Patrick Williams, TheAHL.com Features Writer
The Philadelphia Flyers have been aggressive about retooling the organization’s NHL roster after missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs five years in a row. There’s a hunger to put a halt to that slide.
That philosophy has extended to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, who are off to a 12-8-1-2 start in the always-demanding Atlantic Division. The team has already used 13 defensemen through the first two months of the season, including one first-round pick who made his pro debut last weekend. Flyers assistant general manager Alyn McCauley, whose file involves running Lehigh Valley’s day-to-day affairs, has been busy.
Start with that first-rounder, Oliver Bonk. The 20-year-old, who came to the Flyers as the 22nd overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, spent three seasons in the Ontario Hockey League with the London Knights and won the Memorial Cup last season. But an upper-body injury put a halt to his training camp and delayed the start of his pro career until Saturday, when he drew into first-year head coach John Snowden’s lineup for the first time.
On Oct. 30, the Flyers acquired Christian Kyrou from the Dallas Stars for forward Samu Tuomaala, a deal that enabled a fresh start for the second-round picks. Kyrou is a right-handed shot who had shown some potential with the Texas Stars across parts of three seasons, and he has emerged with 14 points and a plus-7 rating in his first 15 games with the Phantoms.
Clearly the Flyers are looking for players like Kyrou, prospects they think they can draw more from inside their organization. They acquired 24-year-old puck-moving blueliner Maxence Guenette from Ottawa on Nov. 17 in exchange for Dennis Gilbert; if Guenette’s development arc had perhaps run its course with the Senators, maybe a new setting can unlock something in his game. His Phantoms debut came on Sunday at Hershey.
Then earlier this week, Philadelphia picked up 22-year-old Roman Schmidt from Tampa Bay, sending Ethan Samson to the Lightning. As with Kyrou and Guenette, the Flyers are targeting potential; Schmidt, chosen by Tampa Bay in the third round of the 2021 NHL Draft, is a second-year pro who, at 6-foot-5 and 225 pounds, brings ample size to the Phantoms as well.
Blend these newcomers with Lehigh Valley’s existing collection of defensemen, and the Phantoms have themselves a group creating strong internal competition for ice time on the back end. Helge Grans, who is 23 and who got a two-year contract extension last spring, is the only Phantom defender to appear in all 23 games so far. Emil Andrae, Adam Ginning and rookie Ty Murchison – who made his NHL debut this week – have all seen time with the Flyers. Sixth-round pick Hunter McDonald is back after a solid 2024-25 rookie campaign.
Snowden and his coaching staff have a favorable upcoming schedule for integrating Bonk and Schmidt further into their lineup. That means minimal travel and lots of practice time. After a trip to Syracuse and Rochester this weekend, the Phantoms are home until after New Year’s. Time will tell how many of these prospects pan out as NHL options in Philadelphia. Development is an unpredictable, sometimes inexplicable process. But the combination of president of hockey operations Keith Jones and general manager Daniel Briere – both of whom cut their teeth as players in the AHL before going on to NHL careers – has put considerable investment into Philadelphia’s development program. They have drafted, but they also have been aggressive working the phones to import talent as well via trades.
The Flyers are right in the Eastern Conference playoff battle. In the AHL, the Phantoms have themselves third in the Atlantic Division and looking every bit a playoff team come April. The next four-plus months will reveal whether the Phantoms make the playoff cut. It will show what Philadelphia’s future could look like as well.
On the American Hockey League beat for two decades, TheAHL.com features writer Patrick Williams also currently covers the league for NHL.com and FloSports and is a regular contributor on SiriusXM NHL Network Radio. He was the recipient of the AHL’s James H. Ellery Memorial Award for his outstanding coverage of the league in 2016.