Phantoms / Royals / NCAA / Juniors / Int'l

[awaz]

Phantoms storm back from 4 down late in the 2nd and win 5-4 last night.

Sanheim is really starting to come alive offensively. 2 assists last night.

 

[lasgop8]

Phantoms storm back from 4 down late in the 2nd and win 5-4 last night.

Sanheim is really starting to come alive offensively. 2 assists last night.

Sanheim is 19th in rookie defense scoring and only 4 rookies ahead of him.

 

[awaz]

score another late one (1 minute or so left) and win in a shootout. poor St. Johns probably thought they had all 4 points in this back to back and they come away with 2 OT/SO losses.

 

[awaz]

Tough loss on Saturday against WBS (#1 in the AHL), but another late comeback on Sunday against Bridgeport. Down 3-1 with 11 minutes left, scored the tying goal around 1:30 and Leier won it in OT. That one was actually on NHL Network, watched most of the first two periods, but flipped over to the Flyers for the 3rd. Missed the fun part.

Sanheim looks silky out there. Seemed to be playing with a ton of confidence. Also, Stolarz had quite the game which was good to see.

The standings in the East are stupid. The top 5 in the Atlantic (Phantoms division) all have more points than #1 in the North. Unfortunately one of the teams in the Atlantic will miss out on the playoffs. Likely Bridgeport.

 

[JBM73]

Thought this was a good write-up from mid-February:

No. 6: Oskar Lindblom - F, Brynas, SHL

• Ranking in Summer 2016: 12
• Position / Current Team: F / Brynas, SHL
• 2016-17 Stats: 17 G, 21 A in 42 GP

Since the turn of the century, the Philadelphia Flyers have received positive contributions from all of one player who was drafted in the fifth round or later — Roman Cechmanek, way back in 2000. Sure, the team did draft Dennis Seidenberg (6th round, 2001) and Patrick Maroon (6th, 2007), but neither was able to stick with the Flyers as other teams benefited from the fruits of their labor. About the closest thing Philadelphia had to a “late-round contributor” was Zac Rinaldo, but there’s a very strong case to be made that he actually provided negative on-ice value to the club over his 237-game Flyers career. The back end of the draft has essentially been a desolate wasteland for Philadelphia in the recent past, littered with Michael Duponts and Josh Beaulieus. That’s why Oskar Lindblom’s recent rise has been especially satisfying — finally, the Flyers look like they will get a true NHL contributor from a late-round pick.

Lindblom wasn’t some unknown “diamond in the rough” prospect back in 2014, though. In fact, in the year preceding the draft, Lindblom was viewed as a potential first round pick. However, concerns regarding his skating ability especially drove him down draft boards, to the point where Philadelphia was able to scoop him up in the fifth round. For the next two years, he stayed somewhat under-the-radar despite performances that probably deserved more attention. In many ways, Lindblom suffered from unfair comparisons between production in Canadian junior hockey leagues and in a European league filled with grown men. 40 points in 85 games over two seasons doesn’t seem all that impressive at first glance, especially since many of Lindblom’s peers were posting point per game seasons in the OHL and WHL at the same time. But earning a full-time role in the SHL at ages 18 & 19, scoring at a decent clip, and standing out in every age-appropriate international tournament during that span isn’t that far off statistically from an impressive post-draft run in juniors — it just feels like it is because the raw numbers don’t jump off the page.

Lindblom finally started to turn heads late last season, when he came over to North America on a tryout basis to spend the final weeks of the AHL season with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. In eight games, he scored at nearly a point-per-game clip (two goals, five assists) and generally looked like one of the best forwards on the ice at all times. He followed that up with a standout development camp, where his skating issues (obvious in previous camps) seemed a thing of the past. But the real reason why Lindblom has skyrocketed up these rankings has been his stellar play in the SHL as a 20-year old. In 42 games, he has 38 points, easily leading his club and good for third in the entire league. Don’t forget that this isn’t a junior hockey league — it’s a professional league filled with grown men that Lindblom is dominating. The two players currently ahead of Lindblom in the scoring race are 28 and 33 respectively, and not one currently in the top-10 is younger than 24. For reference, the last time a player 21 or younger finished in the top-three in SHL scoring was back in 2011-12, when Jakub Silfverberg finished second. It doesn’t happen often, and when it does, that guy is usually going places.

Sure, one can note that the truly elite Swedish prospects usually come over to North America earlier than age-20, taking them out of the SHL pool. And it’s fair to have some reservations regarding Lindblom’s overall skillset, which while complete, isn’t exactly dynamic. But at some point, the raw production cannot be denied, in tandem with his clear skating improvements and development in all-around talent. Lindblom is comfortable creating chances in traffic, showcases soft hands around the net, and flashes plus hockey sense in all three zones. And while NHL Equivalency charts are far from perfect, it’s notable that per the most recent translation factors, Lindblom would be projected to score about 44 points in the NHL, which is easily top-six winger territory. He has little left to prove in the SHL, so the best guess is that Lindblom will finally sign an entry-level contract at the end of the season and cross the ocean permanently. Whether his 2017-18 season begins in Lehigh Valley or Philadelphia will be entirely up to his performance in camp, but you certainly can’t rule out the possibility that Oskar Lindblom is skating in the Flyers’ top-nine come October. Not bad for a fifth round pick.

— Charlie O’Connor

 

[JBM73]

Flyers Top 10 Prospects

 

[lasgop8]

Flyers Top 10 Prospects

That's a lot of players to the big club next season. We are going to have to do some major restocking of the cupboard.

 

[Maverick426h]

Quite frankly, when we're dressing Provorov, Myers, Ghost, Sanheim, Morin and Gudas as our top six defenseman, it will be something to watch. It may not happen next season, but who really knows.

 

[Maverick426h]

That could be a defense the entire league would envy. At the very least, I think we could win a lot of one goal games and make the playoffs on defense alone. We have forwards coming too, but they seem not as close to the Nhl level yet.

Either way, training camp next season should be extremely intriguing. Lots of young guys hoping to make the big club right away.

 

[JBM73]

Provorov-Myers
Sanheim-Morin
Ghost-Gudas

?

 

[lasgop8]

Quite frankly, when we're dressing Provorov, Myers, Ghost, Sanheim, Morin and Gudas as our top six defenseman, it will be something to watch. It may not happen next season, but who really knows.

What will they do with A Mac if these 6 are our core unless we go with 7 defense.

 

[lasgop8]

Provorov-Myers
Sanheim-Morin
Ghost-Gudas

?

I dont see Hagg in this scenerio. The article you posted earlier says he will be on the team next season.

 

[JBM73]

What will they do with A Mac if these 6 are our core unless we go with 7 defense.

Well, he could serve as 7th d-man, and would probably get bought out with one year remaining.

 

[JBM73]

I dont see Hagg in this scenerio. The article you posted earlier says he will be on the team next season.

In my opinion, Hagg only cracks the top 6 if one of those other guys doesn't pan out, gets hurt or gets traded for a stud forward. Hagg seems to have limited offensive upside, and has neither the size nor the mean streak to be a difference maker defensively.

He could see some time with the Flyers in the short-term, while they're waiting for a couple of the other guys to develop.

 

[lasgop8]

In my opinion, Hagg only cracks the top 6 if one of those other guys doesn't pan out, gets hurt or gets traded for a stud forward. Hagg seems to have limited offensive upside, and has neither the size nor the mean streak to be a difference maker defensively.

He could see some time with the Flyers in the short-term, while they're waiting for a couple of the other guys to develop.

Hope they all develop i do like Morin and his mean streak added to our line up.

 

[awaz]

Vecchione is really dragging this shit out. People said he'd sign with someone by the end of the day yesterday!

Most interesting part of hockey to me right now :p

 

[EVille3]

 

[lasgop8]

SWEEEEEEEEEEET!!!!!!!

 

[EVille3]

 

[lasgop8]

63 points in 38 game is some quality offense.