The Flyers snared another defenseman and another USHL product with their third pick in the 2019 NHL draft.
In the third round with the 72nd overall selection, the Flyers drafted Ronald Attard from the Tri-City Storm. The White Lake, Michigan, native had a big year offensively in the USHL, scoring 30 goals and 64 points over 48 regular-season games to earn USHL Player of the Year.
Attard, a 6-foot-4, 205-pound righty shot, was a plus-47. The 20-year-old improved drastically from his previous season in which he scored 15 points and was a minus-9 through 50 regular-season games.
"There are late bloomers, that's what happens in junior hockey and the USHL," Flyers assistant general manager Brent Flahr said Saturday via a conference call (see Flyers' draft recap). "He's a big body, he's a highly competitive kid, he's got an edge. He has a big shot. This year, it all came together for him. Sometimes the bigger bodies take some time — he found his confidence level, found his groove on a good team and had a tremendous year."
"The one thing about Ronnie is that he probably has the best swagger of any kid I've coached at the junior level," Tri-City head coach Anthony Noreen said to Tom Robinson for USAHockey.com.
Attard is headed to Western Michigan, joining Flyers prospect Wade Allison.
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