is still catching up to the other position, the last few NHL Draft crops have yielded several promising players who have yet to become available to the Phantoms.
Following is a look at the crop of rookie, second-year and third-year Phantoms through the Christmas break, excluding goaltender Anthony Stolarz and left winger Taylor Leier, who are both currently on NHL recall with the Flyers:
Forwards
Nicolas Aube-Kubel: Coming out of Quebec League junior hockey to play his first full pro season at the pro level, the Flyers knew that Aube-Kubel had the ability to create offense and put the puck in the net. However, the organization wanted him to work on the consistency of his all-around game and to work toward maturing into the type of pro in whom a coach feels confidence using in a variety of situations. With a lot of veteran scoring depth up front, Aube-Kubel has typically played a fourth-line role.
Aube-Kubel is not being assessed this season, especially in the first half, based upon his offensive numbers (four goals,seven points). Neither his rookie-year role nor his ice time are conducive to big numbers. Rather, it his adaptation to different situations and his consistency in working toward gaining more ice time and eventually playing higher in the lineup that will the desired end point for him at the conclusion of the 2016-17 season.
Although they are not comparable players in some aspects, I would somewhat liken Aube-Kubel's rookie year to date with the rude awakening to pro-game expectations that Nick Cousins received in his 2013-14 rookie year with the Phantoms when he entered the pro ranks as something of a one-dimensional talent. It will up to Aube-Kubel to mirror the continual,year-to-year improvement that eventually took Cousins to a regular NHL lineup spot. In terms of raw skating ability, the speedy Aube-Kubel is ahead of Cousins as a first-year pro.
Aube-Kubel is not off to a bad start in his development. Look beyond the scoring numbers. The fact that he's dressed in 27 of 28 games for a deep team -- albeit one that's had some injuries and callup figure into who plays -- is an indication that he's making progress.
Radel Fazleev: Even before Fazleev turned pro, the Flyers made clear that his long-term role at the professional level was envisioned as being different from the one he played the last couple years in the Western Hockey League for the Calgary Hitmen. Whereas with Aube-Kubel, the role the rookie has played this season is hopefully a precursor to eventually being given a more offensive-oriented role down the line, an expanded version of Fazleev's current bottom-six role is likely to be the plan for how he's deployed as he gains more experience.
In the WHL, Fazleev was increasingly relied upon for scoring as his junior career progressed and the Hitmen's needs changed. All along, the Flyers envisioned Fazleev as a reliable two-way energy forward at the pro level. To his credit, Fazleev has embraced that role all along, understanding that it is the key to eventually making the NHL.
The bright and enthusiastic 20-year-old is still a work in progress, which is to be expected. However, he already shows good two-way instincts and hints of opportunistic offense (10 points) as well.
Defensemen
Travis Sanheim: There was never a question of whether Sanheim possessed NHL-caliber skating prowess, raw size and ability to generate (whether by distributing or finishing) scoring chances by joining the rush. If those were the only traits it took for the defenseman to reach the NHL, the 2014 first-round pick could have fast-tracked to the Flyers. It was pretty much everything else that needed development at the American Hockey League level.
As soon as the organization signed veteran offensive defenseman Brennan as well as O'Neill during the offseason, it was crystal clear that Sanheim would be told to focus primarily on other areas of his game: risk management up-ice, reading the play defensively, challenging more at the blueline and backing in less, developing more consistent physicality, being more defensively aware without losing aggressiveness when there's opportunity and support to attack.
These are the areas that have been heavily emphasized in Sanheim's work with Phantoms assistant coach Kerry Huffman. It was neither surprising nor alarming when others (especially Brennan) were putting up most of the points from the blueline the first couple months. What has been surprising, in a positive way, is how rapidly Sanheim's overall game has been adapting to the professional level. Recently, the points have started to come, too, including four goals in the month of December.
Over on the Highland Park Hockey blog -- a must-read for those who want to regularly follow the goings-on with the Phantoms -- Tim Riday authored an excellent piece looking at
pro-level adaptation thus far. In particular, the sections about Sanheim working on his physical play, with some quotes from Phantoms head coach Scott Gordon acknowledging that this is an ongoing work in progress, are especially interesting.
Samuel Morin: Even as a defensive defenseman, the 21-year-old Morin is a fun player to watch. "Less is more" is the mantra that has been repeated over and over again to the 6-foot-7, 227-pounder with remarkable straight-ahead skating ability for someone his size. His footwork, something he's worked considerably on the last few years, is smoother. The mean streak was always there.
Morin is still not immune from sometimes trying to do too much, with or without the puck on his stick. But he's made a lot of progress over the last calendar year from where he was the first few months of his rookie pro year.
All along, the Flyers have taken a very patient, step-by-step development focus with Morin. There's a night-and-day difference between where he was at his first NHL Development Camp to now. At this point, the challenge is get him over the hump to where he's making it tough to keep him in American Hockey League any longer. Morin has not quite gotten there yet, especially with the eight-man numbers game and personnel shuffling on the NHL roster's blueline this season. Right now, Morin is still better off with the Phantoms where he continues his year-to-year progression toward developing into a shutdown defenseman.
By this point next season, however, it would not be surprising if Morin has NHL games under his belt and is pushing for a regular top-six spot. Depending on how the Flyers approach their veteran blueline personnel the rest of this season -- the team is currently in solid playoff contention for at least a wildcard spot, but they also have three impending unrestricted free agents and some injury issues -- it will be up to Morin to see if he can push the issue.
Robert Hägg: Hägg closed out last year strong and got off to a decent start this season as well even as the Phantoms team weathered a staccato October before surging in November and December. Hägg then missed a half-dozen games after taking a puck to the face.
His play since returning has not been bad, especially on the defensive side of the puck. With a better team around him, he's a plus-five at the Christmas break. That's progress. However, his all-around assertiveness also has not been up to the level he showed with increased consistency in the final quarter of last season. Over the final 20 games last season, tthings seemed to clicking into place for him with more consistency in all three zones.
Pacing and decision-making is everything for Hägg. He is another player with whom the Flyers have tried to emphasize a less-is-more approach: making shorter, safer passes and quicker more decisive reads rather than overthinking the play, but also still recognizing when there are opportunities for aggressiveness.
The intrigue with Hägg has always been upside as a two-way defenseman who can be deployed in a variety of different situations. He shows stretches of that ability but he needs more consistency.
Hägg is still trying to fully hammer out his identity as a pro. Is he a two-way player or a defensive defenseman? Sometimes, he seems to settle for being a conservative defensive defenseman who could stand to be more aggressive. Periodically, although less frequently than in the past, he errs in the other direction with low-percentage plays that don't work regularly in the pro games. Hägg still takes a few too many unnecessary icings, for example.
With the 21-year-old Hägg, it is important to remember that, for NHL contract purposes, he is only in the second year of his entry-level deal (and, as such, is exempt from the Expansion Draft). That is because he came over from Sweden at age 19 for his first full North American pro season and his first Phantoms season fell under the "slide rule", on the same basis that it would had he been signed and then loaned to a Swedish team for the 2014-15 season.
Hägg is a very earnest, likable and hard-working young man. He seems quite laid back but he takes his career seriously. It's never been a matter of apathy. More than anything else, his biggest flaw seems to be that he falls into over-analyzing the game. Hägg himself has said that he likes structure and plays his best within a structured system.
Reece Willcox: Willcox has always flown under the radar among Flyers prospects but the 6-foot-4, righthanded shooting 22-year-old rookie has started 22 of 28 games for the Phantoms this season.
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 a good first pass and, when he keeps things simple, is a pretty good defender. There's even teases of offensive ability, but that will likely never be his forte (it was the same way in collegiate hockey as well).
Through his first 22 appearances this season, Willcox is a plus-nine at even strength; tied with Sanheim for the highest plus-minus on the team. 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.
Alex Lyon: The lengthy absence of Flyers goaltender Michal Neuvirth due to a sprained left knee has been another tough break for the oft-injured Czech netminder. However, the other three Flyers goaltenders at the NHL and AHL levels have thrived while he's been rehabbing. At the NHL level, Steve Mason has once again played his best hockey while in the undisputed number one role. In the meantime, Anthony Stolarz has gotten his first 160 minutes worth of NHL experience (two starts and a 40-minute relief appearance) and played well despite long stretches of inactivity during Mason's run of starting 18 of the last 20 games.
The six-week recall of Stolarz, an AHL All-Star last season who entered this season as the Phantoms' primary starter, has also meant that first-year pro Alex Lyon has gotten a whole lot of playing time (1,141 minutes worth so far) in November and December. The former Yale netminder has responded.
While it is true that Lyon receives a lot of goal support, he's earned his 13-5-1 record to date. The Phantoms still have room for defensive improvement and there have been plenty of situations were Lyon has bailed the team out of trouble.
Equally impressive within his 2.63 GAA and .913 save percentage has been the 23-year-old rookie competitive mentality. He has not let the occasional bad goal or high-scoring affair (such as Lehigh Valley's recent 8-6 win over Bridgeport) rattle him. There was also no letdown after the Phantoms' eight-game winning streak in November was snapped in a 5-2 loss to Bridgeport. Instead, the very next game, Lyon went out and blanked Binghamton on 28 shots in a 1-0 Lehigh Valley victory that was a scoreless deadlock until veteran captain Colin McDonald scored the game's only goal midway through the third period. The shutout was Lyon's first as a pro.
More recently, as the Phantoms have assembled a current five-game winning streak, the team has had to lean heavily on Lyon at times to get through some rough patches in several of the matches. The 8-6 game was just one of those crazy nights. Even then, Lyon stopped 13 of 14 shots in the third period to help earn the victory.
The Phantoms return to action on Boxing Day, hosting the arch-rival Hershey Bears. With the World Junior Championships also getting underway on Monday and the Flyers playing a relatively light schedule this week in terms of volume of games -- in St. Louis on Wednesday, in San Jose on Friday and in Anaheim on Sunday before playing just one weeknight game over the subsequent five evenings -- upcoming off-day blogs will focus largely on Flyers prospects at the WJC with the usual Flyers game-day blogs and wrapups in between the NHL team's games.
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