With college hockey now underway, it’s a full-go on the Flyers’ farm. The Flyers have a decent number of NCAA prospects, so this week’s Future Flyers Report will feature college players.
The Flyers have three games this week — Tuesday against Florida, Thursday at Columbus and Saturday against the Devils. Before this week begins, let’s check up on the Flyers’ prospects.
• Hockey East will be a conference Flyers fans will want to keep a close eye on with 2018 first-round picks Joel Farabee (Boston University) and Jay O’Brien (Providence College) in it.
Farabee’s career began Friday when No. 8 BU opened with a weekend series at No. 11 Minnesota State. Farabee was scoreless with a penalty Friday but scored his first goal Saturday.
With the Terriers down 3-0, Farabee called a shorthanded goal in an effort that should excite Flyers fans. He broke up a play in the defensive zone, tripped head-first and still won a foot race for the puck before depositing it into the cage with a nifty little move in tight.
Farabee was touted as a two-way winger, and the type of effort he showed on his first college goal is an example as for why scouts were high on him. He has the potential to be not only a top-six winger but a really effective penalty killer. Both things that the Flyers desperately need.
• As for O’Brien, he has yet to register a point in three games with Providence but has seven shots on target, including four in the Friars’ last game Saturday, a 3-0 loss to No. 2 Notre Dame.
NHL
• We wrote about Wyatt Kalynuk this summer, asking: “Have the Flyers found the late-round gem they covet in Wyatt Kalynuk?” This came after a tremendous freshman year at Wisconsin.
Kalynuk’s sophomore season kicked off with a bang with a two-goal, three-point, plus-5 effort Saturday night in the Badgers’ 7-5 win over Boston College to complete the weekend sweep.
Per the Wisconsin State Journal’s Todd Milewski, Kalynuk and his partner Tyler Inamoto became the first Badgers to finish as a plus-5 since Kyle Klubertanz did Jan. 12, 2008.
• Noah Cates’ collegiate career has gotten off to a solid start at Minnesota-Duluth. Cates has centered the team’s third line and has a goal and two assists in four games this season.
My linemate Jordan Hall profiled Cates this summer here.
• Tanner Laczynski has two assists in two games into his junior season. ESPN recently had Laczynski on its Hobey Baker award watch list.
• Wade Allison has yet to play this season for Western Michigan as he recovers from a torn ACL.
Quick hits
• Morgan Frost, still pretty good at hockey. Frost has points in all but two games this season. He had back-to-back three-point efforts last Wednesday and Friday. He has 15 points in 10 games.
• Isaac Ratcliffe has seven goals and 13 points in nine games this season. He has points in all but one game, had a five-game goal streak end Thursday and is currently on a seven-game point streak.
• Carter Hart’s pro career has gotten off to an up-and-down start. He was strong in his first game, stopping 31 of 34 shots in a win but then allowed four goals on 16 shots last Wednesday.