Flyers prospect camp all about teaching, not evaluating

Share

VOORHEES, N.J. — No one earned a roster spot.

And no one lost one, either.

Were some impressions made? Perhaps.

Every summer, the Flyers conduct a week-long prospect and development camp at Skate Zone. It’s the final prep for 30-plus players before some return in September for training camp.

It’s all about basics and drills, learning new skills and developing friendships with other young players in the organization.

The camp concluded Sunday night with a 3-on-3 tournament of sorts, on two half-sheets of ice in which players didn’t wear names or numbers.

There’s a lot of teaching at these camps and essentially giving newcomers the low-down on how the organization conducts its business and what the Flyers expect of a player who might someday represent them at the NHL level.

“When you watch practices, that’s what it’s about,” Flyers coach Dave Hakstol said. “It’s the little parts of the game that you have to work at and have to do it consistently, not just this week, but these guys have to do these things consistently as they’re working hard to develop and improve their skills that allow them to become better players.”

It’s not an evaluation, says general manager Ron Hextall, but a preparation for the future.

“The one thing we stress before this camp, this is not an evaluation camp,” Hextall said. “We’re not here to evaluate the young players. We’re here to watch the young players. Our coaches are here to help the young players.

“We encourage them to ask the coaches how to improve in this area or that area. It’s a week of teaching. Teaching how to be a pro.”

They establish a foundation of how things are done in the so-called “Flyers way.” They teach them nutrition and life skills, giving them an offseason training regimen and placing them on a regimented schedule that they hope carries over when they return to their junior, AHL or college teams in the fall.

“Essentially, what you are trying to do is make them become pros sooner,” Hextall said. “I know during my day, by the time the guy was 24 or 25, he was a pro. Why leave two, three or four years go by when at a younger age, the lessons they learn from these guys are huge?”

So they begin now and push the learning curve for 18-year-olds and up. Hextall wishes he had been exposed to this early in his career as a Flyer.

Back in the 1980s, there were no development camps.

“I told Clarkie (Bob Clarke) when I came into camp in 1982, I was in terrible shape,” Hextall recalled. “I didn’t know it. I thought I’d be in the best shape of anybody. These kids now, they need every tool to get themselves in shape to improve on the ice, improve off the ice.

“If they don’t want to improve, it’s up to them. If they take what they learn here and go back with it and be reminded of it, they have every tool here to be better players.”

When they leave here, various members of the organization will follow through with them periodically over the next season via e-mails to ensure they stick with the program, so to speak.

“They can’t just leave here and be left alone,” Hextall said. “They have to continue to learn here, otherwise it goes for naught. Summer is the time to teach. During the season, they are stubborn. They don’t want to change, they want to win the next game. ...

“This is the time to do it and keep these habits going."

In a few years, the Flyers will know whether they have an NHL player on their hands. For now, it’s just the start.

“To see the kids on the ice, it’s a really good group of kids,” Hextall said. “A lot of high-end kids. We’re excited about our group and building and drafting and developing. This is the front end of it. It’s exciting for us.”

Contact Us