The Philadelphia Flyers made a slew of roster announcements on Wednesday, the most notable being that they extended qualifying offers to restricted free agents Ronnie Attard, Noah Cates, Morgan Frost, Olle Lycksell and Cam York.
All five players are homegrown prospects who could have a part to play in the Flyers’ future.
Cates quickly established himself as one of coach John Tortorella’s most trusted skaters in 2022-23. The undrafted rookie followed up on his 16-game audition in 2021-22 to finish third among Flyers forwards in ice time behind veterans Travis Konecny and Scott Laughton. He was one of three Flyers to play every game, led the team with a +3 rating, and scored 13 goals and 38 points.
Cates’s biggest strengths are on the defensive end; he was a frequent penalty killer, and Daily Faceoff’s Scott Maxwell wrote that his metrics should have garnered Selke consideration, going so far as to dub him “the perfect replacement for Sean Couturier” in his own zone.
Frost and York were not immediate fits like Cates was, but they found their own NHL success by the season’s end.
Frost struggled to establish himself throughout most of the season, but after injuries and trades thrust him into a high-leverage role, he showed the skills that made him a first-round pick in 2017, exploding for eight goals and 17 points in 21 games after March 1. Tortorella and GM Daniel Briere will be interested to see what Frost can do as a top-six player.
York also took time to find his stride in the pro ranks and began the season with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms after a shaky training camp. When he did join the big club, York quickly established himself in a top-four role thanks to his composure on the puck. With three goals and 20 points in 54 games, York could grow into a role as an offensive blueliner with an improvement to his paltry 4.8 shooting percentage.
Attard (AHL All-Star) and Lycksell both impressed with Lehigh Valley (45P in 53GP) but did little of note for the Flyers. The duo will have a chance to make the opening night roster of a team in a transitional period this fall.
Former Islanders first-rounder Kieffer Bellows did not receive an offer, while goaltender Ivan Fedotov’s extant one-year, $925K contract will stand should he decide to play in North America; that course of action is unlikely. Fedotov will return to CSKA Moscow in the KHL at the conclusion of his military detainment.
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