Do we know that they don't think they are ready? I think all we know is that Hextall doesn't want to call them up. Ghost wasn't ready until he had to be

They can be sent back to the AHL....like Ghost
- YuenglingJagr

No, we don't, and Hextall may prefer to leave them in the AHL with the possibility to play big minutes in a number of AHL playoff games as opposed to playing sheltered minutes in largely meaningless NHL games. Or he could think that they're not ready. Or he could think that they are ready, but should stay with the team they've been with all year long.

That's never stopped the coach from playing Bellemare and Vandevelde
- PhillySportsGuy

No, we don't, and Hextall may prefer to leave them in the AHL with the possibility to play big minutes in a number of AHL playoff games as opposed to playing sheltered minutes in largely meaningless NHL games. Or he could think that they're not ready. Or he could think that they are ready, but should stay with the team they've been with all year long.
- jmatchett383

or he could trade them cause theyre busts!

That's never stopped the coach from playing Bellemare and Vandevelde
- PhillySportsGuy

That's never stopped the coach from playing Bellemare and Vandevelde
- PhillySportsGuy

Agreed on VDV, but I don't think time spent working on his game in the AHL would make him more ready for the NHL. But I think all but 1 person on here wants him replaced 2 years ago.

Wasn't Couturier a 90 point guy in the Q in his last, injury shortened year in junior?
- johndewar

He was also, as I recall... the consensus #1 at the start of his last year in the Q, before having his game picked apart by scouts, gm's and ob.

Scouting players is to a certain extent a guessing game. Any idiot can tell you who the best player on the ice is at any given moment. Its a lot harder to tell who is and who isnt going to excel at the next level.

or he could trade them cause theyre busts!
- YuenglingJagr

Too sensible for Hexfail.

He was also, as I recall... the consensus #1 at the start of his last year in the Q, before having his game picked apart by scouts, gm's and ob.

Scouting players is to a certain extent a guessing game. Any idiot can tell you who the best player on the ice is at any given moment. Its a lot harder to tell who is and who isnt going to excel at the next level.
- Doc_Sarcasm

Didn't he also have a bad case of mono?

i dont hate what shero did. hindsight is always going to be 20/20. its sort of ironic and unfair that he was never able to seemingly draft young forward talent, but now all of the young guys that everyone is enamored with were his picks/acquisitions that just took time.

i hated the despres trade. ultimately it worked out fine, but I just don't like getting bailed out because the guy with upside cant stay healthy.

the pouliot pick was the real killer.

on one hand, i just dont like the notion of intentionally having an unbalanced cupboard with the intent of trading later. if you continually go BPA and it slants that way, so be it.
- stayinthefnnet

Yeah I think a lot of it is still TBD, especially with the expansion draft. Pouliot must not have developed properly at the lower levels

Honestly, if some of the forwards didnt develop the way they did, maybe they would have traded him for one

He was also, as I recall... the consensus #1 at the start of his last year in the Q, before having his game picked apart by scouts, gm's and ob.

Scouting players is to a certain extent a guessing game. Any idiot can tell you who the best player on the ice is at any given moment. Its a lot harder to tell who is and who isnt going to excel at the next level.
- Doc_Sarcasm

I also think he got mono which killed his combine and he lost weight

Agreed on VDV, but I don't think time spent working on his game in the AHL would make him more ready for the NHL. But I think all but 1 person on here wants him replaced 2 years ago.
- jmatchett383

hmmm...who is it?

certainly not Scoob...although he does wish CV was replaced 2 years ago

Agreed on VDV, but I don't think time spent working on his game in the AHL would make him more ready for the NHL. But I think all but 1 person on here wants him replaced 2 years ago.
- jmatchett383

I guess I just don't know what "ready" means. It seems to mean many different things to many different people..

I guess I just don't know what "ready" means. It seems to mean many different things to many different people..
- PhillySportsGuy

I think from what Hextall has said "Ready" means they are here to stay. No up and down.

Edit: I would use Laughton as an example.

https://www.nhl.com/flyer...elphia-flyers/c-287902944

How does he work?

His first few years he has been stock piling prospects and trying to trim fat from the roster.

Like I said. Hextall will be patient until it's time not to be.
- J35Bacher

He will be patient unless he is forced not to be. Why would he be forced to open up 2 spots for young players if A) they can be sent to other leagues and B) they have the cap space/roster space to sign veterans

the guy has kept 8 defensemen nearly the entire time he has been GM of the Flyers and now we think he will just go down to 4? They will have the opportunity to win the job, just like they have the last 2-3 years, but someone(s) is getting signed

I guess I just don't know what "ready" means. It seems to mean many different things to many different people..
- PhillySportsGuy

If I had to define it, I guess it would be that a player, the case of a defenseman, is good enough at reading plays, positioning, skating, and puck skills to not be a liability at the NHL level. If you can skate like the wind and fire shots at 100 MPH, but are constantly out of position, make bad pinches, and your passes get picked off, then you should be working on this at lower levels.

hmmm...who is it?

certainly not Scoob...although he does wish CV was replaced 2 years ago
- YuenglingJagr

For the record, I don't want CDVDVXLIII gone... I think he's fine as a 4th line guy.. the problem is the Flyers currently ice something like five or six 4th line guys. I don't care which ones go, they simply have to have several upgrades in the forward corps.

He will be patient unless he is forced not to be. Why would he be forced to open up 2 spots for young players if A) they can be sent to other leagues and B) they have the cap space/roster space to sign veterans

the guy has kept 8 defensemen nearly the entire time he has been GM of the Flyers and now we think he will just go down to 4? They will have the opportunity to win the job, just like they have the last 2-3 years, but someone(s) is getting signed
- YuenglingJagr

Like people have said.

If Hextall feels they are ready to be everyday NHL players. They won't need to sign anyone from FA if they(the Flyers) feel guys are ready to absorb those roles.

It's impossible to prove. I'm just giving my opinion.

I don't think keeping guys in the minors hurts them. I just think it delays development. You only get these guys on cheap deals for so long. I want them contributing as soon as possible while they're as cheap as possible.
- PhillySportsGuy

We're pretty much just about past the point where their contribution would mean much to the Flyers. They may be more talented, but are they better than any of the current Flyers defenseman? What would they be contributing to, playing out the NHL season?

We're pretty much just about past the point where they're contribution would mean much to the Flyers. They may be more talented, but are they better than any of the current Flyers defenseman? What would they be contributing to, playing out the NHL season?
- MJL

Well, if we played Morin and he played against the Rangers, he could maybe contribute to (frank)ing the Rangers to an early playoff exist via a few well-placed hits to key players.

This is mostly where I fall...I don't believe there is one way to develop a prospect. I also think that overall, a player that is good enough has to develop at the NHL level anyway. If he is physically and mentally ready for the NHL I don't think it will be a problem. There isn't a recipe though where if you play under this certain condition for 2 years then you are deemed ready.

I don't completely agree with what PSG is saying, but I don't think he is wrong just because he disagrees with what the Flyers are doing. I do think Hextall is being over cautious (I believe he admits this as well) because in his mind the risk isn't worth the reward.
- YuenglingJagr

I would also say that unlike previous years, there are more players on the Phantoms that one day could make the big club...when they last made their run and won the Calder cup there were some strong bonds between the players that carried over at the NHL level and those guys went on to be part of teams that made some cup runs...I think if you look at the core of guys down there that have NHL potential, the best thing that can happen is they make a strong push through the playoffs and know themselves and their teammates before they come up and play under the microscope of the NHL...I think that is one thing Hexy is looking at is a culture shift with a group of new guys eventually coming up...The guys like Ghost, Prov and TK are outliers...they are just too good already and need to play at the NHL level...they already perform and act as professionals...

hmmm...who is it?

certainly not Scoob...although he does wish CV was replaced 2 years ago
- YuenglingJagr

lol...but only so the last two years of whining about something that doesn't make a difference anyway wouldn't have happened*

*yes, I know, the whining would've been about something else but there is a chance it would've been about something important

https://www.nhl.com/flyers/news/phantoms-profile-sanheim-rounding-out-his-game-in-allentown--philadelphia-flyers/c-287902944
- nastyflyergirl

I think this is all a little silly. It's like Democrats and Republicans. I don't think anyone is saying that the AHL kills development, and I don't think anyone is saying that players need to be coddled, but that's how you guys seem to be taking it, whichever side you don't agree on.

Right now, I don't think there's any surefire way to maximize a player's development. There are players like Provorov who are too good for any league other than the NHL. Those players are few and far between, because most have flaws in their game.

The general thinking is that the AHL is a good league that offers very good pro competition where players can get accilimated to the pro game while working on their deficiencies so that, when they get to the NHL, they are much more polished. This also allows for more "complete" (yet sometimes less skilled) players to play on the NHL squad to let them remain fairly competitive.

The newer style of thinking is to let these players work out the kinks at the highest level, the NHL. However, the working out of these kinks will have severe growing pains and, while it may translate to more skill in the lineup, the team will most likely suffer in the short term as these players work on their flaws.

Neither way is always right. Some players need more time than others to work on their game, and some players thrive with more or less lower-level instruction. Disagreeing with one way or the other does not mean someone is attacking you personally.
- jmatchett383

Judge Judy could not have put it any better! Spot on thought!

We're pretty much just about past the point where they're contribution would mean much to the Flyers. They may be more talented, but are they better than any of the current Flyers defenseman? What would they be contributing to, playing out the NHL season?
- MJL

I just liked the idea of getting some of the young guys some NHL time after it seemed clear the playoffs weren't in the cards.

I'd equate it to getting a great internship before your senior year of college. Then getting a job at that same company after you graduate. You're going to feel much more comfortable and hit the ground running rather than feeling things out.

It would also give the team a chance to evaluate some of them before the offseason. As it stands now, they're all pretty much question marks for next year.