VOORHEES, N.J.Oliver Lauridsen has seen it all before.
The towering, 6-foot-6 defenseman has arrived at Skate Zone every July since 2009 to attend Flyers prospect camplonger than any other current participant. Now in his fourth year, he remembers playing alongside James van Riemsdyk and Sean Couturier, and what summers here were like well before Ian Laperriere took the reins as the programs lead coach.
He may be a prospect camp pro at this point, but Lauridsen still hopes to gain something out of this weeks proceedings.
Theres always something you can learn, he said. The coaching staff weve got around this camp is amazing. Theyve gotwhat, 5,000 NHL games combined, I think. And you just listentheyll teach you something. It doesnt matter how old you are.
At 23, Lauridsen rather old by prospect camp standards. Hes the only remaining invitee from the 2009 draft (he was selected in the seventh round, 196th overall) and has been around so long, in fact, hes become somewhat of a point person for new campers off-ice questions.
This year, he admits, its his turn to help take care of some of the younger attendees.
Theres a couple guys whove asked for advice, he said. Ive been here so long now that I kind of know whats going on. Obviously, they come and ask me for little details, but mostly if theres any hockey stuff, theyre going to go ask the coaches.
NHL
Lauridsen spent last season with the Adirondack Phantoms, the Flyers AHL affiliate. There, he scored three goals and four assists, completing his 65-game season with a minus-5 rating.
While trucking on through his year in Glens Falls, though, he watched as teammate after teammate was called up by the Flyers to spend time in the NHL. Four Phantoms defensemenErik Gustafsson, Marc-Andre Bourdon, Kevin Marshall and Brandon Manningspent time with the Flyers last season. But Lauridsens name was never called.
Obviously you want it to be yourself, but its nice to see that the organization is feeling comfortable calling up defensemen all the time, he said. So Im happy for the other guys that got the chance last year, and hopefully Im just going to go back and really do good work this year, and hopefully itll be me next time.
At this weeks camp, and certainly through the upcoming season, Lauridsen knows which aspects of his game he needs to improve: his quickness, his physicality, his consistency. But he has already benefited greatly already from the coaching of Kjell Samuelsson and Derian Hatcher, two players he realizes can offer him a great deal of assistance.
"He really improved with the coaching staff with the Phantoms as a hockey player," said Ian Laperriere, the Flyers' director of player development. "His work ethic has always been there. If you talk to Phantoms assistant coach Riley Cote, hes going to say hes the hardest worker on the team. Hes not the most skilled guy out there, but hes not a bad skater for a big guy. But he works at it.
"Just say, 'I dont have good hands,' and you dont do anything about it, thats your fault. But hes got the other approach'Well, maybe I dont have the smoothest hands, but Ill work at it.' If he doesnt make it, it wont be a lack of effort. But Im a big believer that hes got a big shot of making it to the NHL."
With an already stacked defensethe Flyers may carry eight blueliners on their roster in 2012-13Lauridsen faces an uphill battle if he hopes to make his NHL debut at some point this season. But in the final year of his entry-level contract, he also knows he has a lot to play for.
"I dont know if hell make the NHL, but hes putting every effort to make it, on and off the ice," Laperriere said. "Ive got a lot of respect for guys like that. Im sure hes going to have a chance at one point. Is he going to be an NHL player for 20 years? Who knows.
"But at the end of the day, hes going to go through life and say, 'Im giving my best shot to make it,' and Ive got a lot of respect for guys like that."
E-mail Sarah Baicker at sbaicker@comcastsportsnet.com