Philadelphia Flyers 2019-20 Player Expectations: Samuel Morin

The towering Philadelphia Flyers defenseman didn’t see a whole lot of ice-time in 2018-19 but could see more this upcoming season with a strong Training Camp.

There’s no denying that Samuel Morin has had a rough couple of years for Philadelphia Flyers. After suffering a torn ACL in a game against the Charlotte Checkers in May of 2018, the 2013 First Round Pick spent most of last season rehabbing and recovering from the knee injury, eventually working his way back into the ice this past February in a conditioning stint with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.

Morin, then, made his Flyers debut on March 27th in a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, registering 13 shifts and 8:09 minutes of ice-time. He finished the year posting zero points in five games but could find himself playing more with an excellent training camp and preseason performance.

Morin is kind of in the same boat as Robert Hagg heading into camp. While Hagg has more NHL games under his belt, both are seemingly on the outside looking in with the six blue-line positions filled. That could change if Philippe Myers doesn’t meet expectations, but I doubt that happens, especially with how good he’s looked during Rookie Camp thus far. Morin and Hagg will likely battle each other for the seventh defenseman spot, and whoever loses that competition could find themselves on a different team when the regular season begins. Neither deserves to be in the AHL any longer, are no longer waiver exempt, and moving them in a trade would allow one of them to get NHL playing time while getting something in return.

As far as who I would choose, I’d much rather take the unknown and upside in Morin over Hagg, though camp performances could sway my opinion. I think Hagg could warrant more in a trade return, too, as he could give other NHL teams a younger, possibly cheaper option on the blue-line. Like I noted in my Hagg piece a couple of days ago, it’ll come down to whether General Manager Chuck Fletcher and Head Coach Alain Vigneault value experience over potential when deciding who becomes the depth blue-liners, along with how each of them looks throughout camp.

I still believe that Morin will become a serviceable NHL defenseman. You don’t find too many players that possess the size, skating, and physicality that the Quebec native brings to the ice, but he’ll have to put it all together during the next few weeks and be able to stay healthy in order to reach his potential. If he makes the team, I expect Morin to play around 30-to-35 games while posting six points during that span.