Flyers send Morin back to juniors

SAM MORIN was summoned to Ron Hextall's office yesterday morning when he reported to the team's practice facility.

As the 6-7 teenager lumbered up the stairs, Morin probably had a strong sense of his impending assignment, given that he wasn't a part of the Flyers' lineup in their preseason finale in Washington on Thursday.

When the general manager delicately broke the news that the young defenseman needed to pack his bags to return to his junior team in Quebec, he had one question.

"Can I get to Rimouski in time to play tonight?"

"I thought, 'Wow,' " Hextall said. "The kid had a great attitude."

Morin, 19, was cut on the Flyers' final day of training camp. Their newly minted 22-man roster, including newcomers Blair Jones and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, took off for a team bonding excursion in Cape Cod ahead of Wednesday's opener in Boston.

"Sam played really well," coach Craig Berube said. "He was as close to cracking the lineup as you can get, I think.

"I had an input. But I mean, it's more a philosophy that Ron Hextall talked about. I believe it's the right thing, too. For his development, and the player we think he's going to become, going back to juniors was the best thing for him."

Hextall said his biggest fear for Morin was that he would "go back to junior and start thinking he's something he's not - which a skilled-type of player."

"He's got some skill," Hextall said. "He's got a hard shot. But he needs to play the same type of game he played here."

In the end, the Flyers simply did not have enough of an opportunity available for Morin to justify keeping him. Rimouski, already seven games into its season, is one of the top-ranked QMJHL teams. Because of NHL transfer agreements, Morin could not be sent to the AHL - it was either NHL or juniors.

The Flyers could have kept Morin and played him in up to nine games without risking burning a year on his entry-level contract, but they would have needed to sit (or trade) one of their six regulars to open a spot.

"It gets a little tempting," Hextall said. "Sam opened a lot of eyes. Then you kind of hit refresh and think about reality, which is, these are preseason games, there are a lot of young players in the lineup and the older players aren't really bringing their best stuff. In the end, we thought it was the right thing to do."

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