There are two general questions that remain for the Flyers as they prepare to have their opening roster set by the time their charter plane leaves for San Jose Monday afternoon.

  1. Which two rookie defensemen make the team, if not all three?
  2. Which two forwards earn the final two roster spots up front?

There is one preseason game remaining, but I’m betting the decisions have already been made and only an injury can get in the way now of changing that decision for Ron Hextall and Dave Hakstol.

What that decision is, though, is something the Flyers are keeping close to their vest.

I learned a long time ago to stay out of the prognostication business – it was a lesson I should have heeded when I shrugged off the moving of Claude Giroux to left wing a couple of weeks ago.

Shame on me.

But more on that later. For now, I’m going to ignore my past failed predictive efforts and go back to that well and make a couple more guesses about how this roster will shake out. Defense now. Forwards later.

 

Defense

There appear to be two spots available and three rookies pushing for them. The conventional wisdom since the beginning of camp has been that Sam Morin and Robert Hagg were ahead of Travis Sanheim. A little over a week ago, Sanheim had a couple tough days in a row and was sent to the afternoon practice group, which was where the Phantoms players were practicing.

That lasted one day, and since then Sanheim has looked good. His offense, which was never in question, has been excellent. He’s had some shaky moments on defense – namely a turnover that led to the first goal by the New York Rangers Tuesday, but there has been improvement there as camp has gone along.

“Training camp is coming to a close and its coming down to the end,” Saneim said. “Guys are fighting for spots. The battles have been pretty competitive. I’ve had some bumps along the way and I’ve made some mistakes as well as had some good games and made some great plays. I feel like I’m ready and I feel comfortable out there and playing against guys at this level. We’ll see what happens.”

However, watching Sanheim away from the puck, you can see the difference between him and Morin and Hagg – something that an extra season in the AHL has proven beneficial to those two that could still benefit Sanheim.

It’s about positioning – closing gaps when you’re on the ice. It’s about making decisions even faster since the speed of the game is that much quicker.

Photo credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

Morin has shown vast improvement over the past few seasons. There has been an undercurrent of questions from fans about his slow development and if his game will ever translate to the NHL, but the Flyers knew he was going to be a project when they drafted him. I had the luxury of being privy to draft room conversations when he was drafted in 2013, and while all the scouts weren’t completely on the same page, there was a real belief that if the team was patient with him, he could develop into something special.

At the time, also sitting in that draft room was Chris Pronger, who was advising the team while still under contract but for all intents and purposes was retired from the sport. Pronger had been out to see Morin play – and liked what he saw. Morin, who has Pronger’s size and a similar skating style, always wanted to model his game after Pronger’s. The talent was raw. It needed to be molded, but it was there.

I remember asking Pronger his honest opinion of the kid, and I remember his response – “You may not see him in the NHL for three, four years – maybe five. But if he’s developed right, when you do, you will see the kind of impact he will have on a game.”

The Flyers basically turned former Phantoms assistant coach and current development coach Kjell Samuelsson into Morin’s mentor. Kjell worked with him incessantly – and it’s funny, because when you see Morin play now, you see little parts of the things Kjell did well during his lengthy NHL career.

But Morin is more than just a big body. He skates well for his size. He’s fearless when it comes to physical play and he has silky smooth mitts for such a big man.

Don’t believe me, watch this play on a goal by Wayne Simmonds in the Flyers 5-1 exhibition victory over Boston Thursday night:

“I think his game has improved,” Hakstol said. “It’s grown. It’s matured. Year in and year out. That’s a credit to Sam.”

Hagg, on the other hand, hasn’t jumped off the page this preseason – and that’s a good thing. Watch his play and it’s a model of consistency from one end to the other. He’s mature beyond his years. He doesn’t panic with the puck. He is smart positionally. He has great defensive vision – a skill that is often not talked about, but one that matters a lot.

In the summer of 2015 I was at a photoshoot with former Phantoms assistant coach Riley Cote. His wife was doing shots for a firefighter’s charity, and I was writing a story about the charity. Riles and I found ourselves with a lot of time sitting off to the side with nothing to do. So, we started talking about the Phantoms and some of the Flyers prospects.

At the time he said to me that Hagg was, in his mind, the closest to being NHL ready and that Hagg’s approach to the game would allow him to have a long, successful career in the league.

That has been evident much of the preseason. Hagg didn’t play last night, but that shouldn’t be an indicator of anything. He should make this team – and easily so.

There has been some sentiment that all three should make it in lieu of either Brandon Manning or Andrew MacDonald.

I can certainly understand that desire and don’t completely disagree with it. If you feel all three players are NHL ready, why keep one down in the minors longer? Let them grow even more by playing together at the top level.

After all, Manning is just a guy. He scored a goal last night and drew some praise from Hakstol for doing little things that go unnoticed, but he’s one of those dime-a-dozen players.

He’s not a bad player by any stretch, but he’s no more than a bottom pair/seventh defenseman at this level.

As for MacDonald, he is overly-criticized because of his terrible contract. That said, he isn’t worth that contract and as such is a bit of an albatross. He’s not as bad as this fan base wants to make him out to be, but he’s nothing more than a bottom pair guy himself. And that’s OK.

The Flyers should contend for a playoff spot. But if that’s the case, you just can’t start a season with three rookie defensemen, one second-year guy (Ivan Provorov), and a third-year guy (Shayne Gostisbehere) who at times still looks like a first-year guy defensively.

It would be too much of a gamble and could set the team back and hurt more than it helps.

That’s not to say all three rookies shouldn’t be in the lineup together at some point this season– it just means that it’s probably an unnecessary risk to start the season.

Shayne Gostisbehere, Ivan Provorov, Radko Gudas, Andrew MacDonald, Sam Morin, Robert Hagg, Brandon Manning

My Prediction: Morin and Hagg are in the lineup Wednesday for the opener in San Jose. Sanheim starts the season with the Phantoms, but if he responds well and makes the minor adjustments necessary, he’s on this team by mid-season and not looking back.