Flyers Prospects: Egor Zamula, Wyatte Wylie Staying Consistent In WHL

The two Philadelphia Flyers defensive prospects, along with a goaltender, have continued to succeed in the Western Hockey League this season.

Even with guys like Morgan Frost, Joel Farabee, and Philippe Myers now getting minutes with the Philadelphia Flyers in the NHL, the team’s farm system is still chock full of promising young talent that could make the team at some point in the near future. They may not carry the same amount of prominence as a Frost, Farabee, or Myers once did (and still do to a certain extent), but should each have a chance to impact the team when the organization deems them ready enough. For now, three of them continue to perform well in the WHL after solid starts to their 2019-20 campaigns.

Outside of having great hockey names, Egor Zamula, Wyatte Wylie, and Roddy Ross have either scored at around a point-per-game pace on the blue line or posted solid numbers between the pipes for their respective teams. Zamula, who’s in the middle of his third full season in the WHL and second with the Calgary Hitmen, has netted 25 points (6 Goals, 19 Assists) in 25 games with the junior club. That’s good for second on the team behind Ottawa Senators forward prospect Mark Kastelic, leads all Hitmen defensemen by an 11-point margin, and ranks fourth among all WHL blueliners, to boot. The 19-year-old is primed for a role with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms if he keeps producing at this level and could even make a push for a spot on the Flyers depending on how the roster shakes out.

Wylie, in the same vein, is having a successful fourth year in an Everett Silvertips uniform, putting together 23 points (7 Goals, 16 Assists) in 25 games, which also leads all defensemen on his squad and ranks just behind Zamula at fifth in the entire league. If you can recall, Wylie was given an opportunity to earn an Entry-Level Contract and a spot on the Phantoms during training camp earlier this year but failed to really capitalize on the potential promotion. It seems that underwhelming performance has lit a fire under the right-handed defenseman’s hindquarters, as he’s on pace to shatter his career-high point total of 47 he registered in 2018-19. Wylie should find himself in the same position at next year’s camp and get another chance at obtaining an ELC from Philadelphia.

Rounding out the list, Ross has been reliable for the Seattle Thunderbirds in his first full season with the team, posting a 3.20 Goals-Against Average with a .911 save percentage in 20 games on the year. Though that’s dipped a bit from the numbers he boasted in 2018-19, it’s worth mentioning that Seattle hasn’t been all that great defensively, as Ross has seen the fifth most shots of any netminder in the WHL with 668. Those numbers aren’t necessarily bad, either, and it’ll be a while until the 2019 sixth-rounder sees time with the Flyers, Phantoms, or even Reading Royals, giving him plenty of time to continue to develop.

Both Wylie’s Silvertips and Zamula’s Hitmen are in a good position to make the WHL playoffs, as Everett is second in the U.S. Division while Calgary sits first in the Eastern Conference Wild Card standings. On the other hand, Ross’ T-Birds have a bit of an uphill battle, as they’re eight points behind the Tri-City Americans for the second WC spot in the West. There’s still plenty of season remainings, though, and a lot can change in 40+ games.