Philadelphia Flyers Prospects: Checking in on the Class of 2019

How have the Philadelphia Flyers prospects selected in 2019 been performing in their draft plus one campaign?

As most of, if not all of you know, the Philadelphia Flyers are currently on their All-Star Break, so there isn’t a whole lot of news surrounding the team at the moment. Travis Konecny finished up a solid All-Star weekend debut, placing seventh in the Fastest Skater competition while recording three assists in the Metropolitan’s lone loss to the Atlantic division. Additionally, there’s hardly been any movement on the Gritty saga since the story broke earlier last week, making for a pretty quiet couple of days for the Orange and Black. Taking all of that into account, I thought now would be a perfect time to check in on those rascally ol’ prospects in the Flyers farm system with a microscope on how those who make up the 2019 draft class have been doing so far this season.

Kicking things off with two players who may still be fresh in your mind from their appearances at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championships, First and Second Round Selections Cam York and Bobby Brink continue to play well in their freshman year of college. York’s netted 11 points (4 Goals, 7 Assists) in 18 games with the Michigan Wolverines, averaging just over a half a point per game in his first NCAA campaign. That ties with Nick Blankenburg for the team-lead among defensemen in scoring, which is fairly impressive considering that York missed a bit of time due to injury earlier this year.

In the same boat, Brink’s posted 21 points (9 Goals, 12 Assists) in 25 games as a member of the University of Denver Pioneers, leading all Flyers 2019 NCAA prospects in total offense. He’s also tied with Chicago Blackhawks defensive prospect Ian Mitchell for second on Denver in the same category and only three points back of Calgary Flames prospect Mathias Emilio Petterson, who’s in his sophomore season, for first. Both York and Brink find themselves among the Top 15 point-getters of all Under-19 NCAA players, too, showing that they’re some of the best young, talents that collegiate hockey has to offer.

Moving on to the later-round defensemen, Ronald Attard, though hasn’t been as successful as York or Brink, is still putting together a decent freshman campaign. The third-round pick’s scored nine points (6 Goals, 3 Assists) in 18 games with the Western Michigan Broncos, where he’s a teammate with fellow Flyers prospect Wade Allison. While his production might seem a bit underwhelming when being compared to his 30-Goal season in the USHL last year, Attard’s always been viewed as a late bloomer-type and should only get better as he grows more accustomed to the play in the NCAA.

Mason Millman, who was selected one round after Attard in the fourth, has burst onto the scene with his play of late in the OHL. Following a season in which he put up 25 points in 66 games, the Canadian blueliner’s already surpassed that sum in 23 fewer contests, putting up 30 points (12 Goals, 18 Assists) in 43 games with the Saginaw Spirit. A known smooth-skater coming into last year’s draft, Millman’s looked to shoot more in his second season with the Spirit and it’s paid off in spades as he’s already quadrupled his goal-total from a year ago. I liked what I saw from Millman during Rookie and Training Camp in the summer/fall, and am happy to see him elevate his game and growing as an overall player.

Lastly, here’s how the remaining three Flyers 2019 draft picks have faired through 2019-20:

"F Egor Serdyuk: 29 Points (12 Goals, 17 Assists) 35 Games in QMJHLG Roddy Ross: 3.26 Goals Against Average, .908 Save Percentage, 35 Games in WHLF Bryce Brodzinski: Seven Points (3 Goals, 4 Assists) 24 Games in NCAA"

If these early results are any indicator, it seems General Manager Chuck Fletcher and Co. have done an excellent job in scouting and bringing in this group of players to the franchise.