#4. Elliot Desnoyers vs Ryan Poehling
The Flyers only just signed 24 year old Ryan Poehling on July 1, but as a fourth-liner, his spot shouldn’t be guaranteed just yet. Elliot Desnoyers had a so-so Flyers rookie camp, but should be able to push Poehling for a spot on the NHL roster.
The latter has done very little at the NHL level, and although he’s only 24, Poehling’s time is running out. Desnoyers, on the other hand, is a prospect surging up the Flyers’ ranks and was hailed by Lehigh Valley Phantoms head coach Ian Laperriere as the prospect closest to the NHL in terms of detailed play.
That alone should give him the edge over Poehling, whose career thus far can probably be described as the exact opposite. After scoring a hat trick in his first game, the former Montreal Canadien hasn’t been able to establish himself as a regular nor has he been able to put up points.
For now though, Desnoyers needs to improve on his rusty performance at rookie camp to have any shot at making the jump this year. The 21-year-old clearly has the higher upside, but he’ll need to earn his keep based on merit, not potential.