Flyers NCAA Prospect Roundup

The Flyers have eight prospects playing at the NCAA Division 1 level in 2021-22. At the head of the class are defenseman Ronnie Attard and forwards Bobby Brink, Noah Cates and Jay O'Brien. The organization also has an additional draftee, 2021 seventh-round pick and Chester County native Owen McLaughlin playing in the USHL this season for the Sioux City Musketeers (19 goal and 48 points in 35 games played). McLaughlin will attend the University of North Dakota beginning next season.

Following is an alphabetical roundup of the Flyers' current collegiate prospects and how each player has fared this season. Upcoming roundups will take similar looks at the Flyers prospects in Canadian major junior hockey and Europe.
RONNIE ATTARD (D, Western Michigan, junior)
Attard has an outstanding all-around campaign for the Broncos this season. The large-framed (6-foot-3, 210 pound) right-handed blueliner is a late bloomer who was already known for his heavy shot and willingness to play a physical brand of hockey. Over the course of his collegiate career, Attard has added more structure and discipline into his game. He's no longer a rover.
This season, Attard has become one of the top defensemen across all of collegiate hockey. A prime offensive threat, he's posted 11 goals, 18 assists, 29 points (17th nationally among all position players), along with a plus-18 rating. Attard will turn 23 on March 20. As a player who was a freshman at age 20, Attard has the option of turning pro after his junior year. If he takes this course of action, the Flyers hold his exclusive signing rights for 30 days after he announces a decision to forego a senior season.
BOBBY BRINK (RW, Denver, junior)
Selected by the Flyers in the second round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, Brink represented gold medalist Team USA at the 2020-21 World Junior Championships. His WJC performance, which including two goals and six points in seven games, was more indicative of the player's skill set than his sophomore season stats at Denver; a down year for both the team as a whole (10-13-1) and the player individually.
This season, as a junior, Brink has had a spectacular year. He leads all NCAA players nationwide with a 1.58 points per game average (41 points in 26 games) and with 32 assists. Brink and Miinesota State-Mankato center Nathan Smith (a Winnipeg Jets prospect) are tied for the national overall points lead with 41 apiece but Smith has played in two more games than Brink.
Brink is very small (5-foot-8) and does not have blazing speed, which is the combined reason why he slipped out of the first round of the 2019 Entry Draft despite having pure skills that were of first-round caliber. He has an exceptionally high skill level with the puck, outstanding ice vision and plays a very competitive, high-energy and hustling brand of hockey (as witnessed at last year's WJC). He will turn 21 on July 8. Some have likened Brink's long-term upside to that of pint-sized Chicago Blackhawks standout Alex DeBrincat, who dropped to the second round of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft for similar reasons to Brink three years later.
When Brink turns pro, he will still face some significant adjustments and will need to add strength to his frame. Montreal forward Cole Caufield has had his share of growing pains in 2021-22 after making an immediate splash upon turning pro least season. With any player, but especially one who is at a physical disadvantage, it's all about the developmental long-haul and not the immediate returns.
BRYCE BRODZINSKI (RW, Minnesota, junior)
A standout Minnesota high school hockey player from a well-known hockey family, Brodzinski has gradually made own way at the collegiate level for the Golden Gophers. Now in his junior year, Brodzinski has already set new college career highs of 11 goals and 19 points in 28 games played. He has also worked hard to improve his skating and his all-around game.
It's never been a question of hands for a player who made an immediate offensive impact at the USHL level after tearing up the high school ranks for Blaine High School. The Flyers selected Brodzinski in the seventh round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft.
Bryce's older brother, Jonny Brodzinski, recently made news for setting a new Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL) franchise record with goals in nine consecutive games. Their brothers Easton (St. Cloud State fifth-year right wing) and Michael (who has split this season between the ECHL's Orlando Solar Bears and the Wolf Pack in the AHL) also play hockey. Their dad, Mike Brodzinski is a Philadelphia native who played some minor league hockey.
NOAH CATES (C/W, Minnesota Duluth, senior)
Last year, the Flyers signed Minnesota Duluth forward Jackson Cates to an entry-level contract as an undrafted free agent. The elder Cates brother has split the 2021-22 season between the AHL level with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and the NHL with the Flyers (nine games played, one goal). Noah elected to return to Minnesota Duluth for his senior year.
Noah, who earned a roster spot on Team USA at the 2022 Winter Olympics after the NHL withdrew from participation, plays an intelligent two-way brand of hockey. He has not been able to replicate his sophomore season (14 goals, 33 points in 34 games for the NCAA championship winning team) but his allure has always been in terms of being fundamentally sound and versatile. He can play center or wing. He can kill penalties. He can still chip in offense, too.
An NCHC All-Conference Academic team selection in 2021 and an NCHC Distinguished Scholar Athlete, Noah has been a prospect of entry-level contract interest to the Flyers for several years. Drafted by the Flyers out of high school in the fifth round of the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, the younger Cates spent a full season in the USHL before joining Jackson with Minnesota-Duluth. Over the course of his college career, Noah has emerged as a leader -- he was named team captain in the summer of 2020 -- and raised his NHL stock as a mainstay in one of the nation's top collegiate hockey programs.
Over the course of Flyers history, there have been several brother combinations in the organization at the same time, including the Hillmans, Flyers Hall of Fame defensemen Joe and Jim Watson, the Sutter twins (Ron and Rich) and Schenn brothers. It is possible that the Cates brothers could join the ranks.
GAVIN HAIN (C, North Dakota, senior)
Less is more with U.S. National Development Program alum Hain. Selected by the Flyers in the sixth round of the 2018 NHL Draft, Hain has largely settled into a third-line role over the course of his four seasons at North Dakota. He is at his best when playing a direct north-south game, getting in on the forecheck and outworking opponents for the puck.
TY MURCHISON (D, Arizona State, freshman)
Another USNTDP product, Murichison is a true freshman at Arizona State this year. He just turned 19 on Feb. 2, 2022. Drafted by the Flyers in the fifth round of the 2021 NHL ENtry Draft, the California native is still nascent stages of post-Draft development but he has good feet, above-average puck-moving upside and brings a naturally competitive streak. In 31 games played as a freshman this season, he's chipped in seven points (4g, 3a) and posted 70 penalty minutes. The Flyers have plenty of time to track Murchison's ongoing collegiate development before any signing decisions have to be made. The early signs have shown some promise.
Back on Dec. 4, Murchison's Sun Devils team tangled with Brink's Denver Pioneers. Murchison was tossed from the game in the third period after a checking-to-the-head penalty Brink was also penalized in the resulting fracas between the teams. Such is the nature of hockey, of course.
JAY O'BRIEN (C, Boston University, junior)
Ever since going through an injury-riddled and disappointing freshman collegiate season at Providence and spending a season in the BCHL while in the NCAA transfer protocol. O'Brien has shown signs of the abilities --- speed, heavy shot, good ice vision and some swagger -- that made him the somewhat surprising 19th overall pick of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. He's emerged as the top offensive threat on the Boston University Terriers.
The main problem hasn't been performance so much as lack of extended opportunities to play. Last season, the COVID-19 pandemic caused BU's schedule to be scaled down to 16 games. O'Brien led the team with eight goals and 16 points.
This season. O'Brien has dealt with injury-related issues for the third time in four seasons. He's missed a total of 11 games due to injury, over two separate stints of being forced out of the lineup. Finally healthy, he's picked up his staccato early pace and has 15 points (6g, 9a) over 16 games played. In a recent clash against his former team, Providence. O'Brien played like a man possessed and played one of the best all-around games of his collegiate career. For NCAA purposes, the now 22-year-old O'Brien is still only in his junior season by virtue of being in transfer protocol in 2019-20.
JACK ST. IVANY (D, Boston College, senior)
Drafted by the Flyers in the fourth round of the 2018 NHL Draft, St. Ivany represented Team USA at the 2018-19 World Junior Championships. St. Ivany played his freshman and sophomore collegiate campaigns at Yale, where he some puck-moving and offensive upside to his game.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Yale canceled its 2020-21 hockey schedule. In order not to lose an entire season, St. Ivany ended up transferring to Boston College, appearing in 18 games. As a senior in 2021-22, he's posted 20 points (4g, 16) in 25 games played, including seven points over his 10 games.