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Could Laughton make the squad?


Guest brelic

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@AndyS

Laughton will be the perfect checking centre because he will be versatile, physical, kill penalties and, importantly, chip-in with goals. He has underrated offensive instincts and skills. He will be better defensively (e.g. on faceoffs) than Mike Richards, but maybe not as much of a scorer (will depend on opportunities).

EDIT: emphasis on "will be" - he needs 2 years minimum, one in the OHL, one in the AHL

Edited by Podein25
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Bringing him up for camp seems kind of dumb to me. You're pulling him off of his team whom he's just getting back into rythm with (after his 10 game suspension) and bringing him into a situation that is almost impossible for him to succeed. We're stacked at center. Why disrupt the guys season. If it were at the start, it would make sense. But not in the middle of a season.

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@AndyS

Laughton will be the perfect checking centre because he will be versatile, physical, kill penalties and, importantly, chip-in with goals. He has underrated offensive instincts and skills. He will be better defensively (e.g. on faceoffs) than Mike Richards, but maybe not as much of a scorer (will depend on opportunities).

EDIT: emphasis on "will be" - he needs 2 years minimum, one in the OHL, one in the AHL

I hope you're right, but to say that he will be a better defensive forward than Mike Richards is really saying something, IMO. Richie was/is a terrific defensive player.

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FRANK SERAVALLI, Daily News Staff Writer seravaf@phillynews.com

POSTED: Friday, January 11, 2013, 3:01 AM

WHEN TRAINING camp opens on Sunday, first-round pick Scott Laughton will begin his quest to shock not only the Flyers, but a good portion of the hockey world.

Laughton, 18, is a surprise invite to the Flyers' abbreviated, 6-day training camp, as the team is recalling him from the OHL's Oshawa Generals to make a run at a full-time job in the show.

Laughton is one of only 17 junior players leaguewide to attend an NHL camp this season - and that includes players drafted the year before him. With most rosters already filled, most NHL teams are skittish about taking important practice reps away from veterans to fill the ice with prospects who have little chance to make the team.

Few experts had Laughton on their radar as someone who could make a dent in the NHL so soon. He was not even among the 40 junior players invited to Team Canada's selection camp for the World Junior Championships last month.

"I was pretty surprised to get the call to come to Philadelphia, since it's a shortened season and all, but you never really know," Laughton told the Daily News from Oshawa, Ontario, on Thursday. "I'm excited to get the opportunity to come down and show what I can do."

Laughton's visit to Philadelphia isn't for a tour of the facilities or a boost to his confidence. According to a source, the Flyers would have no hesitation in keeping Laughton on the roster for the beginning of the season should he make a strong showing in practice.

Like the rest of the Flyers, Laughton won't have the benefit of exhibition contests to get his feet wet. He could be thrown right into the frying pan against Pittsburgh on Jan. 19 at the Wells Fargo Center in a nationally televised grudge match.

With the shortened season, junior-aged players will be allowed to skate in five games before teams must make a decision to keep them or send them back to their junior clubs, according to reports. A sixth game played will burn the first year of Laughton's entry-level contract, which would ultimately make him a free agent faster.

Laughton signed his entry-level contract on Aug. 8 for the maximum rookie salary of $925,000. In many ways, his test is no-harm, no-foul. Should Laughton be sent back to Oshawa before six games, his contract will be untouched.

Flyers director of development Ian Laperriere could barely contain his excitement about watching Laughton again. Laperriere already has visited Laughton five or six times this season in Oshawa, where he plays with fellow Flyers pick Colin Suellentrop.

"I don't want to say that he's like Sean Couturier, but they play a lot of the same way," Laperriere said. "He does all of the little things right. Maturitywise, he is a rarity in junior. He's a special kid, a real two-way player.

"He is strong on his feet. He doesn't cheat to get offense. He is very responsible defensively. And he is physical."

Laughton and Laperriere both agreed that he has a "big advantage" and a "huge step up," since he already has been playing this season. He sat out a 10-game suspension early in the season for a hit to the head, but Laughton has 32 points (13 goals) in 31 games.

How realistic are Laughton's chances? The math is simple. Laughton can play both wing and center. Most spots are decided. But Laughton will compete with Eric Wellwood, Tom Sestito, Zac Rinaldo and Tye McGinn for two spots on the roster - assuming veteran Jody Shelley already has a job locked up.

Wellwood played in 11 playoff games for the Flyers last year but was a healthy scratch in the AHL during the lockout, as Phantoms coach Terry Murray said he arrived with a sense of entitlement. Sestito is physical but lacks the hands or intelligence of Laughton. Rinaldo is feisty, but left his team shorthanded more than any other player in the NHL last season. McGinn is a wild card, a forechecking specialist and a big body in front of the net.

The Flyers know what they're getting out of those four other players, but not as much about Laughton. Since center Danny Briere is likely to miss the start of the season with a wrist injury, the extra spot is likely to entice them to learn more.

Laperriere lauded Laughton's physical game, saying if "a game is only physical, he will do it." He has 12 fights on his OHL resume.

"That's not going to change in the NHL," Laughton said. "I pride myself on an all-around game, but I like to play physical at the same time."

If Laughton can fulfill a steady defensive role, provide energy and hold his own with the rough stuff, he possibly could kill two birds with one stone on the roster.

The precedent is already there. Coach Peter Laviolette and general manager Paul Holmgren are not risk averse, especially with young players. Laughton would be the Flyers' second consecutive first-round pick to make the jump directly to the NHL after being drafted, following Couturier. He would also be one of the youngest players in the NHL (born May 30, 1994).

"You can tell that I am a big fan of his," Laperriere said. "He is hard to not like. He's got a real chance. One way or another, he will find a way to play in the NHL."

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Wellwood played in 11 playoff games for the Flyers last year but was a healthy scratch in the AHL during the lockout, as Phantoms coach Terry Murray said he arrived with a sense of entitlement.

That's too bad. I kinda liked Wellwood when he was with the big club. I imagine it would be easy to develop that sense of entitlement when you head back to Glen Falls and buses.

I hope he turns it around.

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"I was pretty surprised to get the call to come to Philadelphia, since it's a shortened season and all, but you never really know," Laughton told the Daily News from Oshawa, Ontario, on Thursday. "I'm excited to get the opportunity to come down and show what I can do."

I'm surprised too! Perhaps even pleasantly.

It's fantastic for Scott and his confidence. It certainly sends the right message to any young prospect: show us what you're made of and we will reward you with invites, contracts and responsibilities. Flyer fans are gonna love this kid. He's like Mike Richards without the douchiness that Mike seemed to have at times.

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@flyercanuck

Agreed. You never know.

I'm glad for Mike that he won a Cup and all, he competed every most night(s). But the petulant stance he took on the media, on insisting on living in Center City, Dry Island - all of it - made him a problem for me. I hope Laughton doesn't turn out that way.

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Ya, I guess his career went to his head. He sure came in and started his career off playing like you'd want your captain to. There was a reason busloads of Ranger fans would travel to Philly to follow him. That isn't exactly a common occurence...I'd still take him on my team anyday.

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Well the young fella gets six games to make an impact, like the article says, the coach and gm aren't afraid to play the best players, so if he sticks out for the good okay by me.

thanks pods for keeping the fanbase honest,( mostly myself when we didn't pick maata, and i was going to jump out the window ) with your scouting report on Laughton, reading Severalli's article; especially all the glowing praise from Laperierre & the fact that he'll play wing... has me feeling pretty good about this kid.

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@brelic I met Welly at the Memorial Cup parade, got to spend a few minutes with him, sign some Flyers stuff etc....my impression was a very well grounded humble young man who was brought up properly....so the entitlement stuff is a shocker for me. I'm a pretty good judge of character, he was an impressive young man from everything I saw and heard.

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@brelic I met Welly at the Memorial Cup parade, got to spend a few minutes with him, sign some Flyers stuff etc....my impression was a very well grounded humble young man who was brought up properly....so the entitlement stuff is a shocker for me. I'm a pretty good judge of character, he was an impressive young man from everything I saw and heard.

Good to know jammer. It's easy to forget that players are people and go through all the ups and downs of life too, except they have the weight of an entire city on their shoulders. I talked to my buddy's sister over Christmas (he plays for the Isles), and she was telling me that for his family, the lockout was rough. They were paying a crapload in rent in NYC with no paycheque coming in. Then factor in "what do we do with the kids? do they go to school here? back in Canada?" etc, and you can see it has real effects on players and their families.

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"Wellwood played in 11 playoff games for the Flyers last year but was a healthy scratch in the AHL during the lockout, as Phantoms coach Terry Murray said he arrived with a sense of entitlement."

Eric Wellwood?...

Edited by HansonBros17
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I think camp would be good for him, making the squad for a few games would be great. It really helped Bourdon realize what he needed to do to succeed, namely work his tail off and take things seriously. I'd let Laughton stay for six games, so he doesn't burn a year of his EL contract (normally no more than nine games, but in this shorter season the rule was reduced to more than six games). Even if he doesn't do much on ice, the experience from observing real professionals will hopefully inspire and encourage him to develop his game at a more aggressive rate. Optimistically.

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Well just getting an invite to camp is an amazing testament to the scouting staff. There was and are still a lot of folks out there that were VERY unhappy with him being selected when he was.

I said when he was picked that I had faith in Holmgren because of the job he's done picking forwards in the first round. The problem I had was Olli Maata was still on the board, and was a player I thought would go a lot higher than he did. In other words, still the BPA. Not to mention we need defencemen, and are stacked at center. I don't think taking Laughton was a waste of a pick or anything. I just thought Maata was the better choice.

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