Philadelphia Flyers: Junior League Prospects To Watch In 2019-20

The Philadelphia Flyers are set to have prospects playing all around the globe this upcoming season, including the Canadian Junior Leagues.

While most of their prospects are set to play in either the NCAA or AHL in 2019-20, the Philadelphia Flyers still have a solid amount of youthful talents gearing up to play in the WHL, OHL, QMJHL, or even BCHL. Players ranging from the 2018 and 2019 draft classes will all hope to improve on their 2018-19 campaigns to not only help their respective teams perform well amongst the league but to increase their overall stock as prospects as well. The Flyers will have five guys skating in the Canadian juniors this upcoming season, and all of them will be ones to follow throughout the year.

Starting off with the more recent additions to the Philadelphia pipeline, Mason Millman, Yegor Serdyuk, and Roddy Ross will compete in their draft plus-one years following quality rookie campaigns. Millman posted 25 points (3 Goals, 22 Assists) in 66 games with the Saginaw Spirit last season, sitting second among defensemen on the team in scoring.

The 6’1, 176-pound blue-liner impressed at Development Camp with his skating abilities, showcasing a strong combination of speed and acceleration. He also showed flashes of offensive talent, winning the 3-on-3 tournament for Team White at the camp. It’ll be interesting to see if Millman can grow with a more significant role on the Spirit this next year, as he’s projected to be their top defenseman with Bode Wilde heading to the AHL.

As for Serdyuk, he could be a diamond in the rough find from General Manager Chuck Fletcher. The Russian winger potted 65 points in 63 games with the Victoriaville Tigres, leading all rookies in the Q in total points and goals (25). Serdyuk is exceptionally skilled with the puck on his stick, possessing good vision, aptness to make smart plays, and a plus-shot to round it all out. If he can upgrade his overall game in his second year with Victoriaville, Serdyuk should quickly rise in the Flyers prospect pool.

Ross, who was selected in the sixth round of the 2019 draft shortly after Serdyuk, added depth to the goaltending system. The 6’3, 183-pound net-minder didn’t look out of place in-net for the Seattle Thunderbirds last year, posting a 2.76 Goals Against Average with a .919 save percentage in 25 regular-season games. While he struggled in the WHL playoffs, the Flyers have time to wait on him to fully figure things out with guys like Felix Sandstrom, Samuel Ersson, and Kirill Ustimenko already in the farm.

The last two prospects are the ones who should have the most sets of eyes on them in 2019-20, and they’re none other than Yegor Zamula and Jay O’Brien. Zamula burst onto the scene after earning an entry-level contract from Philadelphia in September of 2018, scoring 56 points in 61 games with the Calgary Hitmen. That was a 38-point improvement from his rookie campaign and led all Calgary defensemen offensively. Another excellent year in WHL should solidify Zamula as one of the Flyers better defensive prospects if he hasn’t done so already and earn himself a spot with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in 2020-21.

I likely don’t need to tell you that O’Brien’s 2018-19 year was nothing short of a season from hell. The former first-rounder continually sustained injuries and could never stay in the Providence Friars lineup because of them. O’Brien eventually entered the NCAA Transfer Portal over the summer, finding himself with the Penticton Vees in the BCHL. If he fails to stay healthy, produce on the ice, or both, it’ll be time to push the panic button on the 19-year-old forward projecting as an NHL player. He’ll be 20 early on in the year, and if O’Brien can’t dominate the lesser competition in the BCHL, questions will begin to arise on if he’ll be a contributing piece for Boston University in two years.

As I mentioned with Ross, the Flyers can afford to wait on these set of prospects to develop, with a big crop of them getting ready for AHL action in Lehigh Valley. All of the five names I mentioned have the potential to make the NHL but will have to prove their worth one way or another this next year.