5 Things: Flyers vs. Rangers Rookie Series
By Bill Meltzer, @BillMeltzer/PhiladelphiaFlyers.com

The Philadelphia Flyers prospects and their New York Rangers counterparts play their annual two-game Rookie Series in Allentown this weekend. Game time at the PPL Center is 7 p.m. EDT on Friday and 5 p.m. EDT on Saturday.

The Flyers will hold a morning skate at Flyers Training Center in Voorhees on Friday. The non-game roster players will skate in Allentown on Saturday.

Lehigh Valley Phantoms head coach John Snowden will handle bench coaching duties for the Flyers Rookies. Both games will be streamed on PhiladelphiaFlyers.com. Brian Smith will be handling play-by-play duties with Jason Myrtetus on color commentary.

Here at the 5 Things to watch this weekend.

1. The Killer Bs: Barkey, Bonk and Barkey

Flyers prospects Denver Barkey, Oliver Bonk and Alex Bump will all play their first professional seasons in 2025-26. Barkey, a high-energy winger, could see all-situations duty in the Rookie Series (top-six at five-on-five, penalty killing rotation, secondary power play time). His long-time London Knights teammate, Bonk, will also join the pro ranks.

Bump, 21, has the strongest chance among the three players to earn an opening-night NHL roster spot with the Flyers. Snowden will look for the former Western Michigan winger to provide offensive pop in the Rookie Series. If Thursday’s practice lines hold for Friday’s opening game, Bump will play on a line with 2025 first-round pick Jack Nesbitt and Philadelphia Phantoms sniper Samu Tuomaala.

2. Camp veterans: Tuomaala vs. Othmann

Tuomaala enters his third Rookie Series for the Flyers. The 22-year-old winger, drafted in the 2nd round (46th overall) in the 2021 Draft, had a promising first year with the Phantoms in 2023-24 including a spot in the AHL All-Star Game.

On the New York side, 2021 first-round (16th overall) pick Brennan Othmann is another Rookie Series “veteran”. The 22-year-old winger has had a degree of success with the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack. However, he’s still trying to nail down a regular NHL roster spot with the Blueshirts. Othmann has 25 games of NHL experience to date.

3. Rookie goaltender Bjarnason

Flyers 2023 second-round pick (51st overall) Carson Bjarnason will make his professional debut in 2025-26. This will be his third appearance in the Rookie Series. The 20-year-old former Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL) goaltender has filled out his 6-foot-3 frame over the last couple years.

Last season, Bjarnason had a strong regular season for Brandon. Unfortunately, a late-season lower-body issue hampered his playoff performance.

After joining the Phantoms at the end of the season, Bjarnson was pressed into backup duty after now-former Phantoms goalie Parker Gahagen went down with an injury. Bjarnson dressed as the backup to veteran Cal Petersen (now with the Minnesota Wild). However, he was still banged up and only available in case Petersen also went down with an injury.

Bjarnason is now fully healthy. He’ll split Rookie Series goaltending duties with camp invitee Joey Costanzo.

4. Physical play

These are developmental players. They’ve also scarcely had time to practice. As such, as with rookie games across the NHL spectrum, occasionally ragged play on both sides is fully expected.

However, what some Rookie Series participants may lack in polish is made up for in competitive drive. The prospects on both teams want to impress their organization brass and coaching staff. Expect physical — and sometimes feisty — play that most camp scrimmages lack.

On the Flyers’ side, players will have to deal with 6-foot-7 Rangers prospect Dylan Roobroeck (20 goals as an AHL rookie last season). He’s the biggest player on the ice for either side. Flyers rookie players such as Hunter McDonald, Ty Murchison and perhaps Sawyer Boulton (18 games and 51 penalty minutes with the Phantoms in 2024-25) will try to set a physical tone.

5. Thursday’s practice lines

Lines are very much subject to change from Thursday to Friday and especially from the first to second game of the Rookie Series. Nevertheless, the combinations from Thursday’s practice provide at least a rough framework for how the Flyers may line up this weekend.

Alex Bump – Jack Nesbitt – Samu Tuomaala
Denver Barkey – Jacob Gaucher – Denver Kaplan
Alexis Gendron – Karsen Dorwart – Nikita Grebenkin
Nathan Quinn – Matthew Gard – Sawyer Boulton/Tucker Robertson

Hunter McDonald – Oliver Bonk
Ty Murchison – Spencer Gill
Andre Mondoux – Ethan Samson
Austin Moline – Luke Vloosywk

Carson Bjarnason
Joey Costanzo

On the New York side, keep a close watch on Gabe Perrault. The 2023 first-round pick already has five games of NHL experience and is the most highly-touted offensive prospect in the Rangers’ system. The US National Development Team Program and Boston College product turned pro last season after his sophomore season.