It’s that time of the year again where the Philadelphia Flyers hand out hardware ahead of and during their home finale.
It has been another tumultuous, disastrous, up-and-down season, with the Flyers missing the playoffs for the third consecutive year for the first time since 1991-92 to 1993-94.
Nevertheless, the hardware has to be handed out to the chosen players who “excelled” in 2022-23, including team MVP, most improved player, and best defenseman, among others. So without further ado:
Bobby Clarke Trophy
(Heather Barry Images, LLC)
The Bobby Clarke Trophy is handed out to the team’s most valuable player and I don’t think it’s a surprise to anyone that this year’s Flyers MVP should be Travis Konecny.
There aren’t many other options to choose from, but that’s not a slight on Konecny’s season either. He currently leads the team with a career-high 29 goals, 5 more than 2nd-place Owen Tippett in 17 less games, and 56 points, 2 more than 2nd-place Kevin Hayes in 21 less games.
Konecny is also 4th on the team in ice time behind defensemen Ivan Provorov, Tony DeAngelo, and Travis Sanheim at 20:08 per game. He also leads the team in shooting percentage with a 16.1% success rate – outside of Tyson Foerster’s 8-game pit stop.
Konecny started the season on a tear as he scored 24 goals and 46 points in just 36 games. That included a 7-game point streak from the 2nd of November to the 15th of November with 3 goals and 10 points, as well as a season high 10-game point streak from the 20th of December to the 11th of January where he scored 12 goals and 20 points.
His 10-game point streak was culminated by a hat-trick against the Washington Capitals where he reached his career-high of 24 goals. Unfortunately, he then endured a 13-game goalless drought right after, where he only chipped in with 3 assists. He broke out of his funk with 5 points in 2+ games before sustaining an upper-body injury that sidelined him for 16 games against the Calgary Flames.
Konecny had a great season in terms of special teams as well. He broke out as a penalty killer this season, where he added 3 shorthanded goals and 3 shorthanded assists. Konecny went from playing 13.3 minutes of shorthanded hockey all of last year to a whopping 110.5 this year. While on the power play, he also chipped in with 5 power play goals and 10 power play assists.
The Flyers received good production in spurts from players like Kevin Hayes, Morgan Frost, Owen Tippett, and Scott Laughton but nothing as consistent as Konecny’s 2022-23 campaign.
An honourable mention should be given to Carter Hart, who played well this season with what was at his disposal, matched his elite counterparts in several leading categories, and was a top-15 goaltender in goals saved above expectation.
Barry Ashbee Trophy
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This one is tough because unlike previous seasons, there isn’t a slam dunk option. No defenseman on the Flyers has had a great season, several had so-so years in totality with sprinkles of decent-to-good play in spurts. Last year, Travis Sanheim’s resurgent 2nd half not only earned him the hardware, but also an 8-year contract extension worth 50 million dollars.
Tony DeAngelo leads the backend with 11 goals, 4 more than 2nd place Sanheim, 31 assists which is 12 more than 2nd-place Ivan Provorov, and 42 points, which is 18 more than 2nd place Provorov.
DeAngelo also averages the 2nd-most ice time at 22:04, behind only Provorov’s 22:56. Acquired as a power play specialist, he was tasked to turn things around and even though he chipped in with 4 markers and 15 helpers, the Flyers’ man advantage will finish dead last once again.
He also maintains a team-low -27 plus/minus rating, he has been a healthy scratch for the last past 3 games without any indication from his coaching staff, was suspended 2 games for spearing Corey Perry, and was essentially labeled a defensive liability by his head coach – which was not a wrong statement.
It’s hard not to give it to Provorov just because he plays the most in terms of games and ice time, he chips in with modest offensive numbers, but he has so far posted a career-low 5 goals, 19 assists, and 24 points. His 22:56 average ice time is his lowest since his rookie season when he averaged 21:59. The following 5 seasons he averaged 24:47, which included a season where he scored 17 goals and 41 points in 2017-18. When it comes to Provorov, you’re essentially guaranteed 3 things: 1) game availability, 2) high minutes and ice time, and 3) blocked shots. The rest is up in the air with the turnovers and the offense, but he’s reliable for a bad defense.
However, I feel the way the media and the team has promoted them this season, especially in the second half, the Barry Ashbee Trophy could be handed to Rasmus Ristolainen or Nick Seeler.
On the season, Ristolainen has 3 goals and 19 points in 72 games, has averaged 18:53 TOI, is surprisingly only a -5, and has 139 blocked shots with 155 hits. He started the season on the mend, was a healthy scratch once, and went his first 27 games without recording a point. Since then, he has scored all 19 of his points in a 44-game stretch, while averaging 19:08 TOI, a plus-1 rating, and only recorded 12 penalty minutes.
His -5 rating on the season is the 2nd lowest of his career and lowest since 2019-20, his 32 penalty minutes are his lowest since 2014-15, and while he’s averaging a career-low 18:53 TOI he has finally found his role with the Flyers thanks to John Tortorella and Brad Shaw.
Ristolainen has also returned to the power play as he started off as the net-front presence on the second unit before being placed at the point for his booming slap-shot.
Nick Seeler could also be the recipient with his improved season from last year. He has played a career-high 76 games, has posted a career-high in goals (4), assists (10), and points (14), and has averaged the most amount of ice time (14:27) since his rookie year in 2017-18 (14:32). Seeler has also smashed his previous highs in blocked shots (previous high of 116) and hits (previous high of 78) with 157 and 124, respectively.
Seeler has been relied upon heavily – alongside Ristolainen – while shorthanded and Tortorella has praised them both for their efforts on several occasions, whether it was from a big block or a huge penalty kill late in the game. Radko Gudas won the Barry Ashbee Trophy in 2018-19 and just based on the verbiage from the second half of this season, I would not be shocked if it goes to either one, but for the sake of argument, I’ll go with Rasmus Ristolainen between these two.
Pelle Lindbergh Memorial Trophy
(Heather Barry Images, LLC)
Awarded to the Flyer who has most improved from the previous season – voted by his teammates – it could go to a slew of players.
Noah Cates and Owen Tippett have vastly improved from last season but both players played in very minimal games for the Orange and Black. Cates signed his ELC after his collegiate season came to a close and appeared in 16 games last season, while Tippett suited up in 21 games after being acquired for Claude Giroux ahead of the trade deadline. So I’d lean more towards players like Morgan Frost, Nick Seeler, and Scott Laughton.
Morgan Frost started last season in the AHL with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms because he had nearly missed 2 calendar years of hockey due to injuries and pauses/postponements. He appeared in 55 games, scored only 5 goals and 11 points, was a -11, averaged 13:55 TOI, and only fired 85 shots on goals. He went through a 31-game stretch where he had only scored once and added 4 helpers along the way – including a 27-game goalless drought.
His play ameliorated near the end of the season when he started playing alongside Tippett, and while 6 points in his final 12 games aren’t numbers to take home, it was far better than anything he had done up until that point. He signed a prove-it-type one-year deal over the summer, and in 79 games he has 19 goals and 43 points to his name.
He has 14 more goals than last year, 13 more assists, 27 more points, 14 more even-strength goals, his shooting percentage has risen by 7.1%, he has taken 61 more shots, and has averaged 2:20 more minutes per game with 36 takeaways to 26 giveaways.
Frost has 16 goals and 37 points in his last 52 games, which would put him on pace for 25 goals and 58 points in a full 82-game season. Even over his last 26 games, he has scored 9 goals and 18 points, while averaging 17:25 TOI. Tortorella referred to Frost as a toilet seat earlier in the season because of his up-and-down play, but he took back those claims later due to his improvement.
As previously stated for the Barry Ashbee Trophy, Seeler improved so much between 2021-22 to 2022-23. His numbers aren’t pretty and he’s a defensive defenseman, but let’s also not forget we wanted to run him out of the city for most of last year. He was anchored with Keith Yandle or Kevin Connauton for a vast majority of his season, only scored once and added 2 more assists, while averaging 13:05 TOI in 43 games.
This year, Seeler scored 3 more goals, added 8 more assists, is +4 better than last year, has averaged 1:22 TOI more per game, has 90 more blocks, and 49 more hits in 33 more games – missing only 4 games this season. He has played in 44 more minutes while shorthanded, his CF% went up 8.5%, his FF% went up 7.1%, and he was good enough to garner interest ahead of the trade deadline – some reported a 3rd round pick – but Chuck Fletcher balked.
Seeler has also dropped the gloves 4 times this year and provided the feistiness to ward off evil. His turnaround has not been lost on his teammates, either as he was nominated as the Flyers’ finalist for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy. His coaches love him, his teammates respect him, and the front office has been keen on keeping him even when there was interest at the trade deadline for his services.
Scott Laughton could also be the recipient of the award with his career season. He has scored 18 goals and 42 points in 75 games this year, compared to the 11 goals and 30 points in 67 games last season. His 18 goals, 24 assists, and 42 points are all career-highs, he has averaged 1:57 more minutes per game and a career high 18:22 as well, he has registered 56 blocks and 151 hits, scored his first ever power play goal and added 4 more along the way, and scored 3 shorthanded goals with 4 helpers.
There was a portion of the season where he averaged 20:28 TOI over an 18-game stretch, and he also had a stretch of 22 games where he scored 9 goals and 21 points. The points dried up just as it did with almost the entire team at the same exact time, but Laughton was leaned upon more than any other forward with the exception of Konecny this season – in all situations.
There’s a very good chance it goes to either Noah Cates or Owen Tippett, but I’m just going based off of games played in a Flyers uniform last year, in saying that Frost has 43 points to Tippett’s 45 and Cates’ 36 so he’s not entirely far off.
Between the 3, I’m leaning towards Morgan Frost, but something tells me Seeler is leaving with some type of hardware, especially since this award is voted by his teammates and after the Philadelphia chapter of the PHWA nominated him for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy.
Yanick Dupré Memorial Class Guy Award
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The Yanick Dupre Memorial Class Guy Award is given to the player who best illustrates character, dignity, and respect for the sport both on and off the ice. For this one, similar to the Bobby Clarke Trophy, Scott Laughton is the slam dunk option.
First and foremost, in a season without a captain for the first time since the early 1990s, Laughton was the only one who had a letter on his jersey in John Tortorella’s first season behind the bench. He has been a vocal leader within the locker room for years, is essentially a captain without the “C”, and represents the Flyers off the ice as well with his charitable acts.
Laughton – alongside James van Riemsdyk – were the team’s spokespeople for the LGBTQ+ community and have done several things to promote diversity and inclusivity in the hockey world. Laughton is as serious as it gets on the ice as well, has the motor that keeps on going, is the utility player that the Flyers use quite often in different situations, has played the wing and the centre position and has been placed all over the lineup from the top line to the fourth line, and is enjoying a career season.
He has 18 goals and 42 points while averaging 18:22 TOI a game, which is the second-highest for a forward behind only Konecny. Tortorella announced he would not be naming a captain next year, but it wouldn’t be shocking if Laughton was once again the only player donning a letter.
Gene Hart Memorial Award
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This award is handed out to the Flyer who demonstrated the most heart during the season, and I don’t think anyone can deny that this is most likely going to be handed out to Nicolas Deslauriers.
You could make an argument for Laughton and even Seeler, but this award gets handed out to tough guys quite often like Ian Laperriere, Scott Hartnell, Wayne Simmonds, Zac Rinaldo, and Zack MacEwen.
Deslauriers signed a 4-year contract over the summer and was brought in for one reason alone: to intimidate the opposition. He did just that and then some with his NHL-leading 14 fighting majors, team-leading and 2nd-most in the NHL 136 penalty minutes, and team-leading and 3rd-most in the NHL 297 hits.
Deslauriers was the spark plug whenever the Flyers looked listless, flat, and in need of energy. He has scored 6 goals and 12 points himself in 78 games, added a shorthanded goal, and averages 10:08 TOI. He has played close to 70 minutes on the penalty kill this season as he has continued to improve that part of his game over the last few seasons.
Deslauriers has been everything we expected and then some, has given the Flyers an intangible they previously lacked, isn’t a liability on the ice, and has a decent amount of skills in his utility belt.
Even though a 4-year contract is hefty for a 32-year-old enforcer, he’s fun to have, fun to watch, and I’m sure he’s fun to play with.
