Flyers recall center Morgan Frost with Scott Laughton out indefinitely with a concussion

Two days after calling up top prospect Cam York, the Flyers recalled another of their top young players, Morgan Frost, from the Phantoms on Friday.

The decision to call up Frost comes after center Scott Laughton left Thursday’s game against the Florida Panthers with what interim coach Mike Yeo confirmed Friday was a concussion.

“He’s concussed. Yeah. Obviously, I think you guys saw that. It’s a pretty tough hit to watch,” said Yeo. “Tough for all the players, especially because he’s so well-liked by all the players and he’s been playing so well for us, so it’s a tough one.”

Laughton was injured in the second period after awkwardly hitting the boards following a hip check from Panthers defenseman Petteri Lindbohm. Yeo said it was too early to provide any timeline on when Laughton could return.

“Every player and every injury, like when you’re dealing with a concussion, is totally different,” said Yeo. “I know Laughts does have a history from when he was younger. But that said, he was feeling better after the game last night. So let’s hope that it’s a quick turnaround, but obviously, you want to be smart when you’re dealing with head injuries.”

» READ MORE: Flyers recall top prospect Cam York

Frost, 22, has yo-yo’d between the Flyers and the Phantoms all season long, and was most recently optioned to the Phantoms on Feb. 28. Frost has two goals, seven points, and a minus-10 rating in 30 games this season with the Flyers. With the Phantoms, he had six goals and 19 points in 24 games. Yeo is excited to see how Frost has progressed since his demotion.

“Another good opportunity for Frosty. I felt that he was doing some good things. Went down, got some games, and now there’s a great opportunity for him here with Laughts going out,” said Yeo. “There’s going be some ice time that hopefully he can take advantage of. When he was up here earlier, we had a lot more guys out. Losing Laughts hurts, but at the same time, we’ve got some guys back. Might give us a chance to kind of surround Frosty with some good players and see what he can do.”

The young center, who somewhat surprisingly didn’t make the Flyers out of camp, made his season debut with the Flyers on Nov. 24 and played 10 games before entering into COVID-19 protocols. After clearing protocols and playing 16 more games with the big club, Frost was optioned to the Phantoms just prior to the All-Star break so that he could continue playing games while the NHL was on pause.

He was not recalled again by the Flyers until Feb. 15, and played four games for the Phantoms since his last demotion on Feb. 28. After sending Frost down the last time, Yeo pointed to Frost’s development as the reason.

“This is what’s right for Morgan,” Yeo said. “There’s no question that this is what’s right. There’s a good chance that he could end up back in our lineup very soon.”

Frost, a skilled offensive player, has been working hard on fine-tuning the other areas of his game, namely his responsibilities as a center in the defensive zone. Yeo said Frost has been a model professional despite the shuttling back and forth between the two leagues and believes playing big minutes may have helped him with his confidence.

“From when I talked to Lappy [Phantoms head coach Ian Laperrière], his attitude’s been outstanding,” said Yeo. “You know, it’s — obviously, you want to stay in the NHL, but at the same time, I think young players, they know that there’s a process to becoming a full-time player. And this is a tough league. And so I think that he totally embraced the opportunity to go down there to get the ice time, to make the most of his situation.

“And again, I think that he’ll be in a real good position coming into the game tomorrow and giving him a good chance to have success.”

Yeo said he was still working through a few different scenarios and hadn’t settled on which line and with whom Frost will play with Saturday against the Carolina Hurricanes.

To make room for Frost, the Flyers option Max Willman to the Phantoms. Willman, who has appeared in 34 games with the Flyers (two goals, four points), had played in only two game since Feb. 22, including last Saturday’s 4-3 win over the Chicago Blackhawks.