At the beginning of the 2023-24 season, we predicted how many games the Flyers’ rookies would suit up for. Now that the season has concluded, let’s revisit the original predictions and see just how far the young guys came this season.
Tyson Foerster
Original Prediction: 60 games
Actual Games Played: 77 games
22-year-old rookie Tyson Foerster defied the odds of the Tortorella machine and somehow managed to play just about every game throughout the season, minus a minor injury around the Stadium Series. He ended up being one of the more complete players on the roster from a two-way perspective and found a scoring touch by the end of the season as one of four players on the roster to hit the 20-goal mark.
Bobby Brink
Original Prediction: 35 games
Actual Games Played: 57 games
Not gonna lie, it was kind of surprising to see that Brink suited up for 57 games, because it sure didn’t feel like it. He was deep in Tortorella’s doghouse for much of the campaign, and even saw a short stint with the Phantoms because of it. He did average 13:47 of ice time, which is a bit skewed as his 17 minutes a night from earlier in the season covered for the fact he was barely breaking 10 minutes the for the back half of the campaign. Danny Briere did have plenty of praise for Brink at his end-of-season press conference, but he’s still very much in the “work in progress” category and hopefully won’t be stifled by Tortorella again next season.
Elliot Desnoyers
Original Prediction: 20 games
Actual Games Played: 0 games
Of all the players in the entire organization in 2023-24, none fell from grace harder than Elliot Desnoyers. During the 2022-23 season he set the rookie goalscoring record for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms with 23, then in 2023-24 he scored just six goals, with a goalless drought that reached 41 games. He seemed like a promising middle-six center that would get some NHL reps at some point during the season, but his regression torpedoed his odds at ever being a main roster piece.
Olle Lycksell
Original Prediction: 15 games
Actual Games Played: 18 games
Despite the fact that he spent the second half of the season on the NHL roster, he didn’t see much playing time, and when did suit up, he only averaged 9:56 of ice time though those 18 games played. Lycksell was a beast in the AHL, posting 39 points in 38 games (and 84 points in 91 total AHL games over the last two seasons). Much like Brink, time will tell if he’ll ever properly get utilized at the NHL level, but he has a decent enough track record in the AHL where he should at least be given an opportunity to spread his wings in the NHL to see if he can replicate any of his success (especially on the powerplay) on the main roster, but he’s been on a very short leash and it’s not looking good.
Emil Andrae
Original Prediction: 50 games
Actual Games Played: 4 games
Andrae was 21 years old when the season started and actually made the roster out of camp. But his run lasted all of four games averaging 13 minutes a night and was demoted to the Phantoms and wasn’t recalled again. To be fair, this was Andrae’s rookie season in North America and he just turned 22 in February, so it’s understandable why he was demoted, but considering how poor the Flyers depth defensemen were, partnered with a dead last powerplay, it’s inconceivable he didn’t get a late-season recall to attempt to help the cause.
Briere also had praise for Andrae and mentioned he’s once again be given the chance to make the team out of camp, but everyone should be in “believe it when you see it territory” when it comes to accepting the fact he’ll have a key role on the main roster next season.
Egor Zamula
Original Prediction: 55 games
Actual Games Played: 66 games
Zamula’s first full NHL campaign was a bit of a roller coaster. He was in and out of Tortorella’s doghouse, somehow finished second on the team in powerplay scoring, looked solid at times and like a hot mess at others and managed to play close to an entire season in the lineup. The 24-year-old is a restricted free agent this summer and with a crowded blueline and his mixed bag of personal play makes his status with the team moving forward a bit on an unknown, but if he returns to the Flyers next season, it will probably be in a depth role.
Ronnie Attard
Original Prediction: 15 games
Actual Games Played: 12 games
Attard has arguably been one of the prospects cast aside the hardest by the team over the last few seasons. He was ready for his NHL recall at the end of last season but spent nearly another full campaign in the AHL. He got recalled when a string of defensive injuries hit the Flyers late in the season, but he was the first player removed when health was regained. His contract converts to a one-way deal next year, so theoretically he should be on the NHL roster, but that hasn’t guaranteed anything for players like Wade Allison and Tanner Laczynski in the past.
How can he be a regular NHLer next season when they have no idea what he can bring to the table because of his limited usage? Well that’s their problem to figure out. It’s not like they’ve had two seasons to integrate and test his NHL abilities or anything.
Adam Ginning
Original Prediction: 10 games
Actual Games Played: 9 games
Ginning was alongside Attard for the recall when injuries struck the main roster. He actually looked pretty decent in his limited appearances. There have been rumors towards the end of the season that the 24-year-old could be returning to his native Sweden, which have yet to be confirmed or denied by he or the team as of this writing, but his late-season call up could’ve been the Flyers throwing him a bone to keep him around for another season. He seems like a perfectly fine number six at the NHL level, even if his ceiling isn’t much higher than that.
Sam Ersson
Original Prediction: 20 games
Actual Games Played: 51 games
This prediction was actually pretty close based on a Tortorella press conference when he was expected to only play 18-22 games, but after Carter Hart was arrested, Ersson got thrust into the starting role and played 51 total games with very mixed results. The flashes of potential are absolutely there and he’ll undoubtedly be given the reigns to try again next season, but his rookie NHL season definitely put him to the test and left some question marks as to what exactly Ersson will be as an NHL regular moving forward.
By: Dan Esche (@DanTheFlyeraFan)
photo credit: Just Sports Photography
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