Training Camp Notebook Day 3: Festive Atmosphere at FTC

The Saturday sessions at the Flyers Training Center in Voorhees brought out a large crowd. Attendees took in two scrimmages and a day of fan-friendly activities, brand new merch and other attractions in and around the fully renovated complex.

Player groups remained the same as with Thursday's skating test and Friday's two scrimmages. The day's activities on the ice were arranged as follows:

Team 2: 9:00am – 9:50am: Practice – Phantoms Ice
10:10am – 11:05am: Scrimmage – Flyers Ice (vs. Team 3)
11:10am – 12:00pm: Off Ice Workout

Team 3: 10:10am – 11:05am: Scrimmage – Flyers Ice (vs. Team 2)
11:20am – 12:15pm: Scrimmage – Flyers Ice (vs. Team 1)
12:20pm – 1:10pm: Off Ice Workout

Team 1: 11:20am – 12:15pm: Scrimmage – Flyers Ice (vs. Team 2)
12:30pm – 1:20pm: Practice – Phantoms Ice
1:30pm – 2:20pm: Off Ice Workout

Notable players per Group

Team 1: Sean Couturier, Tyson Foerster, Travis Konecny, Rasmus Ristolainen, and Egor Zamula. Goalies were Samuel Ersson and Sam Hilebrandt.

Team 2: Noah Cates, Joel Farabee, Morgan Frost, 2024 first-round pick Jett Luchanko, rookie Matvei Michkov, Owen Tippett, Jamie Drysdale, Erik Johnson, and Nick Seeler. Goalies were Ivan Fedotov and Carson Bjarnason.

Team 3: Bobby Brink, Nick Deslauriers, Garnet Hathaway, Scott Laughton, Travis Sanheim, and Cam York. Goalies were Cal Petersen and Eetu Makiniemi.

Scrimmage 1: Team 3 defeats Team 2 via shootout, 2-1.

Offseason free agent signing Rodrigo Abols opened the scoring for Team 2. Cam York later responded for Team 3 to force a shootout. In the ensuing skills competition, Massimo Rizzo netted the winning goal for Team 3.

Scrimmage 2: Team 3 defeats Team 1 via shootout, 3-2.

Alternate captain Scott Laughton scored the deciding goal in Team 3's second shootout victory of the day. Rugged veteran forward Nick Deslauriers, netted two goals for Team 3 during the scrimmage. For Team 1, Tyson Foerster pounced on a loose puck and scored on a play in which Sean Couturier was heavily involved on the front end.

Notables and Quotables

1. Matvei Michkov made some nice plays but not on the same sustained basis as in the Rookie Game or the first scrimmage. Afterwards, speaking through translator Slava Kuznetsov, Michov met with the media.

2. Owen Tippett, who has frequently played on the same line as Michkov and Morgan Frost in two scrimmages, told the media that he expects to play in Sunday's preseason opener against the Washington Capitals. During Saturday's scrimmage for Team 2 against Team 3, Tippett flew down the ice with his characteristic combination of pure speed and power.

3. Garnet Hathaway noted that the Flyers got off to a fast start last season owing, in part, to the team's excellent physical conditioning in camp. He expects a similar result in October.

4. So far in camp, offseason addition Oscar Eklind has shown quickness and his ability to get in on the forecheck and use his size effectively.

5. Rasmus Ristolainen has looked healthy so far in camp after coming off in-season and-off-season surgeries over the past year.

6. Ivan Fedotov (Team 2) used his size in net to effectively look around traffic and come up with saves. Meanwhile, Finnish goalie Eetu Makiniemi authored some good shootout saves for Team 3.