The Philadelphia Flyers announced today that they’ve assigned defenseman Samuel Morin and forward Taylor Leier to the AHL.
Morin, 21, is the best known of the two, having been the 11th overall draft pick in 2013. A big, tall defensive defenseman, he’s coming off his first pro season, scoring four goals with 11 assists in 76 games for Lehigh Valley. (He also had 118 penalty minutes, which tells you something about his style.)
Though Morin has yet to play his first NHL game, and while he doesn’t provide much in the way of offense, the Flyers still like him as a prospect.
“First of all, Sammy skates well,” GM Ron Hextall said recently, per PhillyVoice. “Sam is not old school where he doesn’t skate very well. He moves well, he’s a big guy who has great range. You still have to get the puck back, so guys like Sammy are not going to go away. I think the guys that started to go away are the guys who aren’t very fleet of foot.”
The future of the Flyers’ blue line is still unfolding. Shayne Gostisbehere and Ivan Provorov are both sure bets to be part of it, and management liked Radko Gudas enough to give him a four-year contract extension. But Mark Streit, Nick Schultz, and Michael Del Zotto are all pending unrestricted free agents, and Andrew MacDonald, despite his contract, will need to keep proving he belongs in the NHL.
So while Morin may be disappointed that he’s yet to establish himself with the Flyers, there are opportunities to be had down the line.