Matvei Michkov, Travis Konecny headline Flyers training camp roster ahead of Thursday’s first on-ice session
The Flyers will have 58 players in camp, including Michkov and 2024 first-rounder Jett Luchanko. Goalie prospect Alexei Kolosov is notably not present.
One more sleep until it’s officially hockey season.
The Flyers released their full training camp roster and schedule Tuesday morning, one day before John Tortorella and the Orange and Black embark on a journey they hope ends with a return to the playoffs for the first time since 2019-20. Expectations are high on Broad Street after a promising 2023-24 campaign and the offseason arrival of top prospect Matvei Michkov.
The rookie Michkov headlines a group of 58 players — 32 forwards, 20 defensemen, and six goalies — who will report to the Flyers Training Center in Voorhees on Wednesday for physical testing and then hit the ice for the first time on Thursday. All the usual suspects are present, with Michkov joined in the forward group by captain Sean Couturier, speedster Owen Tippett, and All-Star winger Travis Konecny, fresh off his new eight-year, $70 million contract extension.
Jett Luchanko, the team’s first-round pick in June also is on the roster, as are players like Samu Tuomaala, Elliot Desnoyers, and Massimo Rizzo, who are trying to break through and earn an opening-night roster spot. Latvian center Rodrigo Ābols, 28, and 6-foot-4 Swedish winger Oscar Eklind, 26, who were signed as European free agents, also are worth keeping an eye on. London Knights center and 2023 third-rounder Denver Barkey, who is recovering from mononucleosis, is not on the roster.
Defensively, Cam York, Travis Sanheim, and Nick Seeler headline a fairly deep group that is expected to get Rasmus Ristolainen and Jamie Drysdale back from injury. With the top five seemingly set, plus Erik Johnson a lock to make the team as a veteran, Egor Zamula, Emil Andrae, Ronnie Attard, Adam Ginning, Helge Grans, and Hunter McDonald figure to compete for the final few roster spots on the blue line. Top defensive prospect Oliver Bonk also is in camp before he is expected to rejoin London of the Ontario Hockey League, while 2024 second-rounder Spencer Gill and 2023 fifth-rounder Carter Sotheran (heart condition) also will participate.
In net, the biggest news is that Alexei Kolosov is not present. All signs in recent weeks pointed to Kolosov, who reportedly was homesick, not reporting for camp. Starter Sam Ersson and Ivan Fedotov enter 2024-25 as the mostly nailed-down 1-2 pairing, while prospect Carson Bjarnason will continue his development with the Brandon Wheat Kings of the Western Hockey League after a few weeks at camp.
» READ MORE: Goalie prospect Alexei Kolosov will not report to Flyers training camp, as his future here remains uncertain
The Flyers’ first on-ice session, which consists of Tortorella’s lap skating test, is Thursday. For Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, the players will be broken into three smaller groups for both on-ice and off-ice sessions. The full preseason schedule can be found here.
The Orange and Black’s first of seven preseason games is Sunday at Washington (3 p.m.), and fans won’t get their first preseason glimpse of Michkov at the Wells Fargo Center until Sept. 26 (7 p.m.). The team opens the regular season on the road in Vancouver against the Canucks on Oct. 11 (10 p.m.) and doesn’t play its first home game until Oct. 19, also against the Canucks.
Full training camp roster (alphabetical order)
Forwards (32): Rodrigo Ābols, J.R. Avon, Sawyer Boulton, Bobby Brink, Nick Capone, Noah Cates, Sean Couturier, Nicolas Deslauriers, Elliot Desnoyers, Oscar Eklind, Joel Farabee, Tyson Foerster, Morgan Frost, Brendan Furry, Rhett Gardner, Jacob Gaucher, Alexis Gendron, Garnet Hathaway, Travis Konecny, Scott Laughton, Jett Luchanko, Olle Lycksell, Cooper Marody, Matvei Michkov, Matt Miller, Ryan Poehling, Anthony Richard, Massimo Rizzo, Owen Tippett, Samu Tuomaala, Zayde Wisdom, and Josh Zakreski.
Defenseman (20): Emil Andrae, Ronnie Attard, Louie Belpedio, Oliver Bonk, Émile Chouinard, Jamie Drysdale, Spencer Gill, Adam Ginning, Helge Grans, Erik Johnson, Matteo Mann, Hunter McDonald, Rasmus Ristolainen, Ethan Samson, Travis Sanheim, Sam Sedley, Nick Seeler, Carter Sotheran, Cam York, and Egor Zamula.
Goaltenders (6): Carson Bjarnason, Samuel Ersson, Ivan Fedotov, Sam Hillebrandt, Eetu Mäkiniemi, and Cal Petersen.