Hockey season is almost here. Today at the Skate Zone in Voorhees, several Flyers veterans are on the ice with a group of rookies getting ready for training camp, which officially opens in a few weeks. And a week from today , 21 prospects will hit the ice for the first organized workouts of the 2016-17 season.
The annual rookie camp, which always precedes the official start of Flyers training camp, will kick off Monday, Sept. 19 at 3 p.m. and will continue with practices at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 20.
The following day, Wednesday, Sept. 21, the Flyers prospects will travel to Long Island for a rookie scrimmage against prospects from the New York Islanders. That game is open to the public at 6 p.m. at the Isles’ practice facility, Northwell Health Ice Center, in East Meadow, N.Y.
Among the 21 attending camp are a handful of players who have a chance of cracking the Flyers opening night roster at the conclusion of the big training camp: defensemen Ivan Provorov and Travis Sanheim, as well as forward Travis Konecny. Rookie camp will just be an appetizer for them, but it’s their first chance to show Ron Hextall that they’re ready for the NHL.
This will be our first real look at some of the 2016 draft class, as well. Goaltender Carter Hart plus forwards Pascal Laberge, Connor Bunnaman, Anthony Salinitri and Carsen Twarynski are the members of that class joining the camp.
Two players on the list you might not recognize are joining the team on invites: Guelph defenseman Garrett McFadden and Vancouver defenseman Brennan Menell.
McFadden is entering his third season with the OHL’s Storm, where he’ll wear an ‘A’ on his chest for the second year in a row. He’s a small, speedy 19-year-old defenseman who was passed by in the last two NHL drafts, but who went in 12th overall in the OHL draft back in 2013.
Menell is also preparing to enter his third major junior season with the WHL’s Giants. An American from Woodbury, Minn., Menell fits a similar mold as McFadden when it comes to his size and puck skills. He has also been passed over in two NHL drafts and nearly quit junior hockey last fall after frustration with his usage in Vancouver.
Here’s the full 21-man roster:
| No. | Forwards (12) | Pos | 2015-16 Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 62 | Aube-Kubel, Nicolas | RW | Val d’Or | QMJHL | 61 | 38 | 42 | 80 | 81 |
| 60 | Lyubimov, Roman | RW | CSKA Moskva | KHL | 52 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 25 |
| 82 | Bunnaman, Connor | C | Kitchener | OHL | 68 | 16 | 22 | 38 | 14 |
| 71 | Dove-McFalls, Samuel | LW | Saint John | QMJHL | 29 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 41 |
| 65 | Fazleev, Radel | C | Calgary | WHL | 59 | 19 | 52 | 71 | 46 |
| 56 | Goulbourne, Tyrell | LW | Lehigh Valley | AHL | 73 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 75 |
| 63 | Konecny, Travis | RW | Ottawa | OHL | 29 | 7 | 38 | 45 | 6 |
| 75 | Laberge, Pascal | C | Victoriaville | QMJHL | 56 | 23 | 45 | 68 | 64 |
| 72 | Swavely, Steven | RW | Lehigh Valley | AHL | 15 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| 70 | Martel, Danick | LW | Lehigh Valley | AHL | 67 | 22 | 15 | 37 | 68 |
| 86 | Salinitri, Anthony | C | Sarnia | OHL | 62 | 17 | 13 | 30 | 29 |
| 81 | Twarynski, Carsen | LW | Calgary | WHL | 67 | 20 | 25 | 45 | 42 |
| No. | Defensemen (7) | Pos | 2015-16 Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 43 | *McFadden, Garrett | D | Guelph | OHL | 68 | 11 | 29 | 40 | 48 |
| 46 | *Menell, Brennan | D | Vancouver | WHL | 69 | 7 | 46 | 53 | 36 |
| 50 | Morin, Samuel | D | Lehigh Valley | AHL | 76 | 4 | 15 | 19 | 118 |
| 64 | Provorov, Ivan | D | Brandon | WHL | 62 | 21 | 52 | 73 | 16 |
| 57 | Sanheim, Travis | D | Calgary | WHL | 52 | 15 | 53 | 68 | 66 |
| 61 | Myers, Phillippe | D | Rouyn-Noranda | QMJHL | 63 | 17 | 28 | 45 | 44 |
| 68 | Willcox, Reece | D | Cornell | ECAC | 33 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 2 |
| No. | Goaltenders (2) | Pos | 2015-16 Team | League | GP | W | L | OT | GAA |
| 49 | Lyon, Alex | G | Yale | ECAC | 31 | 19 | 8 | 4 | 1.64 |
| 79 | Hart, Carter | G | Everett | WHL | 63 | 35 | 23 | 4 | 2.14 |
