ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – When defenseman Brek Liske was selected by the Flyers in the second round of the NHL Draft on Saturday, he didn’t have to rush out to buy a team jersey.
He and his dad, Lonnie, already had a bunch of them. Around 30 at last count.
In fact, Brek was wearing one when he went on camera for a media Zoom conference call.
So to say Liske is excited about joining Philadelphia’s hockey team is more than a bit of an understatement.
Aside from the Liske selection the Flyers added to their “Czech goaltender arsenal” by using their other second-round pick (No. 62) on Czech goaltender Marek Psohlavec and their fourth-round choice (No. 120) on another Czech guy, netminder Marek Sklenicka.
“My dad was always a big Flyers fan his whole life,” Liske said from the family’s lakeside cabin in Manitoba. “Going to Flyers games, wearing Flyers stuff.”
Unusual, given Lonnie was hanging out in his native western Canada.
“He’s always loved Philly,” a grinning Brek said. “I just think he liked how they played.
Liske, a Manitoba native who goes 6-foot-1, 190 pounds, has evoked a number of positive scouting reports in his time with the Everett Silvertips of the Western Hockey League.
One report said: “Liske is a steady defender with size and assured mobility who has been providing a dominant team in Everett with consistent, detail-oriented play all season. He’s a smart player who’s efficient at retrieving pucks in his own end and evading forecheckers allowing for faster transitions up the ice.”
No wonder the Flyers wanted to get him into their fold.
“I’m a two-way defenseman,” he said. “I defend well. Can move the puck.”
The Flyers wound up putting a strong emphasis on the defense and goaltending positions.
Said Flyers assistant general manager Brent Flahr, who handles scouting, of Liske (after his partner got hurt with the Silvertips): “He did a heck of a job. He really showed what he could do. His ability to skate, retrieve pucks, make the first pass under pressure is a difficult thing to do.”
As for the netminder position, Flahr liked what he was able to do.
“Psohlavec is a guy we were targeting,” he said. “Sklenicka is another guy who is very talented, will take a little longer physically. With goaltenders, it takes awhile for development.”
The goaltending picture continues to get brighter. You have Dan Vladar and Joseph Woll at the top, Aleksei Kolosov and Carson Bjarnason in the middle and the two newcomers on the way up.
Liske really picked up his play late in the season with Everett and that may have convinced the Flyers to take a chance on him.
“Yeah, I think it was kind of a confidence thing,” Liske said. “I realized more who I was and what I could do. Convincing myself I could do it.”
As for the 30 or so jerseys, that’s a rather attention-getting number.
“There’s a lot of Flyers’ jerseys here,” Liske said. “Some on the deck, some down by the water. Definitely a lot of Flyers’ jerseys.”
Any particular names on the backs of the jerseys more than others?
Liske said the name of former Flyer superstar Claude Giroux is prominent in the collection.
“I’m a big Giroux fan, my hockey jersey number is 82 (Giroux’s No. 28 backwards),” Liske said. “I interviewed with the Flyers, my dad is a crazy fan. That’s pretty funny. They said, ‘your father’s a pretty big Flyer fan.’ I said, ‘yup.’ Big Flyers fan for sure.”
When Lonnie found out his son had been drafted by the Flyers, his reaction was predictable.
“I’ve never heard him yell so loud,” Brek said with a laugh. “He’s very proud right now. I think he’s a little bit more in awe than I am.”
Liske knows there’s still room for improvement in his game.
“I want to become quicker,” he said. “Just play a little faster. That will be my focus.”
Psohlavec has impressed scouts with his tracking, frame and glove hand which leaves opponents with little to shoot at.
Later, the Flyers went with Sklenicka.
Sklenicka, 6-foot-3, 170 pounds, impressed scouts with his flexibility. “Much lighter on his feet than most big stoppers,” one report stated.
With the 136th pick in the fifth round, the Flyers selected forward Kent “KJ” Sauer (6-foot-3, 203 pounds). He plays for his hometown Andover, Minn. High School team.
“I’m a big power forward who works both ways,” Sauer said in a Zoom call. “Like to be gritty, get into the greasy areas and not afraid of anyone.”
Sauer overcame knee surgery after his junior year but came back strong for his senior campaign.
He didn’t play his first game until Jan. 6, about halfway through the season, but hit the ice at full speed.
“It was a struggle,” he recalled. “But I enjoyed the time off as much as I could.”
Sauer said he will be playing for the Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL next season.
In the seventh (and final round), the Flyers took defenseman Max Laatikainen at pick No. 213.
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