After a strong showing in the minors, Ronnie Attard will be competing for more ice time in the NHL.
It's the dead of summer, but the Philadelphia Flyers will be gearing up for training camp before we know it. In preparation for the preseason, we've created the Summer Sampler series, in which we'll be analyzing every key player on the Flyers roster. We'll assess where each player stands ahead of the 2023-24 season and project what their respective roles will be for the upcoming campaign. Stay tuned throughout the summer for each Flyer's individual evaluation in the lead-up to training camp.
The Flyers' back end is undergoing a complete remodel. Ivan Provorov, Tony DeAngelo, and Justin Braun are all either playing for different teams or out of the NHL entirely. Only four of the Flyers' six blueliners who earned over 1,000 minutes of ice time last season will be returning for 2023-24, and that means young defensemen — like Ronnie Attard — could potentially see increased opportunities with the big club.
How did Attard perform in 2022-23? Attard put together a strong 2022-23 campaign in the American Hockey League. He was the Lehigh Valley Phantoms' most productive defenseman, leading all Lehigh Valley blueliners with 12 goals and 32 points in 68 games. He also earned a quick two-game stint with the Flyers toward the end of the season, though that brief tour of duty was mostly uneventful. He recorded no points and was on the ice for a pair of goals against.
Attard's 15-game stay with the Flyers during the 2021-22 season was much more fruitful. He registered two goals and as many assists while logging some pretty respectable play-driving numbers at 5-on-5, including a 52.36 Corsi For percentage and a 53.05 Expected Goals For percentage. He didn't necessarily blow anyone's hair back, but he showed some encouraging flashes of bottom-to-middle pair potential.
What should fans expect from Attard in 2023-24? Barring any late-summer additions to the back end, several of the Flyers' young defenders, including Attard, will be competing to potentially earn a roster spot on opening night.
The competition will be stiff, though. Egor Zamula appears to be the logical frontrunner to take on more of a regular role with the Flyers, but Emil Andrae, after a standout showing throughout development camp, could be a dark horse candidate to challenge him for NHL minutes early in the season.
Attard will certainly be in the running to make the leap to the NHL, but he'll need a monster preseason in order to lock down a roster spot for opening night. If Attard is unable to stand out as a no-doubt-about-it NHLer in training camp, expect him to start the season in Lehigh Valley and eventually earn another midseason stint with the Flyers.
What does Attard need to prove? The Flyers clearly believe in Attard as a player. They signed him to a two-year contract that runs through the 2024-25 season, and the hope is that he'll be seasoned enough to take on regular NHL minutes come the fall of next year.
The best way for Attard to prove he's ready to make the leap is to simply dominate in the AHL. To this point, though, he hasn't quite reached that level. And at 24 years old, his window could be shrinking.
Given the lack of stability on the Flyers' back end, this is as good an opportunity as Attard will ever have to earn an increased role in the NHL. Now, he has to take advantage of it.
Statistics courtesy of Natural Stat Trick and NHL.com.