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NEWARK -- The Flyers selected two defensemen with their first two picks in the 2013 NHL Draft, something they hadn't done since the early 1990s. But the more things change, the more they stay the same.
With their third round pick at 71st overall, the Flyers selected a head-scratcher of a tough guy in Tyrell Goulbourne, a winger from Kelowna of the Western Hockey League. ISS is the only draft guide we checked that even bothered to list Goulbourne attributes, ranking him 171st overall among all prospects. Again, the Flyers took him 71st overall -- 100 picks ahead of where he was projected.
In that ISS guide, it summed up Goulbourne pretty clearly:
- Gritty hard working forward
- Good Skater
- Willing to go through the wall
- Works hard up and down the ice
- Teammates love him
- Willingness to block shots
- Great character leader
- Warrior
- Tough and respected
The Flyers just used a third-round pick on another Zac Rinaldo, basically. Or, perhaps worse, another Garrett Klotz, who they selected with their third-round pick in 2007. Klotz is now an ECHL regular at age 24.
There was a lot of talent on the board still at this stage of the draft, so it's frustrating that the Flyers wasted a pick on a guy like Goulbourne. If they wanted him this badly, he probably would've been there in two or three rounds.