Skip to content
Flyers
Link copied to clipboard

5 things to watch at Flyers camp

Coach Craig Berube is putting a premium on conditioning this season.

The Flyers' Vincent Lecavalier. (Yong Kim/Staff Photographer)
The Flyers' Vincent Lecavalier. (Yong Kim/Staff Photographer)Read more

1 Conditioning: Last fall, Ed Snider called it the worst training camp he'd seen in his 46 seasons as team owner. Peter Laviolette was fired three games into the regular season when the Flyers broke out of the gate winless. This time, coach Craig Berube said he kept in touch with every player over the summer, asked a few to shed body fat, and vows his team will be in top physical shape.

2 Vinny Lecavalier: Both the Flyers and veteran forward Vinny Lecavalier say there are no hard feelings after a trying offseason. Flyers general manager Ron Hextall gave Lecavalier's agent permission to orchestrate a trade in June and July, one that never came to fruition, largely because of the $16.5 million due to him over the next four seasons. Lecavalier, 34, had his least productive season since 2001-02 as he bounced between left wing and center. Snider admitted in the offseason that Lecavalier played out of position and it "must be fixed."

3 Left wing: Who will play to the left of Claude Giroux and Jakub Voracek? Scott Hartnell, dealt to Columbus in the offseason for R.J. Umberger, occupied that spot for much of last year. It appears Berube will give Brayden Schenn every opportunity to play on the top line, but his leash won't be long. Schenn, 23, had 41 points in 82 games last year while also playing center. Michael Raffl and perhaps even Jason Akeson are other possibilities.

4 Michael Del Zotto: The defenseman signed to replace Kimmo Timonen may end up being one of the most intriguing offseason additions throughout the league. Hextall has given Del Zotto, just 24, a chance to resurrect his once-promising career with a 1-year contract for $1.3 million. Goaltender Steve Mason did that with the Flyers last year and cashed in with a $12.3 million extension in January.

5 Depth roles: For the most part, there aren't many jobs up for grabs on the depth chart. The team is already carrying seven healthy defensemen on one-way contracts, making chances slim that one of the club's up-and-coming prospects can steal one away. Multiple players with NHL experience, like Blair Jones, Scott Laughton, Andrew Gordon, Darroll Powe and Chris VandeVelde, will be battling with Frenchman Pierre-Edouard Bellemare to stick on Berube's fourth line for Opening Night.

Blog: ph.ly/FrequentFlyers