Tyson Foerster looks to be in a good spot as Flyers show forward lines for the first time at training camp

Line combinations on what essentially was the first day of training camp — Thursday’s opening day featured no pucks on the ice, just a bag skate — mean about as much as who plays well in a meaningless rookie game, which is to say they’re not entirely useless, but a lot can change over the course of the next week or two.

This brings us to Tyson Foerster, the 21-year-old Flyers prospect who got a brief taste of the NHL at the end of last season and had three goals and four assists in eight games.

Last weekend, during two rookie games in Allentown, Foerster didn’t quite look the part of a prospect ready to make a push and make the NHL roster, and Phantoms coach Ian Laperrière didn’t mince his words when talking about the play of Foerster and other “top” forward prospects Elliot Desnoyers and Bobby Brink.

A few days later, assistant GM Brent Flahr eased the criticism when he said it was the NHL camp, not rookie camp or rookie games, that will decide where players end up.

» READ MORE: Flyers hopeful Tyson Foerster already showing NHL ‘swagger’ at rookie camp

Which brings us to Friday morning, when Flyers forwards lined up with teammates in scrimmages. Foerster, it appears, is going to be given every chance to make the club, and, if Friday is any indication, it’s likely his spot to lose.

Foerster lined up on what would appear to be the Flyers’ third line, on the right side with Noah Cates at center and Scott Laughton on the other wing.

Foerster, a first-round pick in 2020 who tallied 48 points in 66 games with the Phantoms last season, made his presence felt right away Friday morning. He scored a goal seconds into the first of two scrimmages and later leveled Travis Konecny with a big hit.

“I love that stuff,” Konecny said afterward. “I would have done the same thing. It’s a guy trying to make the team.”

» READ MORE: Sean Couturier passes first ‘test,’ up next is playing games, and he wants to play a lot

Flyers coach John Tortorella said he wasn’t paying attention to who was scoring goals in the two scrimmages — “I watch a lot of other things,” he said — but said that Foerster is “coming along.”

Foerster did briefly go down and appeared to be favoring his right shoulder after crashing into the boards during the second scrimmage of the day, but he was checked out and returned.

Konecny, who scored a career-high 31 goals last year, was injured last season when Foerster made his NHL debut, but he liked what he saw.

“It was eye-opening,” Konecny said of Foerster. “Like, oh wow, we have a stud here that’s just coming up to prove himself for a few games and making a big impact on our team.”

Joel Farabee, who housed Foerster for part of the offseason, said Foerster was one of the best players on the ice Friday.

Farabee also mentioned where Foerster is as a pro ... and a cook. The young forward cooked for Farabee a few times over the summer.

“Where I was at that age vs. him, he’s a lot more mature,” Farabee said.

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Again, take these with the seriousness that line combinations deserve on Day 1, but here’s how Flyers forwards lined up Friday morning:

Konecny and Tippett flip-flopped from time to time, and Tortorella said he wants to see Tippett on the left side early in camp.

There weren’t too many other surprises from the line combinations, but it was a bit revealing to see where Allison was slotted. Allison, 25, played 60 NHL games last season and tallied 15 points.

“He improved as the year went on last year,” Tortorella said.

Tortorella said it’s a big camp for Allison, especially considering the current logjam of players at right wing.

“He’s in a dogfight,” Tortorella said. “Just do the math. I think he knows that, and I hope he accepts the challenge and sees where it goes.”

» READ MORE: Flyers ‘not tanking,’ says Danny Brière, but how will the rebuild impact roster decisions?

The struggles Travis Sanheim endured for large chunks of last season make a bit more sense now. The defenseman said he fractured his foot while playing for Canada in the semifinal game of the 2022 World Championships. He said the injury didn’t linger, but it impacted how he was able to train in the offseason heading into last year.

Sanheim, whose eight-year, $50 million contract extension starts this season, said he declined to go to Worlds this summer.

“I thought it was best this year to try to have a good summer,” Sanheim said. “With how the year went, I wanted to come back and be ready to go.”

The Flyers on Friday announced their local broadcast schedule for the season, which included the official announcement that former Flyers forward Todd Fedoruk is replacing Steve Coates as the analyst on the radio team next to play-by-play man Tim Saunders. Coates retired after 43 seasons.

NBC Sports Philadelphia will have coverage of 73 games, including three preseason games. NBC recently announced that Brian Boucher, a former Flyers goalie, will join television play-by-play announcer Jim Jackson as the analyst, replacing Keith Jones, who of course now is the president of hockey operations. Boucher will continue to have national television duties with the network, and Scott Hartnell is expected to fill in for Boucher in those circumstances.

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