QUICK HITS: JULY 29, 2017
1) The 2017 World Junior Summer Showcase gets underway on Saturday at USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, Michigan. Two games are on tap: USA White vs. Finland at 1 p.m. EDT and USA Blue vs. Sweden at 4 p.m. EDT. Both matches will be streamed on HockeyTV.com (subscription only).
Flyers defense prospect Linus Högberg will be action for Team Sweden in the second match. Along with Team Canada goaltender Carter Hart, he is one of two Flyers-affiliated prospects who will play in the event.
For Team USA, which will later be combined from White and Blue teams to a single squad, there are seven returning players from last year's World Junior Championship gold medal winning team: forwards Kieffer Bellows, Joey Anderson and Patrick Harper, defensemen Ryan Lindgren and Adam Fox and goalies Jake Oettinger and Joseph Woll.
2) Today marks 25 years since the untimely passing of former Flyers goaltender Michel "Bunny" Larocque at age 40 after a bout with brain cancer. Best known for his many years as the Montreal Canadiens' backup goaltender, Larocque later played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Flyers and St. Louis Blues. He appeared in two games with the Flyers during the 1982-83 season, tying one and losing one.