The Philadelphia Flyers are set to kick off training camp in only a few days, and some of their top prospects are already positioning themselves well for strong seasons.
One more day of practice remains for rookie camp, with Thursday marking the official beginning of training camp.
Defenseman Oliver Bonk returned to the ice with his fellow Flyers prospects Monday, participating in positional drills alongside Hunter McDonald.
Monday’s session was mostly nondescript apart for a few drills that saw a combination of forwards and defensemen battle with each other defending and creating off the cycle, starting with retrieving the puck from a corner sent by the coaching staff.
A number of players stayed out late to work on their passing and shooting, including Spencer Gill, Nikita Grebenkin, and Jack Nesbitt.
Grebenkin and Nesbitt were the last two on the ice and cleaned up all the pucks; Grebenkin chipped the pucks up into the air and Nesbitt knocked them down out of the air into the bag.
A nice bonding moment for two of the Flyers’ most promising prospects, some would say.
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Speaking of Grebenkin and Nesbitt, they were two players who stood out in the eyes of Flyers director of player development Riley Armstrong over the weekend, which featured two rookie series games against the New York Rangers.
“A lot of the guys did what I thought they were going to do. It was good to see them play at that level against other high-end prospects,” Armstrong said Monday.
“Denver Barkey, Alex Bump, Grebenkin, [Jacob Gaucher], Gendron, all those guys… you want them to take that step and kind of dominate, and I thought the Friday night game they definitely did that. I thought it was awesome to see all that type of stuff going on, playmaking, the skill really came through.”
Grebenkin, 22, finished the weekend with an overtime game-winning goal and two primary assists, while Nesbitt, even though not as productive, was active centering the top line of Bump and Samu Tuomaala.
“You could see when he came here, he had that extra jump in his skating on Friday night. I think, Saturday, guys were generally, on both teams, pretty tired. He was dancing out there,” Armstrong said of Nesbitt specifically. “He opened my eyes on how poised he was with the puck, and even his skating. I thought his skating kind of took another step from development camp to here.”
Armstrong also named Nesbitt as a wildcard to make some noise during preseason and training camp, even if it’s overwhelmingly likely the 18-year-old spends more time in the junior ranks and, perhaps soon, the NCAA circuit.
That says a lot about how the No. 12 overall pick has endeared himself to his peers and coaches in his short time in Philadelphia so far.
“A guy that could surprise, although you know he can go back to junior hockey, would probably be Nesbitt. I really think once he gets out there and starts playing, I think he’s going to give himself the best opportunity,” Armstrong added. “In the end, probably another year of junior hockey would be best for him, but I really think he’s going to really push the envelope. . . He was always at the net mixing it up, pushing guys around, so he kind of has that whole package.”
Though he and his line were less effective as a whole Saturday, Tuomaala still forced himself to find a way to make an impact, much to the surprise of Armstrong, who laughed about the Finnish forward’s fight.
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“I was shocked that he dropped the gloves and stayed in there! I thought he was going to skate away, so it was a surprising moment for myself, but I think that’s something he has. He has that in him,” Armstrong said.
And then came the kicker that will ultimately be the key to Tuomaala’s NHL future, be it with the Flyers or another organization.
“I think sometimes he gets away from his game. Whenever he’s engaged in the games, he gets more chances to score, his skill pops out a little more, and when he’s not playing like that, he kind of just turns into an average player.
“So, it was good to see him come out hitting guys, finishing checks, being on the forecheck. Hopefully he brings that into main camp and back in the conversation here with all the other guys.”
The 22-year-old former second-round pick has grappled with injuries the last few seasons, which undoubtedly has adversely affected his consistency and growth as a player.
Tuomaala does have an intriguing package of speed and skill, though it’s unlikely he gets to take full advantage of that in Philadelphia with the talent the Flyers have on the wings, starting with players like Matvei Michkov, Tyson Foerster, Travis Konecny, and Porter Martone.
Like last season, Tuomaala will need to have an impressive fall to get back on the radar, and he’s plenty capable.
So far, he and the Flyers’ other top prospects have done more than enough to justify their hype in rookie camp and beyond.
