hf101 Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 With the end of some NCAA hockey seasons last weekend, the race to ink undrafted free agents is on.The Flyers have already begun courting Univ. of Nebraska-Omaha defenseman Andrej Sustr, who officially announced on Monday that he will not be returning to school for his senior season. He’s a player the Flyers have kept their eye on for years.It’s easy to see why. Sustr, 22, is a 6-foot-8 physical specimen on the blue line. He is a Czech Republic native but has been playing North American hockey since 2008, when he joined Kenai River in the United States’ second-tier NAHL junior league.The scouting report on Sustr is that he "skates fine" and he's a good puck mover, but his decision-making process could be improved.For teams like the Flyers, who aren’t opposed to signing free agents to maximum ($925,000) entry-level deals, undrafted college players are an important avenue to restock the farm system.Monday night’s opponent, Tampa Bay, might have the inside track for Sustr's rights. He participated in their prospect camp last summer, along with the Penguins. Many teams are interested, but a decision from Sustr’s camp does not appear to be imminent. It is believed Sustr would like to weigh all of his options. Vancouver, Detroit, Los Angeles and Ottawa are also among the reportedly interested parties, aside from the Flyers, Lightning and Penguins.Vancouver signed Lake Superior (Mich.) State Univ.'s Kellen Lain already.The Flyers lost out on undrafted prospect J.T. Brown last year to the Lightning. Brown, out of Minnesota-Duluth, wanted the guarantee of playing in the NHL immediately upon leaving school. Tampa Bay was out of the playoff race, easily able to meet Brown’s demand and offer him five games at the end of the season. The Flyers weren’t in a position to give up a roster spot. Brown has 23 points in 37 games for AHL Syracuse this year.Perhaps, if the Flyers are out of the playoff race in a couple weeks, a taste of the NHL is something they could offer this time around.The Flyers were also pursuing Western Michigan defenseman Danny DeKeyser last spring, who decided to stay in school. It's hard to imagine the Flyers would have suddenly stopped being interested in DeKeyser one year later. More than 20 teams were linked to DeKeyser last season, with Detroit believed to be a front-runner. DeKeyser will be on the market once Western Michigan's season is over. The Broncos were swept out of the CCHA playoffs last weekend, so they'll await word this week whether they've qualified for the NCAA tournament.College hockey is in the process of playing their conference tournaments. More free agents will also draw interest after their season ends.The Flyers have found a fair amount of success with undrafted free agents. Matt Read jumped right from Bemidji (Minn.) State to scoring 24 goals in the NHL last season. Harry Zolnierczyk went undrafted out of Brown. They did not find as much success with prospects Mike Testwuide and Luke Pither, who were both traded this season. The jury is still out on Phantoms forward Tyler Brown.Source Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyS Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 How about they sing this kid somehow & then draft that Nurse kid?That would add some serious size to our blue line! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyercanuck Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 .The scouting report on Sustr is that he "skates fine" and he's a good puck mover, but his decision-making process could be improved.Source Sounds like he'd fit right in. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OccamsRazor Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 Sounds like he'd fit right in.Coburn's brother maybe?????Hey at this point anything to get Gervais and his -12 out of the lineup sign me up!!!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammer2 Posted March 20, 2013 Share Posted March 20, 2013 @hf101 My question is this, why not take a 7th round flyer on him last year if he has been on their radar for several years? It eliminates the whole race to sign him, cuts him out of the big pay day and gives us a legit prospect. Why leave him undrafted and set up a scenario where he goes to the highest bidder? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyercanuck Posted March 20, 2013 Share Posted March 20, 2013 Doesn't his age and amount of time playing in NA cut him out of the draft? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammer2 Posted March 20, 2013 Share Posted March 20, 2013 @flyercanuck Not sure, could be a valid point. Don't know the cut off age for drafting a player. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyercanuck Posted March 20, 2013 Share Posted March 20, 2013 @jammer2 Plus maybe if we don't draft him, he may be a good defenceman? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammer2 Posted March 20, 2013 Share Posted March 20, 2013 @flyercanuck ha ha....there is that also!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Polaris922 Posted March 22, 2013 Share Posted March 22, 2013 Sustr signed a two year deal with Tampa Bay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyS Posted March 22, 2013 Share Posted March 22, 2013 Sustr signed a two year deal with Tampa Bay.So that means we'll trade for him after he becomes a bust in Tampa.And then he'll play mediocre defense in Philly for a few years before signing a huge contract elsewhere.Oh wait, that was Carle. :wacko: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hf101 Posted March 22, 2013 Author Share Posted March 22, 2013 @hf101 My question is this, why not take a 7th round flyer on him last year if he has been on their radar for several years? It eliminates the whole race to sign him, cuts him out of the big pay day and gives us a legit prospect. Why leave him undrafted and set up a scenario where he goes to the highest bidder?I believe he wasn't draft eligible last year since he has been playing in NA since 2008. And I will assume that when he was draft eligible there were other defensemen on the list to draft ahead of Sustr.Entry Draft EligibilityAll players age 19 or older [(i) any player who will be age 18 on or before September 15 in the year in which such Entry Draft is held, or (ii) reaches his 19th birthday between September 16 and December 31, both dates included, next following Entry Draft, can attain eligibility by delivering to the League a written notice (Opt in Form) prior to the later of May 1, or seven days following the date such player finishes competing on his team in the year in which such draft is to be held.] are eligible for claim in the Entry Draft, except:(i) A Player on the Reserve List of a Club, other than as a try-out;(ii) A player who has been claimed in two prior Entry Drafts;(iii) A player who previously played in the League and became a free agent pursuant to the Collective Bargaining Agreement;(iv) A plyer age 21 or older who had played hockey for at least one season in North America when he was age 18, 19 or 20http://www.nhl.com/ice/page.htm?id=26377 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canoli Posted March 22, 2013 Share Posted March 22, 2013 well he's gone now...Yzerman grabbed him, promised him immediate NHL ice time supposedly. So the big man is going to Tampa.http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/flyers/20130322_Flyers_hope_to_hit_the_reset_button.html"Tampa Bay agreed to terms with 6-8 defensive prospect Andrej Sustr on Thursday, 4 days after he officially announced he was not returning to the University of Nebraska-Omaha for his senior season. The Flyers had been tracking Sustr for years and made at least one pitch earlier this week for his services." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OccamsRazor Posted March 22, 2013 Share Posted March 22, 2013 (edited) My question is this, why not take a 7th round flyer on him last year if he has been on their radar for several years?HAHAHA....then there would be no drama...and he would rot on the Phantoms...like Oliver Laurisden...never to get a glimpse of what it would be like to skate with the big boys...if for no other reason than to just see what he could do with a callup.Edit: That is back to back years Stevie Y has landed the hottest undrafted prospects...last year he landed JT Brown...can't blmaed them the Flyers are in disarray!!!!!!!!!! Edited March 22, 2013 by OccamsRazor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canoli Posted March 22, 2013 Share Posted March 22, 2013 I wonder why they didn't close the deal with this guy - the story talks about following him "for years" and then suddenly - poof! - he signs with the Lightning. But all in all Homer's team has done pretty well finding, tracking and signing un-drafted players. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mojo1917 Posted March 22, 2013 Share Posted March 22, 2013 @canolifrom what i've read, and i imagine you have too now, this kid attended prospect camp with the bolts....they know him he knows them, a comfort level has been established between the player and organization . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammer2 Posted March 22, 2013 Share Posted March 22, 2013 @mojo1917 Kinda the same situation the Flyers had with the kid Hyka (sp), except they didn't get to sign/draft him, the Kings got him with their final pick in the last round....figures, kid will probably be a star....lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyercanuck Posted March 22, 2013 Share Posted March 22, 2013 @canoli Let's see, Philly needs help on D...there's a 6'8" behemoth available without wasting a pick...Homer comes away with an undersized center. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammer2 Posted March 22, 2013 Share Posted March 22, 2013 @flyercanuck How did you guys to against Kingston last night, wanted to watch it and forgot. I'm gonna make an effort to watch the Colts and Knights go through the playoffs, I figure those 2 will meet in the OHL finals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyercanuck Posted March 22, 2013 Share Posted March 22, 2013 Barrie won 3-1. Camara with the empty netter sealed a much closer game than anyone was expecting. Neiderberger was great. Scheifele and Knights castoff Athanasiou made up the 3 stars. Beyers had a goal and assist. I'd expect the next game to be...not so close. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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