Weekend Back-to-Back
The Flyers practice today at the Skate Zone in Voorhees before departing for Raleigh. The team faces a weekend back-to-back set of matinee games, playing the Carolina Hurricanes on the road tomorrow and then returning home on Sunday to complete the season series with the arch-rival Pittsburgh Penguins.
It is likely that Ray Emery and Steve Mason will split goaltending duties over the weekend. If the Flyers had still been in the playoff chase, Mason would probably have been tabbed for both games.
********* Autism Awareness Night at Wells Fargo Center
The Flyers will hold an Autism Awareness Night at the Wells Fargo Center for their April 9th home game against the Hurricanes. The organization is partnering with and hosting a number of community organizations for the evening, including Autism Inclusion Resources (AIR), the Center for Autism, Autism Delaware, Autism Speaks, the Variety Club, the Childrenโs Charity, and the Autism Society of America, Greater Philadelphia chapter.
Families associated with each of these organizations have been invited to attend the game and sit in special family-friendly lounges, courtesy of the Flyers.
********** Laughton's Late Surge a Bright Spot for Phantoms
The Lehigh Valley Phantoms are out of the Calder Cup playoff race but the way that rookie center Scott Laughton is finishing up the season is an encouraging sign for the Flyers organization.
For roughly a month, there was a noticeable downturn in Laughton's effectiveness after he returned from a concussion sustained in a Jan. 14 game with the Washington Capitals. In the four NHL games he played upon his return to the lineup, with the exception of challenging an obliging Capitals defenseman Matt Niskanen to a fight in response to the hit that concussed him, Laughton did not show the things that had temporarily won him a job on the big club.
The first-year center is a player who needs to use his two-way awareness, speed and tenacity in puck battles to be effective. The fact that he recorded six points (two goals, four assists) in 31 games with the Flyers and none in the four games after coming back from the concussion was not worrisome. Rather, it was the way he had begun to look overmatched in the game's smaller battles after holding his own earlier that made his AHL reassignment to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms inevitable.
Laughton's struggles continued for several weeks upon his return to the Phantoms. That was definitely concerning, as he began the season by looking dominant at times at the American Hockey League level. In the first 14 games after his return to the Phantoms, Laughton's all-around game still seemed off and his offensive production was limited to four points (one goal, three assists) with a minus-nine rating at even strength.
In a couple of the latter games of that stretch, however, there were hints that Laughton was close to breaking out again. The floodgates finally opened in the March 28th game against Wilkes Barre/Scranton. Over the last three games, Laughton has racked up four goals, six points and eight shots on his goal.
The difference: Laughton has once again been tenacious in getting himself to the scoring areas, using his speed to his advantage and has been heavy on the puck. Stats aside, he seems on track again to close out the season the way he started it, except now he has the experience of successfully working through some pro-level adversity and the knowledge of what he needs to do (such as continuing to add some muscle over the summer) to take the next steps in his second professional season.
********* Stortini Wins Phantoms Man of Year, Finalist for AHL'S Dupre Award
Congratulations go out to Phantoms right winger Zack Stortini for winning the club's Man of the Year award for his deep involvement with the community in and around Allentown as well as various charitable organizations. Every AHL team selects its own Man of the Year and the honorees become the pool of finalists for the league's Yanick Dupre Memorial Award, named in honor of the late Flyers/Hershey Bears forward.
As is often the case with hockey tough guys, the hulking Stortini off the ice is nothing whatsoever like the fearsome figure he cuts on game nights. He is always smiling and approachable away from the ice, and deeply cares about being a positive role model. Stortini is also one of the team's most respected dressing room leaders and a true pro in his work ethic.
The Phantoms had a tough choice for the award this year, because there are a lot of worthy candidates. Apart from Stortini, the likes of Andrew Gordon, Rob Zepp, Brandon Manning (now with the Flyers) and Blair Jones are high-quality people who believe in giving back to the community that supports their team and makes it possible to make a living in this game.
Other 2014-15 Dupre Award finalists and team-specific Man of the Year winners with previous Flyers/Phantoms ties include Bruno Gervais (Lake Erie Monsters), Shane Harper(Chicago Wolves), and Matt Ford (Oklahoma City Barons).
A few months ago on the Flyers' Alumni official website, I wrote a life and career retrospective on Yanick Dupre. There is a good reason why both the AHL and the Flyers have awards named in his honor.
Dupre was a special person -- extremely bright, caring and sensitive -- apart from being a talented young hockey player whose life was tragically cut short by leukemia. I am not afraid to admit that, while transcribing the interview Yanick's father, Jacques, did with Jay Greenberg for the upcoming 50th anniversary history of the Flyers, I was nearly moved to tears by Jacques' explanation of why it means so much to the entire Dupre family that both the Flyers and the AHL honor his name with special awards.
I hope that Jay will not mind if I share this quote from Jacques Dupre: "When Yanick was in the hospital the second time, he said to me, 'Dad, I'm never going to be remembered as a hockey player.' I think if Yanick knew how much he is remembered and honored every year for the past 17 years, for the person he was on an off the ice, he would have been been proud. As his father, I am very proud and happy about that. He doesn't have to worry if people remember him. Every year, I see who get the trophies from the Flyers and the AHL, because it represents Yanick's memory."
********* Bernie Turns 70
On a much happier note, Hockey Hall of Fame goaltender Bernie Parent celebrates his 70th birthday today. To celebrate the occasion, the Flyers Alumni site features a special tribute biography on one of the most beloved athletes in Philadelphia sports history.
The article is complete with photos and videos spanning Bernie's career and retirement, including a photo of Parent and Pelle Lindbergh sitting together that ran in Pelle Lindbergh: Behind the White Mask.
********** Flyers Alumni in Animal Rescue Benefit Game in Whitehall on Saturday
Back in January, Bernie Parent did a special autograph signing event at the Rink at Lehigh Valley in Whitehall, PA, with all proceeds going to the You Too Animal Rescue; a cause that lifelong animal lover Parent believes in.
On Saturday afternoon, the Flyers Alumni Team will play a benefit hockey game to support the non-profit animal rescue organization, which rescued more than 175 endangered, neglected and abused cats and kittens as well as 10 dogs during the 2014 calendar year alone. Game time on Saturday is 2 p.m.