The Flyers used Saturday’s open scrimmage at the Flyers Training Center to squeeze in one last camp run before Monday’s preseason opener, and the Orange group came out on top, 4-3.
The session moved through a full menu of situations - 5-on-5 to start, then special teams work, then 4-on-4 and 3-on-3 looks before finishing with another extended 5-on-5 stretch. Orange eventually forced a 6-on-5 empty-net situation against the Black side, and that was that.
The early scoring came from the Black team. Tyson Foerster opened it with a shot to the far side past Carson Bjarnason, and Danila Klimovich followed with a blast to the near side for a 2-0 lead. Matvei Michkov helped spark the Orange comeback by dropping a beautiful pass to Alex Bump, who finished from close range against Aleksei Kolosov.
Black pushed it back to a two-goal edge when Helge Grans chased down his own rebound and scored on a wrap-around. But Trevor Zegras answered by skating through the zone and slipping one past Kolosov to make it 3-2. Oliver Bonk then tied it with a backhand finish through the slot, and Denver Barkey capped the rally by cashing in on another Michkov setup for the game-winner.
Bonk’s tying goal came off a sequence where Michkov did a ton of the heavy lifting, and the same theme kept showing up all afternoon: Michkov looked like a different player. He was moving well, creating constantly, and no one was moving the puck better. He and Zegras also looked synced up in a 4-on-4 sequence before later linking up on the power play.
David Jiricek was another big bright spot. If there’s a real battle for the Flyers’ sixth defense spot, he made a strong case Saturday. He didn’t have any major defensive breakdowns, moved well, stayed composed in his positioning, and showed enough offense through his passing and shot to stand out.
Jett Luchanko also kept his camp rolling. He showed speed, defensive ability, and some lively playmaking during 5-on-5 work. The shot still wasn’t a major part of his game on this day, but he held onto the puck and made good setups instead of simply moving it along.
The scrimmage had some bite to it, too. Nick Seeler appreciated the level of compete, while Ty Murchison tried to make a strong impression without going too far.
There were a couple of moments that got heated: Michkov and Hunter McDonald mixed it up after a whistle, then Porter Martone and Spencer Gill had a more intense corner scrum in front of the fans. Christian Dvorak stepped in, Gill and Dvorak exchanged some shoves, and things settled down after that.
The line combinations offered a few useful clues. The defense looked close to settled, with pairings including Sanheim-Ristolainen, York-Drysdale, and Seeler-Jiricek. That left a couple of looks that could hint at Phantoms pairings, including Murchison-Bonk and Grans-McDonald.
Up front, there were signs of a few combinations that could stick. Konecny-Dvorak-Martone was out there again after working well last season, and Bump-Barkey-Michkov also appeared as a likely NHL line. Rick Tocchet said he likes using Dvorak as a floater in camp to help give younger players confidence.
There were also some forward pairs that seemed to have staying power, including Foerster-Cates and Zegras-Tippett. Those looks held up especially well in the 4-on-4 segments.
The power play, though, still needs work. Saturday was the first time the new units were put through their paces, and there wasn’t much clean setup time to judge the structure. The Orange group featured Drysdale, Zegras, Barkey, Michkov, and Tippett, while the Black unit had Jiricek, Cates, Konecny, Martone, and Foerster.
For the penalty kill, Orange rolled with Couturier, Acciari, York, and Benoit, while Black used Dvorak, Knuble, Seeler, and McDonald.
Sunday is a day off before the Flyers face the Capitals on Monday in their first preseason game.
In Other News...
Flyers Blue Line Battle Is Putting David Jiricek In The Spotlight
Training camp is starting to sort out the Flyers defense picture, and David Jiricek has quickly become one of the most watched names in the mix. The 22-year-old blueliner, taken No. 6 overall in his draft year, has brought the kind of offensive upside and pro experience that can stand out this time of year, and his work in drills has helped put him firmly in the conversation as Philadelphia trims the roster.
The competition on defense still has room to shift, but Jiriceks case is harder to ignore because of the profile he brings to the table. For the Flyers, the decision is about more than just camp performance, too, since every spot on the blue line carries extra weight as the team sorts through its options and tries to settle on the best mix before the season gets moving. [Read more 🡒]
Flyers Are Betting Last Year's Breakthrough Was No Fluke
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The front office also made it clear it was willing to be aggressive in supporting that belief, even if not every move landed exactly as planned. Philadelphia addressed depth and experience with additions meant to help in the net and in the faceoff circle, while still keeping the spotlight on how its younger players handle the next stage of expectations. The bigger question now is whether those pieces can help turn a promising breakout into something more durable. [Read more 🡒]
Matvei Michkov Already Looks Like A Different Kind Of Flyers Threat
The Flyers first scrimmage of the season in Voorhees offered an early glimpse of how different this group can look when the pace picks up, and Matvei Michkov wasted little time standing out. In Team Oranges 4-3 win over Team Black, the young winger was at the center of plenty of the best action, with Alex Bump and Denver Barkey also flashing in an intersquad setting that had a little more bite than a casual September skate.
Michkovs influence was especially noticeable when he was on the ice with Bump and Barkey, because the trio kept pushing the play up ice and creating chances. The session had its fair share of physical moments, too, but it finished without any reported injuries, even after a late scrum involving Porter Martone, which is exactly the sort of early-camp edge the Flyers tend to welcome as long as everyone walks away intact. [Read more 🡒]