Flyers can find goalie depth in ’13 draft class

By Jared Abbott
Posted on 05/15/2013 at 9:00 am

It’s no secret the Flyers lack organizational depth in the crease. Beyond Anthony Stolarz of the London Knights, the cupboard is bare. The 2013 NHL Entry Draft class has depth and numerous potential NHL starters. Philly doesn’t have to pounce early in round one for a netminder, but there will be many intriguing prospects available in the second and third rounds. Here are four Canadian goalies with high ceilings that the Flyers might target come draft day. Zachary Fucale – Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL) 2012-13: 45-5-3, 2.35 GAA, .909 SV% Simply put, this guy is a winner. Fucale has backstopped …

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2013 NHL Entry Draft: Mock Draft Two

By Jared Abbott
Posted on 05/09/2013 at 8:00 am

Breakdown by League: QMJHL – 8 OHL – 8 WHL – 7 USHL – 2 SM-liiga – 2 SEL – 2 KHL – 1 1. COL – Seth Jones, D, Portland Winterhawks (WHL) Jones is one of the most complete and exciting prospects we’ve seen in years. His combination of size, smarts, mobility, and puck-handling skills are unmatched by any player in this draft and previous drafts. He is a generational talent with the ability to anchor the blue line at an All-Star level for a decade. Jones is the closest thing to a sure bet as a prospect …

2013 Draft Eligibles: Is it Philly or Bust for Valeri Nichushkin?

By Jared Abbott
Posted on 05/02/2013 at 1:00 pm

Ever since Evgeni Malkin entered the league the bar for Russian prospects has been set. His combination of size, speed and stickhandling is something the NHL hasn’t seen, and will not see again. There is only one Evgeni Malkin. Scouts love to make lofty comparisons and envision improbable similarities with young talent. The top Russian talent in the upcoming 2013 NHL Draft is Valeri Nichushkin. The 6’3” 201-pound right-winger is the number two-rated international skater in the final Central Scouting rankings. Nichushkin burst onto the International scene during last year’s WJC in Ufa, Russia. With Team Russia in danger of …

2013 Draft Eligibles: Is Aleksander Barkov the Finnish Eric Lindros?

By Jared Abbott
Posted on 04/26/2013 at 12:00 pm

If the 2013 draft did not headline a trio of top-tier prospects, Aleksander Barkov would be getting a lot more attention. Unfortunately, with the consensus number one overall pick in Portland Winterhawk Seth Jones, and the next two picks coming from the Halifax Mooseheads (Jonathan Drouin and Nathan MacKinnon) little attention is being focused on European talent. My good friend Tom Zulewski earlier profiled Finnish defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen, who is the top-rated defenseman among European skaters. Ristolainen’s countryman Aleksander Barkov is the number one draft-eligible European skater on NHL Central Scouting’s final ranking that was released Wednesday. Despite conflicting rankings …

2013 Draft Eligibles: Valentin Zykov, a Russian-born player for the Flyers in Round One?

By Jared Abbott
Posted on 04/23/2013 at 11:00 am

Whenever a 17-year old makes the coveted Team Russia roster for the Subway Super Series, eyebrows raise and brows furrow. “Who is this kid? I thought he had 11 points in 52 games last season and now he is skating on a line with Anton Zlobin (PIT 173rd overall ’12) and Mikhail Grigorenko (BUF 12th overall ’12).” Instead of stumbling playing on a line with such highly touted NHL prospects 2013 draft-eligible forward Valentin Zykov dazzled onlookers, forcing their attention back to the program momentarily to identify the big Russian. In the first game of the series Zykov scored a …

College Hockey Roundup: Bulldogs earn first NCAA title; Shero bests Holmgren for Hartzell

By Jared Abbott
Posted on 04/17/2013 at 9:00 am

The Yale Bulldogs grew from harmless pups to a pugnacious power in a matter of weeks, leaving their teeth marks in the NCAA record books in the process. For a team that couldn’t buy a goal during the March 22-23 weekend of the 2013 ECAC Tournament, to a scoring machine in the NCAA Tournament, one must wonder what kind of juiced-up puppy chow the Bulldogs ate in April. Oddly enough, the two Connecticut colleges that faced off in the national championship were shut out in the ECAC semifinals. The top-seeded Bobcats suffered a 4-0 defeat to seventh-seed Brown. Third-seeded Yale …

Sanctions will not tarnish Winterhawks’ season if they win the Memorial Cup

By Jared Abbott
Posted on 04/13/2013 at 11:00 am

Thanksgiving is supposed to be a time of giving and appreciating the bounties accumulated over the past year. Less than a week after this gluttonous holiday, the Western Hockey League presented the Portland Winterhawks with a trip to the backyard deep fryer. WHL commissioner Ron Robison announced on November 28 that the league suspended the Winterhawks for a series of violations of WHL regulations. Over the past four seasons Portland has been skating by without penalty, but now that they are the best team in the WHL the sanctions emerge, seemingly at a peculiar time. The league found that Portland …

Will fate send Seth Jones to Colorado, or will Philadelphia find its future?

By Jared Abbott
Posted on 04/09/2013 at 1:00 pm

At first glace it would appear that Joe Sakic and Seth Jones have very little in common. Sakic was born in Burnaby, BC, with the sole purpose of playing ice hockey. Jones was born in Plano, TX to a former NBA player. Now an assistant coach for the Brooklyn Nets, Popeye Jones was a budding professional basketball player in 1993 when his career took him to Dallas. Coincidently, the Minnesota North Stars moved to Dallas, becoming the Stars that same year. Mike Modano provided scintillating performances for the new …

NCAA Frozen Four: Who will sit upon the Nation’s Throne?

By Jared Abbott
Posted on 04/03/2013 at 9:00 am

For only the second time since 1993, the throne of college hockey will seat a new king. Yale, UMass-Lowell, St. Cloud State and Quinnipiac form the Frozen Four and each eye college hockey’s “iron chair.” None of these squads has ever won a national championship and besides Yale this marks their first Frozen Four appearances. Yale’s only berth in the final foursome came back in 1952 where they finished in third-place. Back in 1952 the NCAA ice hockey championships were relatively new with its origin dating back to 1948. From the tournament’s inception through the 1957 championship the event was …

Should the Flyers trade up for Jonathan Drouin?

By Jared Abbott
Posted on 03/26/2013 at 11:00 am

If your answer to the question above was “no”, perhaps this may change your mind.. If your response was “yes”, then you may be aware of the Halifax Mooseheads’ superstar forward Jonathan Drouin. The “Halifax Houdini” has hands spun of silk that he puts on display each night as he scripts new tapestry. The 5-foot-11, 185-pound weapon dangles around top QMJHL defensemen as if they are parking cones. The Moosehead winger can stickhandle inside a phone booth and come out of traffic with the puck seemingly glued to his blade. However, the most brilliant aspect of Drouin’s offensive repertoire is …

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