Philadelphia Flyers: 2015 Forwards Preview

The First Line

It should be no surprise that Giroux and Voracek are projected to be on the first line again. They’re the two superstars on the team, and there is no denying it. For Left-Wing, however, that is where things get interesting. Wayne Simmonds is a valid argument, but for the sake of spreading the talent around he should play on the second line.

Michael Raffl improved a lot last year. He scored a lot more last season(21 goals) than his first with the Flyers(9 goals). Yet, he was still very streaky. He would go stretches with at least a point a game, then have 7-10 games in a row without a single point. This could be attributed to many things, mainly the line shakeups by ex-coach Craig Berube.

Under new head coach Dave Hakstol, he should find his role and be able to grow into it. Am I saying Raffl is going to develop into a 60-70 point, 30 goal a year player? No. Not yet, at least. I would like to think being on a line with Giroux and Voracek means anything is possible for the other winger, but with Raffl his consistency needs to improve for him to have sizable gains in his scoring production.

The Second Line

This is will be one of the most interesting lines if it comes out this way. Newly acquired Sam Gagner moves out to right-wing, Schenn gets to go to center, and Wayne Simmonds stays at left-wing. This could be a dangerous line if Ganger and Schenn can get going early.

Gagner doesn’t need to prove he can put up points, he’s had at least 40 points in 6 of his 8 seasons. He hasn’t eclipsed the 50 point mark just yet, but I wouldn’t imagine it would be hard if he has a scoring winger like Simmonds to pass to. And if you didn’t know, Gagner’s strength is his vision and passing.

Schenn on the other hand, just came off a career year. Yet, most Flyers fans will agree- he still makes a lot of mistakes. He’s been like that for a while, and his lack in development to end his issues has been a sore point for us fans. Hopefully Coach Hakstol can help him fix his fundamentals, because if he does he becomes a star. Seriously! Don’t forget he’s 23, there’s still time for big improvements for him.

The Third Line

Unfortunately for Sean Couturier, I still have him on the third line. His call for more offense in his game probably wont fall on deaf ears, as Coach Hakstol preaches letting players show off their talent in his system. Which means, at the very least, Coots should see more offensive zone faceoffs.

Bellmare had a decent first season in the NHL and with the Flyers last season. It’d be nice to see him build on that season and become more productive offensively, but he has been a nice addiction to the checking nonetheless.

I think a lot of people get Matt Read confused in the group of young players, like Coots(22) and B. Schenn(23). He just turned 29 in June, and there’s a reason why he’s only played 4 years in the NHL so far. Its not that he’s bad, but that hes just not talented like the rest of the other guys. He’s not going to get much better anytime soon, but I still think he has 40 points in him this season.

The Fourth Line

This line is more of a toss-up than the rest of them. Vincent Lecavalier might not even be here at the start of the season, and we all know he probably doesn’t want to be. I believe he deserves a chance with the team under Coach Hakstol, but there’s no room for him anywhere else in the lineup.

Chris VandeVelde and Ryan White are good 4th line players. They add grit and a scoring touch to the line, and bring enough energy to the line to give some rest to the other lines.

There’s not much to say about who should be down on the 4th. VandeVelde and White will almost certainly play here the most often, maybe Umberger gets some time here too(hopefully never).

The Prospects and Others

(King-sized Sam Morin patting fun-sized Danick Martel)

Now you must’ve noticed at the beginning I did not mention Scott Laughton, so let’s get down to it. Where is the room for him? There is none. Laughton has a slim chance of being on this roster at any point, because 1) Hextall is not going to allow him to play 3rd or 4th line time, 2) He’s a center on a team with 3 good centers, and 3) He can’t beat out any of the top 2 lines’ wingers for a spot (Raffl/Voracek, Simmonds/Gagner).

So in my opinion, he should be traded. For who? That’s a question and a discussion for another time, but it only seems fair to him and the organization to move on. He deserves playing time, but he’s not going to get it here unless some catastrophe happens with one of the star players. Or Raffl or Gagner gets bumped out of their spot, which even though it is slim it can happen.

RJ Umberger doesn’t deserve a spot on this roster, so he doesn’t get one. He will most likely ride the pine for the majority of the year.

Danick Martel, Nick Cousins, and Laughts have chances to come up in case of injury to replace someone shortly. Martel is one to watch in the AHL, as he is a relatively tiny player but has put up big numbers in Juniors before joining the Phantoms late last season.

The Flyers have some decisions to make going into this season for a couple spots on the roster, but for the most part we all should already know who’s starting where. It’ll be worth following the team through training camp and pre-season to see if there are any surprises.

Stay tuned for the Defenseman Preview coming next week!

Next: Predicting Brayden Schenn's Next Contract