When the Flyers opened training camp to kick off their 2015-16 season last September, much had been made of the core of defensive prospects that were working their way through the prospect pipeline.
Eight months later, with the Memorial Cup well underway, the Flyers have yet another prospect to be excited about in Philippe Myers. Myers had been an invitee to training camp, and impressed Flyers brass enough to earn an entry-level deal.
Ron Hextall's decision to sign Myers is already going down as yet another savvy move for the Flyers' GM. The Rouyn-Noranda Huskies blueliner had previously gone undrafted the previous June, and yes, there was a reason for that.
In his two previous seasons with the Huskies, he scored a combined two goals and recorded 12 points over 106 games. To be fair, he was a defenseman; but those numbers were still quite low in a high-scoring league like the QMJHL.
Myers' offensive strides could also be partially attributed to age, as he turned 19 on Jan. 25. It's no secret that older players can tear up the junior ranks — giving them the chance to end their junior careers on the highest note possible — but when a player nearly quadruples his career points output in just one season, there are a lot of other reasons for that besides age.
Entering his third season with the Huskies, though, his numbers exploded. He recorded 17 goals and 45 points in 63 games, and was a catalyst for the Huskies as they won their first President's Cup since relocating to Rouyn-Noranda in 1996. Through two Memorial Cup games, he's recorded one goal, and will play in the last round-robin game tonight.
It's also worth noting that in this Memorial Cup, Myers is going up against one of the crown jewels of the Flyers' defensive prospects — last year's seventh-overall pick, Ivan Provorov. Through two games, Provorov has two assists — yet his Brandon Wheat Kings are down 0-2 in the tournament. The Huskies actually beat the Wheat Kings on Saturday, with Myers scoring his goal and Provorov registering an assist.
Myers is also likely to get to build off of his strong year for another season in the Q. At 19-years-old, he won't be eligible to play for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms or Reading Royals out of training camp next season. He still has three seasons of junior play under his belt though, and will have one more season of eligibility left.
When the Flyers added Philippe Myers to their stack of defensive prospects landscaping, it wasn't exactly earth-shattering news — after all, they already had an embarrassment of riches at the position. But he's continued to impress in his third junior system, and will certainly look to build off of that going into next rookie camp.
Rob Riches is a contributor to Flyerdelphia and Sports Talk Philly. Follow him on Twitter @Riches61
