Flyers to try Cole Knuble at center vs. Rangers: ‘We need some speed up the middle’

NEW YORK ― The Flyers still haven’t found their perfect mix at center. Noah Cates and Christian Dvorak have been staples down the middle, along with Sean Couturier on the fourth line, but Rick Tocchet has tried to mix in guys like Trevor Zegras and Denver Barkey in those spots as well.

On Thursday in morning skate, Cole Knuble got the latest crack at center, centering Porter Martone and Owen Tippett. The move broke up the successful Cates, Martone, and Matvei Michkov line, with Foerster sliding into Martone’s spot. Dvorak remained between Zegras and Travis Konecny, while Couturier and Noel Acciari were joined by Barkey on the fourth line. Couturier and Acciari spent time with Knuble at center ice working on face-offs during the skate.

“Just speed, I thought like, the second half of the game, that middle speed, I think we need, so just want to try it,” Tocchet said of Knuble shifting to the middle. “I think we were talking to Danny [Brière] when he first got called up, ‘Hey, he can play center.’ I knew he played a little bit at center, but I thought he really added speed to us.”

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Knuble, 22, played center through most of his time in college at Notre Dame and in the United States Hockey League with Fargo. He also played center briefly last year in Lehigh Valley after signing his first pro contract.

But since getting called up to the NHL, Knuble has primarily played on the wing. He’s made a strong early impression since getting called up, scoring three goals in seven games, and adding a bit of pace and grit to the lineup. Even after Tippett and Travis Konecny returned, Knuble has kept his spot in the team’s top nine. Now, Tocchet’s giving him a look down the middle on Thursday against the New York Rangers (7 p.m., NBCSP), whom his dad, Mike, once played for.

Knuble said he’s happy to play whatever position gets asked of him, but was excited for the opportunity to get another look at his natural spot, which brings out different elements in his game. At center in the Flyers’ system, he gets to play up and in the middle of the ice to support a bit more, opening him up for more scoring chances and to defend against odd-man rushes.

“I think you get to read the play maybe a little more, you end up being F3, you’re reading it and you’ve got to be smart, you’ve got to pick spots when to go, when to not go,” Knuble said. “That, and hopefully I can be good in the D zone, win some battles there and get us to play offense.”

That defensive responsibility is part of why Zegras hasn’t gotten another look at center despite the improvement in his play over the last few weeks.

“It’s the chicken and the egg,” Tocchet said. “Would I like to put him at center eventually? Yeah, but I think right now he’s feeling comfortable a lot more. For him, it’s less defensive responsibility. That’s when he gets in trouble, when he has to play defensively, so we’ll see. I mean, it’s obviously an option down the road, but definitely, we need some speed up the middle. That’s why I want Cole to go there.”

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Time will tell whether Knuble will stick at center or if he’ll make his way back to the wing, but the increased responsibility and trust are strong signs that he’s earned a lot of favor with the coaching staff in his short time in the NHL.

He’s also heading out on the first long NHL road trip of his career, with the Flyers headed to Western Canada after Thursday’s game in New York. The hardest part of the trip? Making the packing list.

“It was hard to pack, had to talk to my mom a lot,” Knuble said. “I didn’t know what to bring, but hopefully I have enough stuff. That was the biggest hurdle.”

Rasmus Ristolainen was on the ice for morning skate, skating on the extra pair with David Jiříček. He’s not quite ready to return from the upper-body injury that sidelined him after his one-game cameo on Oct. 24, but is progressing in the right direction, Tocchet said. “He can’t go full boar, but he’s getting a bit more every day.” Defensive prospect Spencer Gill scored his first pro goal Wednesday in Lehigh Valley’s 5-4 overtime win over Laval. Alex Bump, who was sent down earlier this week, also scored and now has eight goals in six games in the American Hockey League.