The Flyers’ rookie camp was built around one simple directive: get noticed. After a week of work and a pair of on-ice sessions, a few prospects did exactly that - and a few others made their cases look a lot shakier.
Cole Knuble was one of the clearest winners. The 22-year-old came into camp with a bit of mystery around him after joining the AHL Lehigh Valley Phantoms late last season and producing a goal, two assists and three points in seven games.
Before that, the former fourth-round pick spent three years at Notre Dame, where he put up 21 goals and 70 points over his last 70 college games. He only appeared in one of the Rookie Series games against the Rangers, but that was enough to turn heads.
Skating on a top line with Alex Bump and Jett Luchanko, Knuble kept driving play with his legs and made a habit of getting to the hard areas. At 5-foot-10 and 192 pounds, he’s not built like a wrecking ball, but he played like a guy who wanted every puck in sight.
The way he keeps climbing and the nonstop pace he brings invite the kind of comparison the Flyers like to see: Bobby Brink. Brink improved year by year and became a third-line regular before being dealt at the 2026 trade deadline for David Jiricek as the Flyers cleared room for Porter Martone.
If Knuble keeps trending this way, a similar rise would be a major win for the organization.
Devin Kaplan, by contrast, didn’t leave the same kind of mark. The 22-year-old has already logged NHL time and a full pro season, but he was quiet compared with several of his peers.
Kaplan is in a contract year after finishing last season with five goals, eight assists and 13 points in 49 games for the Phantoms. He profiles more as a grinder, but even in that lane Noah Powell stood out more.
Kaplan did look rusty after a season-ending injury and surgery, so there’s some room for patience, but the Flyers’ wing depth and the strong showings from Knuble and Powell make this an important stretch for him. He’ll get another chance when training camp opens Thursday.
In goal, Carson Bjarnason gave the Flyers a solid reminder of why he still matters in this prospect picture. Egor Zavragin tends to grab the spotlight, but Bjarnason was drafted ahead of him in the same class and has been carving out his own path.
After four seasons with the WHL Brandon Wheat Kings, including three as the starter, he turned pro last year and played 32 games for the Phantoms. The results were uneven: a strong start gave way to a rough patch, and he even spent two games with the ECHL Reading Royals, going 1-1-0 with a 3.57 GAA and .881 save percentage.
In the AHL, he finished 14-11-7 behind Aleksei Kolosov, with a 3.43 GAA and .877 save percentage.
That said, the Phantoms were dealing with plenty of chaos around him, from the departures of Emil Andrae, Barkey and Bump to injuries for Bonk, Kaplan and Ty Murchison. Help didn’t really arrive until later in the year, when David Jiricek, Boris Katchouk, Powell, Knuble and Jack Berglund joined a season that was already slipping away.
Bjarnason should have a steadier setup this season, and he helped his own case with a strong full game against the Rangers over the weekend. He was beaten just twice, and both goals came on the power play.
He should see preseason action as he keeps building on that start.
The rookie camp also made life a little less comfortable for some of the Flyers’ veteran defensemen. Bonk, Ty Murchison, Spencer Gill, Brek Liske and Maksim Sokolovskii all stood out in their own ways, which is exactly the kind of pressure the older group doesn’t need.
Nick Seeler and Rasmus Ristolainen are the names feeling it most. Murchison wore the “C” in the first game against the Rangers and already got some NHL games last season, while Bonk followed up his NHL debut and playoff debut at the end of last year with another strong showing in this setting.
Seeler no longer has trade protection and has two years left on his contract, and a shift into a No. 7 role looks possible, especially with Simon Benoit’s contract expiring next summer and Murchison continuing to climb. Ristolainen’s situation is even more unsettled.
The trade talk around him never really disappeared, and now he has Bonk and Jiricek pushing for minutes and roster space, with Gill and Liske still coming. If Bonk and Jiricek keep looking ready for bigger jobs, the countdown on Ristolainen’s time in Philadelphia could start sooner rather than later.
In Other News...
Flyers Have A Clear Blue Line Chance They Shouldnt Ignore
A potentially intriguing blue-line option has surfaced with training camps getting closer, and the Flyers are among the teams worth watching. Alexander Nikishin has become available in a situation that could draw interest around the league, and Philadelphia fits the kind of club that can use another defenseman with upside as it continues to shape its group on the back end. Nikishin spent last season in a depth role for Carolina during a championship run, which at least gives any interested team a sense of how he has been used in a winning environment.
For the Hurricanes, the question is whether there is enough reason to keep him in the fold or whether the better move is to move on while the market is there. That uncertainty is part of what makes this interesting for the Flyers, who have been looking for chances to add talent without forcing the issue. The longer this drags into camp, the more it feels like one of those situations that could break quickly once a trade partner decides the fit is worth pursuing. [Read more 🡒]
Flyers Need More From Matvei Michkov Than Promise This Season
Matvei Michkovs second NHL season comes with a different kind of pressure than the first. After a strong rookie year, the Flyers winger slipped last season, and general manager Daniel Briere spent time this week talking through where Michkov stands now as training camp approaches and the organization looks for him to take a real step forward rather than simply flash upside.
Briere sounded encouraged by the broader picture, saying Michkov appears more mature and ready to handle what comes next. The Flyers have also been watching his offseason work closely, with the sense that his summer was geared toward getting himself in better shape for the demands of the season. For a team trying to move forward, the question is no longer whether Michkov has talent. It is whether he can turn that talent into the kind of nightly impact Philadelphia needs. [Read more 🡒]
Jett Luchanko Just Made The Flyers Outlook A Lot More Interesting
Jett Luchankos rookie-tournament showing offered another reminder of why the Flyers were so intrigued when they took him in the first round of the 2024 draft. The young center turned heads with a sharp assist in recent action, and prospect coach John Snowden came away impressed by the skating and playmaking that have long been part of Luchankos appeal.
Luchankos path has already included offseason surgery to clean up a core muscle issue that had slowed parts of his development, which makes every positive step feel a little more meaningful for the organization. He is expected to begin the season in Lehigh Valley, but the Flyers will be watching closely to see how quickly his game translates, because the door to an NHL call-up is not going to stay closed forever if he keeps building like this. [Read more 🡒]