By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor 
The youth movement is coming for the Flyers. GM Ron Hextall opened the door slightly in recent years with the call-up of Shayne Gostisbehere in the 2015-16 season and with Ivan Provorov and Travis Konecny making the roster out of camp last season.
But so far this offseason, it has completely blown open after being sealed off for several years. Hextall openly admitted that the Flyers would have open spots available on the blue line at the conclusion of the regular season. By trading Brayden Schenn on Friday night, he affirmed that forward spots are up for grabs as well.
So now that it’s no secret that the young players and prospects are coming, the Flyers will also be looking for some key contributions from them in the near future, particularly the forwards who are going to be asked to replace Schenn’s production.
Replacing Schenn’s production won’t be easy. He may have been a better power-play specialist than an even-strength player, but Schenn did still score 25 goals, including 17 on the power play, that will need to be accounted for.
Enter Nolan Patrick and Oskar Lindblom. The two rookies will not be asked to equal Schenn’s 25-goal total, but each should be expected to reach 10 goals each at minimum, should they both be in the lineup from Day 1. Add in that Konecny should see more meaningful minutes and so could Jordan Weal if he is re-signed, and the Flyers are asking four players, who combined have 107 NHL games, to account for Schenn’s production and repeat their own success.
Konecny had 11 goals and 28 points in his rookie season. Weal had eight goals and 12 points in the small sample size of 23 games last season.
Ultimately, these four forwards are going to be just as important to the Flyers pending success in the 2017-18 season as the remainder of the core — Claude Giroux, Jake Voracek, Wayne Simmonds and Sean Couturier. The Flyers do need to see Giroux revitalize his career offensively and Simmonds and Voracek find a way to replicate recent seasons in their careers.
But this shot of youth could be just what the Flyers need. At the end of last season, the most entertaining and exciting player to watch on the Flyers was arguably Provorov, because as a 20-year-old rookie, he was playing top-pair minutes and handling the workload well.
The same scenario could happen with Patrick and Lindblom. It’s not the patient approach that gets redundant and boring after a while, it’s the wait to even see the prospects get a shot at the NHL level. In a player’s rookie season, while watching the skills that have been molded in juniors or the minors on display, a mistake by a rookie is more likely to be overlooked than one from a veteran who is what he is and doesn’t offer much to make up for it. Potential will make up for growing pains every time.
And now that one perceived piece of the core was traded, with Schenn's deal sending quite a shock through the current roster, it could happen to anyone at any time. So maybe that's a shot in the arm for the Flyers current core. The next tier of players is coming. Either step up and elevate your game or prepare to have one of them take your place if it's warranted.
It still remains to be seen if the Flyers will have one, two, three or more rookies on the roster in October. But if they do, they will arguably be one of the youngest teams in the NHL. Gostisbehere is entering his third NHL season as a 24-year-old. Provorov and Konecny are entering their second season, each at 20 years of age. Weal, 25, would be playing in his 38th NHL game on opening night. Sam Morin (21), Robert Hagg (22), Patrick (18) and Lindblom (20) would all be rookies. If Mike Vecchione, 24, makes the team, he would also still be considered a rookie. Essentially half of the team’s skaters could be rookies next season, all 25 years of age or younger.
Expect the youth movement to come, possibly in a huge wave or even in small increments. But however Ron Hextall decides to inject youth into the roster, he’s going to start bringing prospects into the mix. It will now be in the hands of the kids to prove they belong and that the waiting was worth it.
