Emil Andrae makes a strong final case, Alexei Kolosov struggles in goal in Flyers’ preseason win over Devils

It was a tradition unlike any other.

Except it wasn’t.

The grand finale of the preseason is notoriously an opportunity for teams to suit up their opening night roster for one last dress rehearsal. But with their opponent, the New Jersey Devils, in Prague to open the season with the NHL Global Series on Friday, the Flyers did not send out their usuals.

In a matchup of Metropolitan Division rivals, it was more like a battle between the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and Utica Comets. The Flyers only dressed four guys expected to break camp: Garnet Hathaway, Noah Cates, Erik Johnson, and Ivan Fedotov. The Devils dressed a handful too, like Kevin Labanc.

» READ MORE: Sam Ersson keeping the same ‘earn it’ mentality despite now being the Flyers’ No. 1 goalie

Here are our observations from the Flyers’ 5-4 win against the Devils.

Sam Ersson’s backup, Fedotov, got some work in. He faced just eight shots over the first half of the game, with four coming in each period. He did allow one goal, a one-timer from Comets captain Ryan Schmelzer. According to Natural Stat Trick, Fedotov did not face a single high-danger shot but saw five from the mid-range.

“I’m not a goaltender, but I would imagine, the more situations that you feel the puck, that you’re going to get more involved in the game,said assistant coach Darryl Williams, who was serving as head coach. ”I thought he did a good job in staying involved in the game, and he played good right up until he exited the game.”

Fedotov split the game with Alexei Kolosov and, after an impressive debut on Monday where he allowed one goal on eight shots, the Belarusian let three slip past him on 14 shots Thursday night. Kolosov entered the game midway through the middle frame, after interestingly spending the first half of the game on the bench with his mask on. Each goal was off the stick of Labanc, who is on a professional tryout with New Jersey. Two of the goals he allowed were mid-danger shots — out of the four he saw — and the other was a low-danger shot he should have saved.

“I couldn’t imagine going across a couple of oceans and seas and playing in a different country and not knowing the language very well, the systems, the ice sheet, so you got to give those guys a lot of credit,” defenseman Erik Johnson said. “And, you know, it can be scary for them, but a lot of kids grow up and dream of playing the NHL; it’s no different for them. So give them a lot of credit for coming over and working hard and doing the best they can. It can’t be easy, so lots of respect for them for what they do.”

Speaking of Johnson, the veteran defenseman was the elder statesman in the game — for both teams — and notched a power-play assist.

“I hope [John Tortorella] and Danny [Brière] are watching, because that’s another power-play point for me. So [Matvei] Michkov should probably watch his back. I could take some of his time on the top unit,” Johnson quipped. “So I hope they’re all watching for that because I’m pushing for that spot.”

Winger Olle Lycksell continues to state his case as a guy who should hop on the plane west. The forward, playing in his fifth game — the Flyers have played seven preseason games total — notched his second goal and fourth point. Devils goalie Isaac Poulter couldn’t control a bobbling puck in his crease and Lycksell corralled it and scored on the backhand around his pad.

Emil Andrae continued to impress and stake his claim as the Flyers’ eighth defenseman. One day after coach John Tortorella said the defenseman “has quietly gone about his business and has had a good camp,” Andrae notched a goal and two assists. He gave the Flyers a 3-2 lead, scoring from the top of the left faceoff circle. In the third period, he feathered a beautiful cross-ice pass from the left point to Anthony Richard in the right circle for a one-timer on the power play. Richard also collected a goal and two assists in the game.

“I’ve been getting a lot of exhibition games, and I feel like I had a good camp,” Andrae said. “Coming in every day, and trying to be my best and compete every day. So I feel like I had a good camp.”

Tortorella said the No. 8 spot in the depth chart on defense is “wide-open,” but Andrae is an obvious candidate. He broke camp with the Flyers last season and got a four-game audition before joining Lehigh Valley. Andrae’s not looking too far ahead to Monday when rosters are due.

“I don’t really think about it, to be honest,” he said. “I was just being in the moment. Was the last exhibition game, and I know that, but just trying to go out there like a normal game and play my best and think I did a pretty good job.”

» READ MORE: Flyers maintain high hopes for prospect Emil Andrae’s future: ‘He’s a special package’

Noah Cates told The Inquirer on Wednesday that he worked during the summer on his play around the net and “getting pucks off quick.” Well, Andrae and Richard got the assist on a quick-shot goal by Cates from the slot. Andrae fed Cates, who had a back-and-forth with Richard before burying it on a power play. Tortorella said on Wednesday, “We need to try to unlock him a little bit in trying to create some offense, too.” It may be too early to say mission accomplished but it’s a start with his first goal of the preseason.

During development and rookie camps, Sawyer Boulton said he learned from his dad. On Thursday, he proved it. The son of former NHL enforcer Eric Boulton dropped the gloves not once, but twice with Devils tough guy Samuel Laberge. The younger Boulton, who signed a deal with Lehigh Valley in the summer, got dropped quickly and earned a cut in the first fight, but fared better in the second — although he got two penalty minutes for instigating, five for fighting, and a 10-minute misconduct.

“It’s funny. It’s scary when you see him fighting. But, yeah, he does it a lot and he accepts his role,” said defenseman Oliver Bonk, who played last season with Boulton in London, Ontario. “So it’s good to see him fight.”

» READ MORE: Flyers’ Noah Cates is looking to unlock more offense: ‘We want to try to get him out of his comfort area’

Bonk finished with two assists in what was likely his final game before returning to junior. … Hunter McDonald dropped the gloves and fought Nathan Légaré. … JR Avon had an impressive game, showing off his speed. He notched a flashy goal in the second on the power play when he streaked down the right side and cut across the crease to finish.

The Flyers preseason is a wrap. They have a few more practices in Voorhees — Friday, Monday, and Tuesday — before the start of the NHL season. The first game, and the one where Matvei Michkov makes his NHL debut, is Oct. 11 against the Vancouver Canucks (10 p.m., NBCSP).