Flyers draft pick Jack Berglund puts his ‘big frame’ to use at development camp

Jack Berglund likes to play like Joel Eriksson Ek and Mikko Rantanen. Two NHL veterans anyone would want to emulate — and have on the Flyers.

Selected with the 51st pick in the draft, the Swedish center is a big guy at 6-foot-3, 209 pounds who has strong hockey sense and is strong on the puck, whether down low or protecting it from the opposition. As he said on Wednesday, “I have a big frame. Why wouldn’t you use it?”

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A big personality, Berglund has some NHL pedigree as his father, Christian, played with the Florida Panthers and New Jersey Devils. The younger Berglund spent the majority of the past season playing for Färjestad BK’s under-20 team, totaling 35 points (16 goals, 19 assists) in a combined 42 regular-season and playoff games before joining the under-18 team. After one regular-season game, when he scored twice, he notched eight goals and nine assists in nine playoff games.

Known to be a two-way player, Berglund showcased a quick shot and some smarts at Flyers development camp, but he does need to work on his skating — which he acknowledged and called “the worst part of my game.” But, as Berglund said, he has other tools in the toolbox, so once he gets his skating up to par, his game will take off.

“It starts off the ice … to do the work that I have to do,” said Berglund, who turned 18 in April. “For me, it’s more quickness and explosiveness that I have to do to get faster out there. And, of course, skating as well on the ice and I’ve great help from that. But it’s up to me really about how good I want to be, so just trying to put in the work and get faster every day.”

One day after saying that “everything is good now,” Massimo Rizzo did not skate Wednesday in the drills portion of development camp but was a full participant during his group’s skills session. Acquired in a deal with the Carolina Hurricanes last summer, Rizzo got banged up in February and missed two months with a lower-body injury at the University of Denver.

The center finished with 44 points and a career-high 34 assists in 30 games and returned to help Denver beat Boston University and then Boston College in the Frozen Four. Rizzo signed his entry-level contract and joined Lehigh Valley in April but did not play a game.

“The later part of his season there with Denver, he was dealing with a high ankle sprain,” said Nick Schultz, the Flyers’ assistant director of player development. “Kind of played through it, came back, reinjured it, and then he obviously played in the championship, the Frozen Four when they won it.

“Came to Lehigh after that, and same thing. He’s been back skating. He’s completely healthy and fine, but right now for development camp to have him go through drills and practice, we want him to be ready for the start of the season. … So he’s just going to not do the practice sessions, and he won’t do the scrimmage. So just kind of have him around the camp.”

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Drafted in the fifth round in 2023, defenseman Carter Sotheran totaled 40 points, including 13 goals, in 66 games last season for a good Portland team in the Western Hockey League. He added another four goals and 11 points as the Winterhawks went to the WHL final.

“I think just being reliable all around,” Sotheran, who turned 19 last week, said when asked how his game has progressed in the last year. “Being able to play wherever the coach needs me. As a shutdown guy or jump in on the power play, whatever it is, just be ready for whatever.”

Schultz said this is a big year for the 6-foot-4, 199-pound blueliner.

“The biggest thing with junior-age players, we only have a couple of years to work with them, then they’ve got to make a decision,” Schultz said. “Having only 50 contracts, management has to make decisions on who we are keeping and who we’re not keeping, so it’s going to be a big year for him this year. We’re going to have to work with him, watch him this year, and see how he progresses throughout the year.

“He’s a big kid, big right shot, and he put up some points this year. With the way the Flyers are playing now, we’ve got to pick up his pace a little bit, get him skating a little bit more, a little more active, a little more involved in his checking and getting up ice and establishing those gaps. But that’s just transition from junior to pro hockey, a lot of those details and habits. He’s definitely another good draft pick for us, a later pick that it’s exciting for us to continue to work with these kids and try to push them to sign a pro contract.”

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First-round pick Jett Luchanko showed off the, well, jets on Wednesday. The players started working through drills, including full ice, and he showed off his quick starts and strides. … Lehigh Valley has signed forward Sawyer Boulton to a two-year American Hockey League contract through the 2025-26 season. Boulton, who turns 20 on July 12, is the son of former NHL enforcer Eric Boulton and was a teammate of Denver Barkey and Oliver Bonk this past season in London, Ontario. He is at development camp. … Emile Chouinard, a camp invite who plays defense for Baie-Comeau of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League, went down hard during a drill. He grabbed his right leg but was able to skate off under his own power and stayed on the bench.