The Flyers are making another shuffle up front, and this one opens the door for Jack Studnicka while sending Carl Grundstrom back to the AHL.
Studnicka has been recalled from Lehigh Valley after a sharp start with the Phantoms, where he put up three points in three games. Philadelphia is clearly still searching for a little more finish in the lineup, and the 27-year-old gives them another option to try. He signed a two-year, two-way deal with the Flyers on July 1 and arrives with a long track record of bouncing between organizations over the last five seasons, including stops with the Vancouver Canucks, San Jose Sharks, Los Angeles Kings, and Florida Panthers after six years in the Boston Bruins system.
The numbers say Studnicka has been much more dangerous in the AHL than in the NHL. Last season, he scored 12 goals and 30 points in 41 games with the Charlotte Checkers, good for second on the team in per-game scoring behind Sandis Vilmanis.
But that production never carried over in Florida, where he was held without a point in 19 NHL games. Across his career, he’s posted 195 points in 269 AHL games, compared to 16 points in 126 NHL games.
He’ll likely get his first chance in a Flyers sweater Tuesday against the Seattle Kraken, unless Philadelphia opts to dress extra forward Garrett Wilson instead.
The move means Grundstrom is heading down after opening the season with no points, four shot blocks, and 14 hits in five games. That total leaves him third on the Flyers in hits, behind Owen Tippett at 20 and Noel Acciari at 18, with both of those players having appeared in seven games.
Grundstrom spent last season as an extra forward for Philadelphia and finished with 13 points and 139 hits in 47 games. He also recorded 15 points in 19 AHL games, and his time with Lehigh Valley - along with two games for the Ontario Reign in 2023-24 - are his only AHL appearances since 2020. Meanwhile, the Phantoms will keep Jacob Gaucher at the top of their scoring list for now; he has four points in three games, while Alex Bump stays in the minors despite three points in two AHL contests.
In Other News...
Flyers Early Skid Is Already Raising Bigger Questions About This Roster
Seven games into the season, the Flyers are already facing the kind of early turbulence that can change the conversation around a roster fast. Their latest loss came against the Carolina Hurricanes, extending a rough start that has left Philadelphia searching for any kind of rhythm or consistency while the goals and results keep piling up in the wrong direction.
The numbers have been hard to ignore, with the club struggling to finish chances and get much going on special teams, and coach Rick Tocchet has been blunt about the need for patience and improvement. Players are saying the right things about sticking with it, but the bigger question now is whether this is simply an ugly opening stretch or a sign of deeper problems that this group has to sort out before the hole gets much harder to climb out of. [Read more 🡒]
Flyers Frustration With Rick Tocchet Just Reached Another Level
The early-season spiral in Philadelphia kept getting uglier in Raleigh, where the Flyers dropped a 4-1 decision to the Carolina Hurricanes and saw another lineup experiment go sideways. Prospect defenseman Oliver Bonk was elevated to the top defensive pairing and had a rough night, a move that only added to the sense that the team is searching for answers in real time as the losses pile up and the frustration grows louder.
Rick Tocchets decisions are now under a harsher spotlight because the results have left so little room for patience. With the offense sputtering, the defense unsettled and the group still waiting for a clean response, the Flyers look stuck between development and damage control, and the bigger concern is that the season is already drifting in a direction no one around the team can afford to ignore. [Read more 🡒]
Flyers Coaching Speculation Just Got More Frustrating After 0-7 Start
Seven straight losses have put the Flyers in an ugly early-season hole, and the frustration around the team has already started to spill into familiar territory. When a club opens this way, the first place fans often look is behind the bench, and John Tortorellas name has been central to the speculation as Philadelphia searches for any sign of a reset.
For now, though, the noise may be louder than the reality. Reports from Sportsnets Elliotte Friedman suggest a coaching change is not considered likely at this moment, which leaves the Flyers in the awkward spot of being mired near the bottom of the standings without an obvious short-term fix. NHL history has plenty of unusual midseason moves, but this one appears headed toward patience for the time being, with the bigger question centered on how long the team can ride out the slump before something more dramatic becomes unavoidable. [Read more 🡒]