This year's training camp will be particularly important for several key Flyers players.
Philadelphia Flyers training camp is officially here, but this camp is set to be very different from camps in years past.
For the first time in a long time, the Flyers are embarking on a proper rebuild with a focus on building for the long term. Young players are battling for jobs, veterans are hoping to keep their own jobs and players coming off down seasons are looking to get off on the right foot with a strong preseason.
The Flyers are one of the more interesting teams to watch going into the 2023-24 campaign, and these 10 players are among the most intriguing camp storylines to monitor.
Wade Allison
Allison's future with the Flyers is very much uncertain. Not because he hasn't been a useful player — on the contrary, he was actually quite serviceable as a bottom-six forward last season — but because of his continued durability concerns.
Health has been an issue for Allison dating back to his college days. When he's healthy, he's an energizing checking-line hitting machine. But a completely healthy Allison just doesn't come around often.
Now a soon-to-be 26-year-old, Allison needs to show in training camp and in his preseason showings that the Flyers would be out of their minds not to include him on the final roster, regardless of his susceptibility to injuries. If he doesn't, it's not impossible the team will opt to give a younger player a roster spot.
Emil Andrae
Andrae is one of the more exciting young players in the Flyers' system. The 21-year-old defenseman is coming off a strong season in the SHL, having logged six goals and 26 points in 51 games, and he raised eyebrows in his brief stint with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms at the tail end of their 2022-23 campaign.
Andrae's diminutive size at 5-foot-9 could be a red flag for some, but he has proven more than capable of being able to handle the physicality that comes with playing defenseman in a high-end professional league. In fact, he welcomes it.
The 2020 second-round pick is a dark horse to make the team out of training camp, but that certainly isn't going to deter him from attempting to force the Flyers' hand.
"I'm gonna do as best as I can in training camp and try to prove to the coaching staff I'm too good to play in the AHL," Andrae told the media during rookie camp. "I'm gonna do the best I can and see what happens."
Cam Atkinson
After missing the entire 2022-23 season due to a herniated disc in the C6-C7 area of his spine, Atkinson appears to be unimpeded and ready to return to full action.
But where will he slot in?
In all likelihood, he will return to his usual spot in the top six as one of the Flyers' key point producers on the wing. He'll also earn plenty of time on the power play and penalty kill. Still, given the duration of his absence, it will be important to monitor his level of play throughout the preseason. Don't be surprised if the 34-year-old appears a little rusty.
Sean Couturier
Like Atkinson, Couturier also missed the entire 2022-23 season — as well as the majority of the 2021-22 campaign. While Atkinson's neck injury was clearly more than just a mild inconvenience, Couturier's two major back surgeries in under nine months are more than enough reason to be legitimately concerned about the veteran center's future as a star player. Luckily, Couturier appears to be going into training camp without any constraints.
Prior to his pair of back surgeries, Couturier was an annual contender for the Frank J. Selke Trophy as one of the top defensive forwards in hockey. He even won the award for his performance during the 2019-20 season. It's far from a guarantee that Couturier will return to that form after missing nearly two seasons due to back issues, but if he manages to come even close to that level, the Flyers will get a massive boost down the middle of the ice.
There's no question Couturier will need some time to knock off rust, though. The Flyers' six preseason games likely won't even be enough for the 30-year-old to be feel completely back up to speed. But just seeing him on the ice at all will be a welcome sight.
Sam Ersson
There is a legitimate camp battle taking place between Ersson and Felix Sandstrom. Sandstrom was the Flyers' primary backup to Carter Hart last season, but in 12 games of action, Ersson sure didn't look out of place as a regular NHL goaltender.
Ersson left a positive impression on Flyers head coach John Tortorella during his limited action in 2022-23. Meanwhile, Sandstrom struggled in his 18 starts — albeit behind the Flyers' uninspiring group of defensemen.
With a good camp, Ersson could have a legitimate shot at supplanting Sandstrom as the Flyers' No. 2 goalie going into the season.
Joel Farabee
Farabee appeared in all 82 games for the first time in his career last season, but it was clear he wasn't totally up to speed.
Last summer, Farabee underwent artificial disc replacement surgery after suffering a neck injury during offseason training, causing him to miss all of training camp — the first camp of Tortorella's tenure as Flyers head coach. Needless to say, missing camp probably didn't do Farabee any favors. He ended up posting his least-productive scoring campaign since his rookie season and went 26 straight games without netting a single goal.
With a full training camp to gear up for the regular season, perhaps Farabee will be in better position to put together a career-best campaign — and develop a stronger rapport with Tortorella.
Tyson Foerster
Of all the NHL hopefuls participating in training camp, Foerster is the likeliest to earn a full-time roster spot. Coming off a standout 20-goal, 48-point campaign with Lehigh Valley, the 21-year-old is not only a candidate to earn NHL minutes with the Flyers, but possibly a prominent role as a middle-six point producer and power-play weapon.
Foerster didn't show out the way many hoped he would during rookie camp, but that shouldn't keep him from competing for a roster spot during training camp (barring a complete fall from grace).
His coach with the Phantoms even admitted he doesn't expect to have Foerster back in Lehigh Valley for the 2023-24 season.
"I feel like you walk around him, he's confident, he's got that swagger about him that I love — everybody loves," Phantoms head coach Ian Laperriere told the media during rookie camp.
"He's probably gonna be at the next level and be there for a while."
Cal Petersen
The Flyers surely aren't lacking intrigue at the goalie position this year.
When the Flyers traded Ivan Provorov to the Columbus Blue Jackets in their three-way deal with the Los Angeles Kings, they received Petersen and the final two years of his contract, which carries an annual cap hit of $5 million, as part of the return package.
By all means, Petersen has vastly underperformed his contract since originally signing it in 2021. But at one time, Petersen appeared to be one of the better young goalies in hockey. His days of being regarded a starting-caliber goalie are likely over at this stage, but at the very least, it will be interesting to see if Petersen can be something more than just a cap dump.
Zayde Wisdom
Wisdom isn't considered a blue chip NHL prospect by any stretch of the imagination, but he plays a physical brand of hockey that fits the Flyers' identity to a tee.
Wisdom turned heads with his pair of performances against the New York Rangers during rookie camp. After dropping the gloves with the 6-foot-7 Matt Rempe in Game 1 of the two-game exhibition series, he netted the Flyers' lone goal of the second game off a nice feed from Denver Barkey to cut the Rangers' lead in half.
The 2020 fourth-round pick is very much a long-shot to make the Flyers out of training camp, but it's becoming clear that his opportunity to earn a cup of coffee in the NHL isn't all that far off.
Egor Zamula
There is a job up for grabs on the Flyers' back end. Travis Sanheim, Rasmus Ristolainen, Cam York and Marc Staal are all locks for the top four, but Nick Seeler and Sean Walker are both question marks on the third pairing.
Zamula is no longer waiver-exempt, so it is likely he will make the Flyers out of training camp as, at the very least, a seventh defenseman. He's shown flashes of potential in the past, but a good preseason could help squash any doubts about his credibility as a regular NHL blueliner.