Flyers roundtable: Analyzing the Cam York decision, the roster battles to watch ahead of opening night

After a long and eventful offseason, only six more sleeps remain before the return of Flyers hockey. But before the Flyers officially open the curtain on the John Tortorella era on Oct. 13 against the New Jersey Devils at the Wells Fargo Center, there is plenty of work to be done.

With the roster now down to 34 players after Wednesday’s cuts, and several players battling injuries, Tortorella still has several decisions to make. Which positions are up for grabs? Which player could still play himself into an unlikely opening-night roster spot? Who will and won’t be available against the Devils?

» READ MORE: Projecting the Flyers’ opening-night roster after the latest round of cuts

With less than a week until the season opener, we asked Giana Han and Olivia Reiner to weigh in on the key questions surrounding the team.

GH: I am both extremely surprised and not surprised at all. York held his own at the NHL level last season, and general manager Chuck Fletcher spoke about how important he is to the team’s future. But he didn’t have a good camp and he didn’t rise to Tortorella’s challenge. If you want to shake things up, cut the top prospect. I believe the consistent playing time at the AHL can help him, and I’m sure being on a more competitive team won’t hurt either. I am, however, curious about what this will do for his confidence and his relationship with the coaching staff. Not every player responds well to Tortorella’s coaching style, and I can see how York’s chill personality would clash with a coach who is the definition of “no chill.”

OR: If you just read the outrage from certain corners of Flyers Twitter regarding the York transaction, you would think that he is being sent to Mars to play hopscotch instead of the AHL to play hockey. The Flyers hired Tortorella, in part, to introduce accountability to the locker room. This is what accountability looks like — Tortorella held York to a certain standard in camp, York didn’t meet that standard, and this is the consequence. York is not the first young defenseman who needed time to develop in the AHL before taking the full-time jump to the NHL. Just ask Travis Sanheim, another first-rounder who played nearly 100 AHL games over three seasons before sticking full-time with the Flyers in 2018-19. York will play top-pairing (and special- teams) minutes with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms instead of slotting in on the third pairing with the Flyers. He’ll be fine as long as he has the right attitude about the stint in Allentown, and he’ll probably be back in the NHL at some point this season. To quote Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, “R-E-L-A-X.”

GH: The battle for the third- and fourth-line center spots. The Flyers’ lack of depth at the position has carried over from last year with Sean Couturier’s back injury lingering, and having a new coach has evened the playing field for many players. Jackson Cates didn’t have the most impressive 2022 season, but he came back bigger and better and Tortorella knows only the new him. Healthy again, Tanner Laczynski is also making a case to be the fourth-line center on opening night. The third-line spot is interesting because Tortorella has been shuffling center Morgan Frost and winger Noah Cates around in different positions.

OR: I’m curious to see who wins the gig to back up Carter Hart. It seemed as though Felix Sandström was in the lead as preseason wore on (1.34 goals-against average and a .941 save percentage). But he hasn’t skated with the team since he suffered a lower-body injury on Oct. 1. Sandström could back up Hart once he’s fully healthy, but what happens until then? Will the Flyers give 22-year-old Samuel Ersson (1.47 GAA, .947 SV% in preseason) a chance, or will the opportunity fall to 33-year-old Troy Grosenick (4.14 GAA, .857 SV% in preseason)?

GH: Noah Cates has had the best camp by far. His performance at the end of the season hinted at his becoming a key player, and having seen him train over the summer, I’m not super surprised. While Noah’s camp has been the most impressive, his brother Jackson’s has been the most surprising. The new coaching staff, as well as people who watched him last year, have all commended Jackson for his improvement.

OR: Breakout is too strong a word to describe any of these training camp performances, but I was also impressed with Noah Cates’ consistency throughout the preseason. I wasn’t necessarily surprised, because he flashed his smarts with and without the puck last season in his 16-game stint with the Flyers. He does everything well. I’m eager to see how he fits in under Tortorella.

» READ MORE: ‘What outweighs the X’s and O’s is the will’: John Tortorella starting to install his system with Flyers

GH and OR: Cam Atkinson (upper body) participated in a rehab skate Wednesday and was not at practice Thursday. Meanwhile, Carter Hart (lower body), Travis Konecny (unknown), and Ivan Provorov (lower body) all participated in the full-contact practice. Konecny confirmed he injured himself in the Buffalo game and said he tweaked the injury later in practice. He, Provorov, and Hart all said they’ll be ready to go for the season opener. On another positive note, Farabee also participated in a full practice and said he’s feeling good. He has not been completely ruled out for the opener.

GH: How is this team going to respond to Tortorella? They’ve survived training camp (for the most part), but once games start meaning something, how will they react? If it goes well, then maybe I’ll get to watch some competitive hockey. If not, well, at least there’s still entertainment to be had.

OR: The make-or-break season for the “kids.” In my roster projection story on Thursday, I estimated that the Flyers could have six forwards on their opening-night roster who are 25 years old or younger. It’s finally time for players like Morgan Frost, Wade Allison, and Tanner Laczynski to prove that they are capable of making an impact consistently at the NHL level. Otherwise, it may be time for the Flyers to move on.