Before this week begins, it's time for our weekly check-in on the Flyers' prospects playing in the AHL, overseas and at the junior and college levels.
In this edition, we'll take a look at a late-round draft pick blossoming into one of the nation's best players, the Flyers' top goalie prospect and plenty more from a busy week.
Cooper Marody, C, 20, 6-1/185, Michigan (NCAA)
After missing parts of his freshman campaign with mono and then sophomore season because he was academically ineligible, Marody is exploding onto the scene this year.
Marody continued his torrid season this past weekend as Michigan stole a 5-4 overtime win Friday night over No. 4 Minnesota and then tied the Golden Gophers, 6-6, Saturday. The Wolverines fought back from a 3-0 deficit Friday and a 4-0 deficit Saturday night.
And Marody was front and center with a pair of two-assist games. Marody has 12 assists and 15 points in his past six games. During this six-game stretch, he has three three-point games and three two-point efforts. He has 10 points in four Big Ten games, which is the most in the conference. He has 16 points in 10 games for 1.60 points per game. His 13 assists are tied for second in the nation with Denver's Troy Terry.
Michigan assistant coach Brian Wiseman in July praised Marody's growth, from the player he was in the USHL to where he was heading into his junior season in Ann Arbor.
"Cooper is a very smart, highly intelligent hockey player," Wiseman said, "has a gift of slowing down the game, reading situations and making high-level, executed plays."
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Carter Hart, G, 19, 6-1/177, Everett (WHL)
For a goalie who missed a month because of mono, Hart didn't show any signs of needing time to get in shape. It started last Monday, as Hart led Team WHL to a 7-0 shutout against Team Russia with a 20-save effort in the CIBC Canada/Russia Series.
Carter Hart (PHI) of @WHLsilvertips stops Russia's Artyom Manukyan on a first period breakaway. #CANvsRUS pic.twitter.com/4mcJgwfFQg— David O'Connor (@DavidSOConnor) November 7, 2017
Hart was back in net Friday for Everett against Prince George. He allowed three goals on 23 shots and allowed one in the shootout as the Silvertips fell, 4-3, to the Cougars. Then on Saturday, Hart had a 28-save shutout in Everett's 4-0 win over Prince George.
His shutout Saturday night was his 20th career WHL shutout, which is one shy of tying Leland Irving's Everett record of 21. Irving was with the Phantoms earlier this season. Nearly 13 percent of Hart's WHL games have been shutouts. This season, Hart is 3-2-1 with a 2.11 goals-against average, .933 save percentage and one shutout in six games.
Morgan Frost, C, 18, 5-11/172, Sault Ste. Marie (OHL)
For Frost, one of the Flyers' two 2017 first-round picks, it was another big week. Frost continued to produce, showcasing both his goal-scoring ability and playmaking skills.
Frost had his second two-goal game of the season in the Greyhounds' 4-3 overtime win Friday night over Sarnia and then followed that up with a goal and two assists Saturday in Sault Ste. Marie's 8-2 blowout of Flint. His first goal Friday came on a 2-on-2 rush.
Morgan Frost finished off this perfectly executed 2-on-2 last night! 🚨 pic.twitter.com/PhbnvkZfqP— Flyers Prospects (@futureofphilly) November 11, 2017
In his last 13 games, Frost has 13 assists and 22 points. On the season, he has 27 points in 20 games and leads the OHL with a plus-21 rating. It's been quite the campaign for Frost, who has validated the Flyers' decision to draft him in the first round.
German Rubtsov, C/LW, 19, 6-0/187, Acadie-Bathurst (QMJHL)
The Titan's trade for Rubtsov continued to pay off, as the Flyers' 2016 first-round pick showed again why Acadie-Bathurst gave up two players and three draft picks for him.
Rubtsov had four points in three games last week, with all four coming this past weekend. Rubtsov, a natural center who's been playing left wing in Acadie-Bathurst, had a goal and two assists in the Titan's 5-3 win Friday night over Drummondville. On Saturday night, he had an assist in the Titan's 4-3 loss to Blainville-Boisbriand.
In five games with Acadie-Bathurst, Rubtsov has five assists and seven points. Between Chicoutimi and Acadie-Bathurst, he has 13 assists and 18 points in 16 games.
Alex Lyon, G, 24, 6-1/200, Lehigh Valley (AHL)
With Anthony Stolarz out long-term, Lyon has yet to take advantage of the opportunity he has with the Phantoms to set himself apart on the organizational depth chart. It was an up-and-down week for Lyon, who has been disappointing in his second pro year.
Lyon had a strong effort last Wednesday in Lehigh Valley's 4-2 win over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, allowing two goals on 44 shots. But then on Saturday, he surrendered six markers on 33 shots in the Phantoms' 6-1 loss to Hershey. Is Lyon to blame for all six goals? Of course not, but he has allowed 17 goals in his past four games.
Lyon, in 11 games, is 6-3-1 with a 3.26 goals-against average and .897 save percentage. He's allowed three or more goals in six games.
Quick hits
• After a solid start, Pascal Laberge is in a rut. Laberge had another scoreless week for Victoriaville. He has two points in his past nine games. He has 12 points in 18 games.
• For the first time this season, Danick Martel did not score a goal Saturday night. That's OK, though. Martel had a goal and an assist in Lehigh Valley's 4-2 win Wednesday over Bridgeport. He now has 14 goals and 19 points in 15 games.
Danick Martel (@martel2626) tied the game up for the #LVPhantoms with his league-leading 14th goal of the season. pic.twitter.com/lUkn2goE9M— LehighValleyPhantoms (@LVPhantoms) November 8, 2017
• Oskar Lindblom registered his third goal of the season last Wednesday, drilling home a pass from Martel in front of the Sound Tigers' net.
Danick Martel feeds Oskar Lindblom out front to put the #LVPhantoms up 3-2 in the second period.
The Phantoms scored 3 unanswered goals in the second period. pic.twitter.com/HSTF1lGBed— LehighValleyPhantoms (@LVPhantoms) November 8, 2017
• Connor Bunnaman stayed hot for Kitchener, picking up a goal in both Rangers games this past weekend. He now has a four-game goal streak and six-game point streak.
Bunnaman, Kitchener's captain, has six goals and one assist during his six-game point streak. He has 11 markers and 15 points in 17 games this season.
• Isaac Ratcliffe, the Flyers' 2017 second-round pick, had a nice weekend for the Guelph Storm. Ratcliffe had a two-goal game Friday night in the Storm's 6-2 win over North Bay. Then on Sunday, Ratcliffe had a goal and two assists against Sudbury.
• Sarnia's Anthony Salinitri filled the stat sheet this weekend with three goals and an assist. Salinitri had two goals Friday and then a goal and an assist Sunday.
• Matthew Strome is heating up for Hamilton. Strome had a goal and two assists in the Bulldogs' 7-4 win Friday over Erie and then two goals and an assist Sunday against Mississauga. Strome has a four-game point streak in which he has nine points.
• Brendan Warren, Marody's teammate at Michigan, had a goal and an assist Saturday against Minnesota. Warren has three goals and one assist in 10 games this season.
CLIP: @warrenbrendan makes it 6-4!#GoBlue pic.twitter.com/PMyRitm6My— Michigan Hockey (@umichhockey) November 12, 2017
• Tanner Laczynski had another productive weekend for Ohio State, and he now leads the Buckeyes with 13 points. He had a two-assist game Friday and a goal Saturday.
• Wisconsin defenseman Wyatt Kalynuk finally picked up his first collegiate goal Friday night in the No. 6 Badgers' 6-2 win over Michigan State. He also had an assist.
An absolute 💣 from @Wkalynuk17! pic.twitter.com/Sb3re4Qlnj— Wisconsin Hockey (@BadgerMHockey) November 11, 2017
Kalynuk, the Flyers' final pick in the 2017 draft, has seven points in 13 games. He leads all Wisconsin defenseman in points and is tied for second on the team with six assists.
