Five minutes with Flyers prospect Jackson Cates. Will we see him with the big club soon? | On the Fly
The Minnesota-Duluth center described himself as a 200-foot center who sees the ice well. He played in two Frozen Fours, winning the title in 2019.
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If the Flyers’ veterans are too exhausted or too disinterested to finish out the season, there’s a group of kids waiting to pounce on any morsels of ice time. The Inquirer caught up with one of those rookies a day after he turned pro.
The Flyers on Tuesday signed college free agent Jackson Cates, who played at Minnesota-Duluth, a college hockey powerhouse that has produced Matt Niskanen, Brett Hull and Noah Cates, among others. More on Noah in a minute.
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— Ed Barkowitz (flyers@inquirer.com)
Q&A with Jackson Cates
You could almost feel Jackson Cates’ exuberance as he talked about his decision to turn pro after three terrific seasons at the University of Minnesota-Duluth. (Well, 2 1/2 counting last year’s COVID-19 cancellations.)
Cates, the older brother of Flyers’ draft pick Noah Cates, agreed to a two-year, $1.85 million entry-level contract with the Flyers on Tuesday. He had 11 goals and 16 assists in 28 games for UMD this season. Twelve of his 27 points came on the power play.
Cates, 23, was practically bursting a few hours ahead of his flight to Philadelphia for the next stage of his life. Here’s a quick summary of a chat he had with The Inquirer.
Q: Ever been to Philadelphia before?
A: Yes. I was at the Flyers development camp [in Voorhees] two years ago.
Q: What was that like?
A: It was awesome. I got a feel for the organization, how they run things. I was fortunate enough to do it with my brother, Noah, who was drafted by Philadelphia.
Q: What’s the immediate plan for you?
A: I’m flying to Philly in a couple of hours [Wednesday night]. I have to quarantine for a few days, get tested, and then I’ll start skating with the Philadelphia Flyers. I’m excited for the challenge and this next chapter.
(Editor’s note: Jackson Cates will remain up with the Flyers for the remainder of the season, according to assistant general manager Brent Flahr. This leaves open the chance he could make his NHL debut this season.)
Q: What are you looking forward to the most?
A: Just excited to start this next chapter, get my feet wet. I want to soak it all in and learn as much as I can. I’m excited to give it my all and do whatever I can to help this organization.
Q: What’s it like playing in a five-overtime game? (Minnesota-Duluth beat North Dakota on March 27 to advance to the Frozen Four.)
A: That was probably the greatest game I’ve ever been part of. I was very proud of what the guys at Duluth were able to accomplish that game. There was so many crazy parts of that game.
Q: Like what?
A: For example, our goalie (Zach Stejskal) had to come out of the game because he was cramping so bad. So many guys missed shifts because they were cramping. There were so many pipes (goal posts hit). We had a goal called back in one of the overtimes. They scored twice in the final two minutes to tie it up in regulation after they pulled their goaltender. So many things you never see all happened in the same game. We were all just fighting to get to the next shift. It was a victory that I’ll never forget.
Q: What’s it like playing with your brother for 20 years?
A: It’s unreal just how far we’ve come from playing in the basement to high school to juniors to college and potentially at the next level is just a dream come true.
Q: Is Noah considering turning pro?
A: He’s still undecided. He’s 50-50.
Q: What’s the first thing you’re going to do with your signing bonus?
A: One, upgrade my wardrobe. Two, buy a car. [Balancing finances] is one of the many things I’m excited to learn about as I turn pro here.
Things to know
Mike Sielski reveals some truths about the Flyers that should be self-evident. Not all collapses are created equal. “For years, the Flyers clung to a kind of cultural stereotype: that they were the toughest, hardest-working team in the NHL. ... If that image got overplayed in the past, it doesn’t even apply now.”
“We certainly had much higher expectations than how we’ve played this year,” said general manager Chuck Fletcher -- and that was before Tuesday night’s game at Washington. The Flyers’ defense has been abysmal, and the offense has been even worse.
Old friend Jeff Carter, perhaps the Flyers’ last real sniper, is back on the East Coast following Monday’s trade to the Penguins. He finds it amusing that his first game with Sidney Crosby as a teammate will be against the Flyers.
Capitals overwhelm Flyers in latest embarrassing loss. “We kind of got beat all over the ice in basically every category,” beleaguered goaltender Brian Elliott observed.
The beasts in the East got even stronger at the deadline, practically cinching the division’s four playoff teams.
From the notebook
Oh great, look who’s next: After drowning in the swamp in Washington, the Flyers now head to the snake pit in Pittsburgh where they’ve lost four of the last five.
In 74 games against the Flyers, Sidney Crosby has 110 points. It’s the fourth-most of any Flyers opponent, and he’ll probably supplant the all-time leader sometime in 2022-23. Crosby has 26 points (9g, 17a) In his last 15 games against Philadelphia, with at least one point in 13 of those games.
Active points leaders against the Flyers:
1. Sidney Crosby, Penguins: 74 games, 45 goals, 65 points, 110 points, 1.49 points per game.
2. Evgeni Malkin, Penguins: 63 games, 29-48-77, 1.22 ppg.
3. Alexander Ovechkin, Capitals: 62 games, 40-28-68, 1.10 ppg.
4. Nicklas Backstrom, Capitals: 54 games, 21-41-62, 1.15 ppg.
5. Eric Staal, Canadiens: 60 games, 20-27-47, 0.78 ppg.
All-time points leaders against the Flyers:
1. Mario Lemieux, Penguins: 71 games, 51 goals, 73 assists, 124 points, 1.75 points per game.
2. Jaromir Jagr, Penguins, et. al.: 101 games, 47-73-120, 1.19 ppg.
3. Brian Trottier, Islanders/Penguins: 110 games, 44-73-117, 1.06 ppg.
4. Sidney Crosby, Penguins: 74 games, 45-65-110 points, 1.49 ppg.
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Quoting
“I will say it was our sixth game in nine nights and that’s a tremendous amount of hockey.”
-- Flyers coach Alain Vigneault following Tuesday’s horrid 6-1 loss to the Capitals, who were playing their sixth game in 10 nights.
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Golf season’s approaching
The three teams in the hunt for the fourth playoff spot in the East Division. Games remaining by opponent are listed in standings order:
4. Bruins (50 points, 16 games remaining): vs. Washington 2, vs. N.Y. Islanders 3, vs. Pittsburgh 2, vs. N.Y. Rangers 2, vs. New Jersey 2, vs. Buffalo 5.
Outside looking in:
5. Rangers (46 points, 14 games remaining): vs. Washington 2, vs. N.Y. Islanders 3, vs. Boston 2, vs. Flyers 2, vs. New Jersey 3, vs. Buffalo 2.
6. Flyers (44 points, 14 games remaining): Washington 3, N.Y. Islanders 1, Pittsburgh 3, N.Y. Rangers 2, New Jersey 5,
Flyers’ next 5
Thursday: at Pittsburgh, 7 p.m. (NBCSP)
Saturday: vs. Washington, 12:30 p.m. (NBCSP, NHLN)
Sunday: vs. N.Y. Islanders, 6:30 p.m. (NBCSN)
Thursday, April 22: at N.Y. Rangers, 7 p.m. (NBCSP)
Friday, April 23: at N.Y. Rangers, 7 p.m. (NBCSP, NHLN)
From the mailbag
The core has continuously failed under multiple coaching staffs, but yeah it’s AV’s fault.
— Cheesesteaks in the 700 Level, via Twitter
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Complete disgrace. Not even sure where to start, but this team clearly doesn’t play hard at the beginning of games. As much as I like AV, some of that has to fall on the coaching staff, which includes three head coaches. It also screams out against the captain and assistant captains. How can they embarrass themselves night after night and leave their young goalie out to dry so many times per game?
— Inquirer.com user feinbergdm
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They put too much emphasis on Lindblom and Patrick this season when free agents were available that could score.
Send questions or observations via Twitter to beat writers Ed Barkowitz (@EdBarkowitz) or Sam Carchidi (@BroadStBull) or columnist Mike Sielski (@MikeSielski).