The 24 year-old forward continues to improve as an all-around player for the Philadelphia Flyers this season.
Scott Laughton has looked very solid for the Philadelphia Flyers this year. I highlighted some of his improvements earlier in the season, and Laughton has continued to impress through the first 16 games.
After beginning the season with three points in four games, Laughton now has seven (6 Goals, 1 Assist) on the 2018-19 campaign. He did go on a seven game pointless streak during that time, but was electric for the Flyers in their 5-4 overtime win over the Arizona Coyotes. He scored two goals in just 9:14 minutes of ice-time and was his second multi-point game of the season.
Laughton currently averages 13:32 minutes of time-on-ice for the Flyers. He’s played a bottom-six role this year, which is understandable, but the fact that Laughton is averaging nearly half a point a game with the 18th lowest average ice-time on the team is a pretty good feat to accomplish.
For comparison, Laughton is outscoring the likes of Columbus Blue Jackets forward Riley Nash and Pittsburgh Penguins forward Riley Sheahan. Laughton and Nash have very similar average ice-times while Sheahan averages more than the both of them. Nash and Sheahan are two of the better lower-line centers in the league, Laughton outscoring the both of them this year proves he can be a very effective depth-scoring talent for Philadelphia when he’s on his game.
He also has looked good on the Flyers ever-struggling penalty-kill. Laughton is constantly aggressive with his forechecking, and receives the third highest average time-on-ice shorthanded among players on the team who have played at least 16 games with 2:48. Head coach Dave Hakstol has shown faith in the 2012 first round draft pick, and for good reason.
One aspect of Laughton’s game that hasn’t improved are his possession metrics. He has the lowest Corsi-For percentage at even-strength among Flyers players who have played at least 16 games with 44.3%. One reason behind this is Laughton has one of the highest Defensive Zone Start percentages on the team at even-strength with 62.4%. This can’t be used as an excuse as his CF% is extremely low, but Laughton still has time to improve on this with 66 games left in the season.
It took some time for Laughton to find his footing in the NHL, but it seems he has found his role and plays it effectively. Laughton is still just 24 years-old, as well. It’s possible he could develop into something more for the Flyers and expand on his defensive, bottom-six role in the future.