The Flyers’ season begins Friday night in Los Angeles, but it’s time to continue our weekly check-in on the Flyers of the future.
In this edition, we’ll feature an undersized winger who has caught fire since a promotion into his team’s top-six and take a look at how some of the college prospects are faring.
Let’s get at it.
Cooper Marody, C/RW, 6-0/178, Michigan (NCAA)
Let’s begin with some disappointing news on the prospect front. Marody, the Flyers’ 2015 sixth-round pick, was ruled academically ineligible through the first semester of the academic year, Michigan head coach Red Berenson told The Michigan Daily. Berenson told Michigan’s college newspaper that Marody’s battle with mononucleosis in January “set him back in school,” and “he’s a good student … but got affected by one particular class that really cost him.” Marody could return as early as Dec. 29 for the Great Lakes Invitational. In his freshman season, he scored 10 goals and 24 points in 32 games.
David Kase, RW, 5-11/170, Piráti Chomutov (Czech Extraliga)
A fifth-round pick from 2015, Kase continued to produce for Piráti Chomutov since his promotion to second-line right wing, per Alexander Appleyard. On Friday against PSG Zlín, the winger registered a goal and three points in just over 13 minutes in a 6-3 win. On Sunday against BK Mladá, he added another goal in 15:52. He has three goals and three assists in the six games since his promotion, and six points in his last five games.
Wade Allison, RW, 6-2/205, Western Michigan (NCAA)
Allison, who chose WMU because of former Flyers assistant coach Andy Murray, scored his first collegiate goal in his first game last Thursday against No. 20 Ferris State with a snipe job off a partial breakaway on a power play. One of three second-round picks from June’s draft, Allison followed up his debut with a pointless contest Friday on the back end of a home-and-home with Ferris State. Not a bad start for the 18-year-old, who had a slow start to last season with the USHL’s Tri-City Storm. WMU is back in action Friday and Saturday with a home-and-home set against Bowling Green University.
Pascal Laberge, RW, 6-0/174, Victoriaville (QMJHL)
Another second-round pick from June, Laberge had a productive second week of the season in the Q. The 18-year-old picked up three points in three games, all three points coming in two games against Baie-Comaeu on Friday and Saturday. In the Tigres’ 4-3 loss to Baie-Comaeu on Saturday, Laberge potted a goal and an assist and finished as a plus-1. He has four points in five games, which ranks him seventh on Victoriaville, which has three games this week beginning with tonight against Blainville-Boisbriand.
NHL
German Rubtsov, C, 6-0/190, Russian Knights (MHL)
The question going into the week was where would Rubtsov finish the week. After being activated from injured reserve two weeks ago, the Flyers’ first-round pick from June played in the MHL for the Russian Knights upon his return, and he stayed there last week. Rubtsov’s best game of the week came last Monday, when he registered two goals and an assist in the Knights’ 5-3 loss to Diamond. On Saturday, he played on the top line for the Knights, but was held pointless in a 3-1 loss. It appears Rubtsov will be staying in the MHL or will head to the VHL before he gets another shot at the KHL.
Philippe Myers, D, 6-5/209, Rouyn-Noranda (QMJHL)
After hanging around longer than expected with the Flyers in training camp, Myers returned to junior last week and played in two games for the Huskies. While the hulky right-handed defender didn’t pick up any points, he was active, firing nine shots on net and finished the week as a plus-two as Rouyn-Noranda won both games he played in. Myers, an undrafted free-agent signing, has elevated himself over the past year into the conversation as one of the team’s top defensive prospects. Given how well he showed in camp and if he continues to trend upward at the junior rank this season, it wouldn’t be farfetched to see Myers playing in the orange and black sometime in the near future.
Quick hits
• Mark Friedman, a junior at Bowling Green, did not play in the Falcons’ opener because of a one-game suspension for his part in a brawl during an exhibition game against Windsor on Oct. 1. He did make his season debut Saturday and was pointless.
• Oskar Lindblom saw his five-game point streak to begin the season snapped Saturday against Skellefteå in 15:26. He had a goal in his only other game last week.
• Felix Sandstrom was in net for one game last week, helping Brynäs IF to a 5-2 win over Luleå on Thursday. The netminder turned away 27 of 29 shots against Luleå, and now has a 2.33 goals-against average and .891 save percentage through three games.
• David Drake, a 6-foot-6, left-handed shooting blueliner, was pointless with two penalty minutes and three blocked shots in two games for Connecticut on Friday and Saturday.
• Ohio State freshman Tanner Laczynski tallied an assist in each of his first two collegiate games, a 3-2 OSU win over No. 3 Denver and a 3-3 tie with Air Force.
• Calgary left winger Carsen Twarynski netted his first goal of the season with a power-play deflection in the Hitmen’s 2-1 win over Kamloops on Saturday night.
• Everett goalie Carter Hart surrendered four goals on 27 shots against in the Silvertips’ 4-1 loss to the Tri-City Americans on Saturday after stopping 15 of 16 shots in a 3-1 win over the Americans on Wednesday. Everett has four games on the schedule this week.
• Samuel Dove-McFalls had a three-point week for Saint John, including a two-goal game in a 4-2 win over the Quebec Remparts on Friday night.