Flyers prospects show their fight can be as big as their skills vs. Rangers

ALLENTOWN — On the second day of rookie camp, Flyers prospects took to the ice in Lehigh Valley on Friday night, kicking off a two-game set against their New York Rangers counterparts.

After a slow start, they rebounded to earn a 4-3 overtime win.

Here are five takeaways.

At the end of the first period, the Flyers trailed, 2-0, but the best player on the ice was wearing orange. After an impressive development camp, Alex Bump continued to build his case to make the big club’s opening night roster.

Although he didn’t register a point, Bump generated chances left and right for himself and his teammates, including linemates Jack Nesbitt and Samu Tuomaala. He showed off his high-end stickhandling in tight spaces, came off the wall with spin moves, used his legs and active feet to drive down the wall, and had several Grade A scoring chances.

Bump said on Thursday that he spent the summer working on getting bigger and stronger, and it was evident with his puck possession.

He put a low shot on goal in the first period, which was perfectly placed for Tuomaala to get a tip-in chance, and later sent a quick shot from the high slot on goal. In the second period, he drew a power play and almost scored on another from the inside of the left face-off circle off a cross-ice pass from Rangers’. And in overtime, he had a chance to end the game at the left post.

» READ MORE: Bump or Bonk? Rank the Flyers’ top prospects and see how your picks stack up against other fans'

Speaking of Barkey, he said Thursday he had healed from the high-ankle sprain that had hampered him during London of the Ontario Hockey League’s Memorial Cup run. On Friday, he showed it. The 5-foot-10, 174-pound winger was flying up the ice, using his quickness, leverage, and ability to win pucks to beat the Rangers’ defense at every turn.

He notched a goal that cut the Rangers’ lead in half off a nifty cross-ice pass out of the corner from the newly acquired Tucker Robertson, who had intercepted a New York pass in the Flyers’ end before heading up the ice.

» READ MORE: With his prospect clock ticking, offensive D-man Ethan Samson is ready to put the ‘ups and downs’ behind him

“[Barkey] plays with his eyes up all the time. If you can see, he’s much like a Bump, his eyes are never down, and he’s seeing plays, and even on his entry place. … He’s a heck of a hockey player,” said Lehigh Valley Phantoms coach John Snowden, who is running rookie camp.

“The biggest thing about him is that he’s so competitive, like he’s just so competitive,” added Snowden. “I said he’s a smaller guy, but he plays like he’s 6-4.”

There may be several new faces on the Flyers roster in Allentown, but that doesn’t mean they won’t go to bat for each other.

Late in the first, Nesbitt mixed it up with Rangers prospect :, when Tuomaala was swarmed in front. The 6-5 Nesbitt, who was one of the Flyers’ first-round picks in June, played a big role all night, using his body to protect the puck and hit the opposition.

» READ MORE: Oliver Bonk and Denver Barkey display an appetite to succeed at Flyers rookie camp

In the second, after Corbin Vaughn leveled Flyers prospect Devin Kaplan, Jacob Gaucher went to his teammate’s defense. Gaucher didn’t win the fight but earned five minutes for fighting and respect.

Later in the period, Sawyer Boulton and Vaughn dropped the gloves, and there was no denying the victor. Boulton, whose dad Eric Boulton made a name for himself as an NHL enforcer, handily won the fight and got the crowd and his bench riled up.

Speaking after the game, Karsen Dorwart said what was expected: “My goal is to make the team.” Obviously, the team is the Flyers. The center, who signed as an undrafted free agent out of Michigan State in March, played in five NHL games and built on his taste of the pros by being a standout at development camp. He picked that back up on Friday.

A speedster on the ice, with quickness and strength, he says he started the game slowly but finished strong with two assists, including using his speed to set up Alexis Gendron for a short-handed goal. Dorwart also had the assist on Nikita Grebenkin’s game-winner, weaving his way around the Rangers zone during three-on-three action before finding the Russian winger as he came off the bench.

Carson Bjarnason allowed three goals on 24 shots, including one in the first period that handcuffed him, which he would surely like back. But as at the development camp scrimmage, the recently turned pro settled down and came up big to earn the win.

Bjarnason, who said he got the pads he wore in the game two days prior, didn’t face too many top-tier chances. But in the third, he made two big saves, kicking a point shot into the corner, and stoned the Rangers off the rush. He will play the first half of the game on Saturday.

» READ MORE: Marcus Hayes: Flyers seem to slam the door on Carter Hart as they look to Sam Ersson and others to take the next steps

Keeping the Rangers at bay allowed the Flyers to tie the game at 3. Gaucher scored from the doorstep after receiving a sleek backhand pass from Kaplan.

“It’s been a while since he’s played a hockey game, right? So you have to expect that [rust]. I thought he was excellent,” said Snowden of Bjarnason, who last played in a non-scrimmage in early April for Brandon of the Western Hockey League.

“He settled himself in, he got himself back to where he needed to be. I thought we did a good job in front of him. I thought the second period was a good opportunity for us to really let him settle into the game, because I thought that we had a puck most of the period. … I think he did a really good job of handling himself. We did a good job in front of him, settling it down and taking control of the game for a while, and then he found his way from there.”

Defenseman Oliver Bonk did not play due to load management. He is expected to suit up for Saturday’s game at 5 p.m. … The Flyers have 13 forwards, not including defensemen, who are listed but will not participate, and eight defensemen in rookie camp. Forward Nathan Quinn, a 2025 sixth-round pick who turned 18 on Aug. 29, and Austin Moline, a seventh-rounder in 2024, were healthy scratches.