Although 2020 first-round pick Tyson Foerster had an extremely encouraging 2022-23 season, scoring seven points in eight NHL games and 48 points in 66 AHL contests, he still has had to battle for an NHL job to start 2023-24. His chief opponent for a role on a scoring line in Philadelphia has been widely regarded as 22-year-old former college hockey star Bobby Brink, a high second-round pick of Philadelphia in 2019. Both players have had impressive training camps, but Thursday's PHLY Sports’ Charlie O’Connor reports that Foerster may be one step ahead in their competition.
O’Connor writes on X that Foerster is skating on a line at Thursday’s practice alongside Flyers number-one center Sean Couturier and established top-six contributor Joel Farabee, while Brink “looks like an extra.” This could indicate that Foerster is ticketed for top-line NHL duty to start the season while Brink gets sent back to AHL Lehigh Valley, though it’s obviously not a sure thing. Anything can happen still at this stage of the preseason, though this development does suggest that Flyers fans should expect to see Foerster wearing the orange and black on opening night next week.
Some other notes from what is widely expected to be a hotly contested Metropolitan Division:
More must-reads:
Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!