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Laughton not taking time with Flyers for granted

Scott Laughton takes promotion to the Flyers in stride, says he still has a lot of places where he can improve.

Flyers center Scott Laughton defends Islanders center Casey Cizikas. (Kathy Willens/AP)
Flyers center Scott Laughton defends Islanders center Casey Cizikas. (Kathy Willens/AP)Read more

SCOTT LAUGHTON'S promotion to the Flyers a week ago last night was understandably overshadowed by the bigger development of that day - the then-uncertainty surrounding Claude Giroux and the mysterious "lower-body" injury that ended up not costing the captain any games after all.

But 8 days and four games later, with the team set to play the Red Wings tonight in Detroit, Laughton remains with the Flyers (8-9-3). The 20-year-old center hopes his continued effective play on the ice keeps it that way.

"I think it's just taking it day by day, not looking too much forward," he said. "That's what I thought when I got the call. Just take it game by game, day by day and work as hard as I can and try and be physical and do anything I can to stay in the lineup."

Since joining the Flyers, Laughton, the franchise's 2012 first-round draft pick, has already garnered one promotion, from the fourth line to the third, where, for the last three games, he has centered two veterans, Vinny Lecavalier and R.J. Umberger. With coach Craig Berube dressing seven defensemen the last two games, Laughton also has been among those to rotate in with Zac Rinaldo and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare on the fourth line.

After logging only 7 minutes in his first game last Wednesday and 10 minutes, 53 seconds in his second on Thursday, Laughton has played 15:01 and 14:20 in the previous two games. In that same two-game span, he has combined to play a tad more than 3 minutes on the penalty kill.

Berube also sent the kid out on the ice for the first go at it in Monday night's shootout against the Islanders. New York goaltender Jaroslav Halak saved attempts by Laughton and Giroux in the Flyers' fifth loss in six games.

"He's playing with definitely a lot of confidence," Umberger said of Laughton. "That can be a tough thing for young kids, but he's not afraid to go out there and do what he can do and make a mistake if he does. He gives it all every shift and it's good to see. He's doing well so far."

Laughton, who played five games with the Flyers during the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season, didn't make the team out of camp. General manager Ron Hextall said at the time he preferred that the young center get more ice time with the Phantoms to further his development rather than play sparingly with the big club.

In 13 games with the Phantoms before his call-up, Laughton led the team with 11 points on six goals. He has yet to tally his first NHL point, but, in the last four games, has registered seven shots and is a minus-1. He has added a lot of speed to the middle of his line, which against Minnesota on Thursday and Columbus on Saturday increased its scoring opportunities.

Against the Islanders, a game in which the Flyers were handily outshot (46-21), the third line mustered only three shots on net.

"Laughts has added a lot to our line. He has a lot of speed and obviously he's good with the puck," Umberger said before Monday's game. "He's helped us keep cycles going in the offensive zone and get some chances. Now we just need to convert one or two of these and get some momentum going."

Laughton said he feels more confident on the ice, though he acknowledged he still has some bad habits in his game he's working to fix. He said he has matured since his first stint in the NHL 2 years ago. The experience this fall with Lehigh Valley also helped, he said.

"He's eager to learn," Umberger said. "He has fresh legs, young legs and he's enjoying every moment of being on the ice. You can tell he has that passion, the hunger to play in games and stay on this team as long as he can."

Slap shots

Left wing Michael Raffl rejoined the team and skated yesterday in Detroit. Out since Nov. 4 with a right foot injury, there's an outside chance he could return as soon as this weekend, when the Flyers play a Friday-Saturday home-and-home against the Rangers . . . Jake Voracek was 12th among forwards after the first week of fan voting for the NHL All-Star Game with 27,826 votes. Claude Giroux (22,307) was 19th among forwards according to the figures released yesterday. Mark Streit (20,083) was 16th among defensemen . . . Monday's shutout loss marked only the third game this season without a point for Voracek, whose 29 points are now tied with Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby for the league lead.