Rookie camp feels a lot different for Eric Wellwood this year. And not just because the 21-year-old left wings been to a couple of them in the past.
It seems like nobodys got a set-in-stone place, Wellwood said, referring to the Flyers roster. I mean, last year, youre not going to beat Mike Richards or Jeff Carter out of a spot on the team. But this year, it seems like theres going to be some more openings.
Although many spots on the roster are presumed to be filled, as Wellwood pointed out, at this point its all conjecture. For instance, Brayden Schenn may very well center one of the Flyers lines this seasonbut its also possible he might not.
Wellwood, who played three games with the Flyers last November before returning to the AHLs Adirondack Phantoms, probably wont start this season in the NHL. But hes already garnered an invite to the full Flyers training camp, which starts at the end of this week.
That, and the knowledge that the Flyers lines are anything but set for this year, has helped push him to work hard during the off-season and, now, at camp. Hes not alone.
Youre not going into camp just going to practice, Wellwood said. Youre going in to make the team. It seems like theres some opportunities to make the team, and thats exciting. Now you want to put your best game out every day.
Last season, the Flyers top three lines were pretty much set from Day 1. Players like Wellwood and Zac Rinaldo were pleased to get invites to training camp, but with guys like Carter, Richards, Ville Leino and Dan Carcillo holding on to roster spots, they didnt have much of a chance to go further with the club.
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As Wellwood said repeatedly, last season, rookies felt like they were practicing just to practicethat there was no meaning attached to whether they performed above expectations. Returning players were already practicing as an exclusive group.
Not so, this season.
You go right through our third and fourth lines, and theres going to be a lot of competition, Scott Hartnell said. Even our top two lines. I dont think anythings set in stone. Someone stumbles out of the gate, and someone has a great startits a good thing to have.
A number of players, from Hartnell to Wellwood, acknowledged the feeling of excitement surrounding rookie camp and the approach of training camp. The Flyers practice facility is a very different place now from what it was a year ago.
I think probably you sense it more with the older guys who have been training here, as opposed to, for me anyway, the younger guys who are here now for the rookie camp, said general manager Paul Holmgren. But I think a lot of the rookies know too, from Wellwood to Rinaldo, that group thats been here for a little bit of time.
With that in mind, it should come as no surprise that this years rookie campnow two days oldhas a pace much quicker and seemingly more intense than last years. Accordingly, a few skaters have already made an impression on Holmgren. He mentioned Wellwood, Rinaldo and Tyler Brown by name.
This year is completely different, coach Peter Laviolette said on Monday. There is a lot of new faces. Theres a lot of new players to look at. In that first exhibition game, when we go to Toronto, were going to be looking at so many different possibilities of players that could make our club, its completely different from what its been in the past.
The uncertainly extends from empty roster spots to roles that need to be filled by veterans, too. With players like Darroll Powe and Richards gone, there are already needs on special teams. Someoneor someoneswill have to step up.
Even within the organization and guys that pretty much know theyre going to be here, theres opportunity for minutes and power play and penalty kill, Laviolette said. So camp really has a lot of meaning this year, a lot of value, a lot of stock.
Hartnell, who said he expects a bigger, better year for himself, knows it, too.
Its exciting, Hartnell said. You get that feeling that everyones fighting for jobs, so its going to be a competitive camp.
E-mail Sarah Baicker at sbaicker@comcastsportsnet.com