Denver Barkey sits out Flyers rookie camp as he recovers from mononucleosis

In front of a packed house — and a balcony full of scouts, coaches, and management — the Flyers rookies were back at it in Voorhees on Sunday.

Everyone was accounted for at the Flyers Training Center except for Samu Tuomaala and Denver Barkey after the rookies played a pair of games against their New York Rangers counterparts.

Tuomaala, who scored the game-winner in overtime on Saturday night, is day to day. According to assistant general manager Brent Flahr, the forward is a bit banged up from the games. It is unrelated to the undisclosed injury he suffered at the end of last season, Flahr said.

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Barkey, however, has not participated in any practices or games during rookie camp as he continues to recover from mononucleosis. According to the Mayo Clinic, the disease, which is caused by the Epstein-Barr virus, can cause fatigue and an enlarged spleen.

”My energy’s come back” said Barkey, who was diagnosed about three weeks ago in Canada. “Obviously, the first couple of weeks I was, you know, pretty fatigued and tired, and I’ve slowly been working back, just working out and the tempo of my workouts, stuff like that.

“Yeah, watching practices, you know, it’s not fun. And then watching the games, you kind of go really crazy. You just want to get out there and be a part of it and have fun. So, I’m just kind of trying to work to get back at it and taking it day by day.”

Having to sit out shouldn’t hinder Barkey’s development, despite losing weight and stalling his training. The forward, who is expected to head back to London of the Ontario Hockey League in the fall, said he gained about 15 pounds during the summer. He then lost about 10 pounds over the last few weeks due to the virus but has gained about five back.

“Our goal for him in camp here is just to build him back up, strength-wise, energy-wise, and before he leaves here, make sure he’s 100%,” Flahr said. “So, I hope at some point before the end of camp that he’ll be able to participate with the big guys.” Flyers training camp begins Wednesday, with the first on-ice session on Thursday.

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Flahr thinks Barkey will be cleared for contact at the end of the week but said the Flyers don’t need to rush him back. “I don’t need to see him do [coach John Tortorella’s] skate or anything,” Flahr said with a laugh. Tortorella’s lid-lifter to camp, a test that involves a rope laid on the ice as players skate around it multiple times, is legendary — and dreaded.

When Barkey does get back on the ice, the 19-year-old is expected to have a big season. Last season was a breakout one for the 5-foot-9, 156-pound forward who scored 35 goals and 102 points for the Knights. He was just at Hockey Canada’s Summer Showcase and is determined to “prove to them that I deserve to be on the team this year,” he said at Flyers development camp. Barkey was among the last cuts for the 2024 world junior squad.

Although he did skate with Patrick Sharp on Saturday to shake off some rust, Barkey watched the two games intently. It is something Tortorella should like. The Flyers bench boss often mentioned last season how important it is for youngsters to see the game from a different perspective and pick up little things from above the action.

“I think there’s a lot of different styles of play and different players that I got to watch,” Barkey said. “You can kind of take little bits and parts of their games, and just watch some of the little things they do and try to implement it in my game. It does [stink] watching, but I find that I learn a lot watching and watching certain players and just the little things they do as well.”

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And did he watch Matvei Michkov? Of course.

“It’s pretty cool. He’s a special player,” Barkey said. “Obviously, really talented, and a lot of hype around his name. So it was pretty cool to finally watch him in person, and see what he’s all about.”

Carter Sotheran was back on the ice Sunday. The defenseman was held out of the first day of rookie camp and the two-game series as he underwent tests for a heart condition. Sotheran said he was diagnosed with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, a rare congenital condition that can cause a rapid heart rate, about four years ago. He was a full participant at practice, including a series of skating drills similar to the aforementioned rope test. ... Sawyer Boulton knocked Alexis Gendron off his skates with a button hook during a two-on-two drill. The tough guy, who scored in Saturday night’s win, then ripped off a shot past Carson Bjarnason. Everyone watching, from the fans to his buddies on the ice, went wild.