Inside the Flyers: Hextall got what he wanted in first round

SUNRISE, Fla. - Flyers general manager Ron Hextall went to the NHL draft this weekend trying to add speed; get some promising goalie prospects; and, most important, select a defenseman who could someday be a franchise cornerstone.

Give Hextall props. He did just that.

Some teams had great drafts because of can't-miss selections that fell into their laps (see Edmonton with Connor McDavid and Buffalo with Jack Eichel). But you'd be hard-pressed to find a team that had a better first round than the Flyers, who took defenseman Ivan Provorov at No. 7 and traded up to get speedy right winger Travis Konecny at No. 24.

"We're happy, but we'll see in three or four years," Hextall said when asked to evaluate his draft.

Craig Button, the former Calgary general manager who now works as a draft expert for TSN, believes the Flyers had a spectacular draft. He had high praise for Hextall's first three picks, including 6-foot-2 191-pound goaltender Felix Sandstrom.

By grabbing Provorov, and selecting Travis Sanheim in the first round last year, Button said, the Flyers have two players who will be elite No. 1 defensemen in the future.

"You can't trade for No. 1 defensemen or get them in free agency," Button said. "So there's only one way to get them - and that's to draft them. And to me, they got two top-end defensemen who can do it all."

Button also said Konecny reminds him of former NHL star Pat Verbeek and has a little of Rick Tocchet's drive in him. High praise, considering they combined for 962 career goals.

"I don't think the fans of Philadelphia are going to like him, because he hits and plays hard and he has a lot of enthusiasm and energy for the game," Button cracked.

Button said the still-raw Sandstrom has a chance to become a "legitimate No. 1 goaltender," saying he was athletic, composed, and skilled at reading plays.

Hextall said goalies are the most difficult players to project. Perhaps that's why he drafted three of them Saturday, figuring maybe, just maybe, one of them will develop into a standout.

In franchise history, the Flyers have not had a great track record of drafting goalies who became starters, let alone elite.

"There's so much mental involved, and they're hard to hit on," Hextall said. "We had a lot of picks this year, and the guys fell in spots where we felt comfortable with it."

If healthy, Sandstrom is considered a gifted prospect. Playing for a Sweden junior team, he missed time last season because of mononucleosis and assorted injuries but is now healthy.

"His mental toughness is top-shelf, and that's a big factor," said Hextall, who believes Sandstrom's physical problems affected his performance.

The Flyers bypassed a chance to draft a more highly rated goalie, Daniel "Darth" Vladar, who was selected 75th overall by Boston. The 6-5 Vladar had a .925 save percentage last season while playing junior hockey in the Czech Republic.

Button likes Sandstrom better.

Later in the third round, at No. 90, the Flyers selected Matej Tomek, who was recruited to North Dakota by new Flyers coach Dave Hakstol. He will be an incoming freshman at the school.

The 6-2, 180-pound Tomek put up strong numbers in the NAHL last season (1.83 goals-against average, .928 save percentage), and Hakstol said he has great poise and plays with calmness.

All told, the Flyers selected three goalies, three right wingers, a center, a left winger, and a defenseman.

"We like our draft," Hextall said. "Was it perfect in terms of what you want to come out with? Like I said, I figured we'd come out with two goalies and a couple defensemen and a few forwards. It didn't exactly fall that way, but we're happy with what we came up with."

Hextall said that the Flyers are "very light" on goalies in the system and that the fact they drafted three was not a reflection on the Phantoms' Anthony Stolarz, who struggled in the second half of last season.

"We may have overswung," said Hextall, referring to drafting three goalies, "but we're happy with the guys we got."

Especially the two players they selected in Round 1.

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