While it’s still early, the Philadelphia Flyers may have found themselves a hidden gem in winger prospect Nikita Grebenkin, who continues to impress in the NHL preseason and training camp.
Grebenkin, 22, has begun to understand his role as a support player and power forward of sorts, and even admitted last week that he “didn’t understand” his coach in the KHL.
“I go here and Coach Tocc [tells] me, ‘It’s your game, tough game, you’re a big guy, hard-working, it’s good for you. You get points and you score here’, Grebenkin had said. “I don’t want to stay long time behind the net, but now I understand. It’s good for me. It’s my game.”
Grebenkin got to the net again against the New York Islanders on Thursday night, screening superstar goalie Ilya Sorokin on Travis Konecny’s second-period one-timer goal to help give the Flyers a 2-1 lead.
And, although the Flyers did ultimately lose by a narrow 4-3 margin, Grebenkin again proved that he can hang with players like Konecny and Sean Couturier and make plays.
“He made that goal, and he’s a sticky guy. He comes up with loose pucks, support. You always need those corner guys that could come up with pucks,” Tocchet said of Grebenkin after the loss. “If we can continue to teach him to play that way, he can be a real force out there.
“I think in the first period, he almost split the D. That’s good stuff. We want that from him, so I hope he continues to do that.”
Flyers Roster Prediction 1.0: Nikita Grebenkin Secures Big Opportunity
Following multiple roster cuts on Tuesday, the Philadelphia Flyers have only a handful of decisions to make before they reach their final roster for the start of the regular season.
Grebenkin finished Thursday’s exhibition game with three shots on goal in a relatively modest 14:07 of ice time, and this was a game where the Flyers had only one power play opportunity.
We’ve seen the blossoming Russian wreak havoc in the crease to create a goal more than once this preseason, and that tool should be equally or more useful with the man advantage as the Flyers’ coaching staff grows more and more comfortable with him.
At this point, we can consider Grebenkin a virtual lock to make the Flyers’ final roster, with a few players still left jostling for a roster spot. Jett Luchanko and Rodrigo Abols, however, have not done enough consistently enough to leave Grebenkin in limbo on this roster.
Also of note: Owen Tippett played alongside Trevor Zegras and Matvei Michkov on Thursday night, and all three forwards stumbled to an unproductive outing that saw them each finish with -2 ratings.
Grebenkin played with those two in the first preseason game of the slate, and it could be a look the Flyers return to if Zegras and Michkov can’t find chemistry with Tippett soon.
The opportunities are there for the taking, and should Grebenkin continue on this upwards trajectory, he could easily be a pleasant surprise for the Flyers in the top-nine forward group.
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