Daniel Brière and John Tortorella met with the media to discuss a Cerebus of points.
Jett Luchanko will be on the opening night roster. Alexei Kolosov will compete with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms; that much is confirmed. Then, separate from personnel, the Philadelphia Flyers had the worst powerplay in franchise history, let alone the NHL. All these topics were covered point-blank by Brière and Tortorella.
Noted by Brière and Tortorella. Between the two of them, there were discussions with former coaches about Luchanko, plans with the current resources of scouts and coaches to fix the powerplay, and a little bit of fortunate news about the arrival of Matvei Michkov and Kolosov.
Speaking of Michkov, it is wild how Luchanko pulled some attention off of ‘The Mad Russian’ before Friday in Vancouver. There is something super special about that. Luchanko broke into the opening lineup of the NHL season as a true rookie, which is a heavy endorsement and vote of trust from Brière and Tortorella.
“Danny [Brière] just called me in and talked to me; congratulated me.” – Jett Luchanko; 10/7/2024
A nine-game trial is essentially an NHL tryout. Luchanko buzzed around the ice throughout the preseason, busy in the offensive zone, fast-moving, and well-rounded through the neutral zone. Brière spoke highly of Luchanko and explained a successful tryout is not just about point production; it is a complete evaluation:
“It’s not just about points. Obviously, points are important because they help you win when you score goals and you set up plays, but sometimes you’ll set up plays and your teammate doesn’t finish. It’s an overall game that we’re going to be looking at, just like we did in training camp. [We] got to evaluate the full spectrum. It’s not just in the moment, does he help us more than the next guy in line; we also have to take into consideration his age and his development, and what’s mostly important for us is in three, five, seven years from now, how can we create the best Jett Luchanko? Those are all things that we’re constantly thinking about, discussing, debating, but we felt he had earned the right to start on the team and start on the Flyers.” – Daniel Brière; 10/7/2023
How much will Luchanko play in his trial? Tortorella will let him loose on the powerplay and penalty-kill, too. Something to watch for would be a line change between Luchanko and Sean Couturier. If Luchanko is buzzing early into his trial, Tortorella could want to see him center Travis Konecny. If not, then Luchanko still learns at 19 years old on a line with Joel Farabee and Bobby Brink.
When Brière, Tortorella, and the rest of the brain trust decide how long Luchanko remains with the Flyers, it will be at a low-risk and high-reward for Philadelphia. Brière did not expect Luchanko to be on the opening night roster. No one did. If he leaves after nine games, it is not a red flag. When Brière selected Luchanko at the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, we knew he planned for the long approach.
But, Luchanko is pressing the veterans. Do not become comfortable or complacent because the NHL is a young league, Tortorella noted:
“It’s a young league. See, I don’t look at ages. I don’t. I just watch how they play, and what I also watch is how they handle themselves. They both [Luchanko and Michkov] have done a really good job of that.” – John Tortorella; 10/7/2024
The elephant in the room is the reigning, defending, and undisputed worst powerplay from last season. Finding a resolution for that meant a meeting of the minds between, but not limited to, Brière, Tortorella, Dany Heatley, John LeClair, and Patrick Sharp. If there is ever a land of opportunity begging seizure, it resides in the powerplay. There will be a committee, but Brière named Michkov, Konecny, Owen Tippett, Morgan Frost, and Jamie Drysdale.
“It was certainly interesting, even for myself, to hear the thought process for guys like Dany Heatley, John LeClair, and Patrick Sharp; guys that all played different positions. Dany Heatley, in his prime, he was the setup guy for [Ilya] Kolvachuk. Patrick Sharp was the shooter. John LeClair was [a] power forward, net front; everybody played different positions when talking about the powerplay. I think Torts [Tortorella] and Rocky [Thompson] had a lot to listen to. It was great discussions when we talked about the different views from different players on how to approach the powerplay. There will be a couple [of] new guys that I’m hoping will help, as well. Some of the guys are a year older; [Owen] Tippet, [Morgan] Frost, [Travis] Konecny. Adding Matvei [Michkov], who’s always been a powerplay specialist wherever he’s been. Jamie Drysdale [is] healthy. Those are all positive things.” – Daniel Brière; 10/7/2024
Michkov will help. Then, the second unit, most likely featuring Farabee and Brink, will stay with Luchanko. Tyson Foerster, with a rocket shot, and Egor Zamula, who led all Philadelphia defensemen in powerplay points, will be in the mix.
Alexei Kolosov
As earlier mentioned, Kolosov will begin the season on the Phantoms. Brière wants to see Kolosov compete in the AHL, but all options are available. Kolosov, at best, earns the backup role if Ivan Fedotov struggles. If not, then Kolosov is the starting goaltender in Lehigh Valley.
“We told him [Kolosov] all along [that] we wanted to see him. We wanted to see where he was at. He believed that he needed another year in the KHL, and we told him we didn’t really agree with that. We wanted to see him. We wanted to see where he was at in his development. We hadn’t seen him. This summer at development camp and not showing at training camp put us in a tough position. I get it from his standpoint, he thought he needed another year, or he thought he was ready for the NHL. I’m not sure where he fit between the two, but we basically told him we want to see you, we want to know where you’re at. That’s the exciting part for him coming over, there’s nothing set in stone as far as ‘where is he going to be?’ Is he going to be in Lehigh the whole year, or is he going to play some games with the Flyers? You know how it works, there could be injuries, there could be changes; it’s something we’re going to evaluate pretty much on a weekly basis. We’re excited that he’s here. I went to see him play on Saturday in Lehigh Valley. He had a great game, but we need to see more of him. We need to see where he’s at in his development, and then we’ll make the right decision moving forward. Nothing’s set in stone as far as how the season’s going to go for him. What we care about is his development and try to help him take the next step.” – Daniel Brière; 10/7/2024
The KHL still exists, too.
“That’s also a possibility, to be honest with you. We [the Flyers] haven’t made a decision, but we haven’t taken anything off the table.” – Daniel Brière; 10/7/2024
If Kolosov did return to the KHL, it would mean Ian Laperrière calls upon Eetu Mäkiniemi and Cal Petersen. The hope is that Kolosov chooses to develop in the farm system instead.
