PHILADELPHIA – Although he was a bit disappointed when he didn’t make the final roster out of training camp, Oliver Bonk knew he was at the top of the Flyers’ call-up list.
That opportunity came Sunday night when the rookie defenseman was brought up from the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and put into action due to injuries to Cam York and Rasmus Ristolainen.
Bonk, the 21-year-old son of former NHL star Radek Bonk, got a taste of the NHL last year when he played a regular-season game, plus one other in the playoffs.
In a pre-game media session at Xfinity Mobile Arena, coach Rick Tocchet said Bonk’s ability to move the puck made him a natural candidate for promotion.
“Advancing the puck, making a good first pass,” Tocchet said. “And he can walk the blue line, things we like about him, that can add to our team.”
Tocchet said Oliver’s calmness with the puck probably comes from his pedigree. Most great scorers are known for their ability to not rattle under pressure.
“He was great in junior, that was one of his pedigrees,” said Tocchet, referring to the two Memorial Cups the younger Bonk won with the London Knights. “Under pressure, he can make those breakout plays when somebody is on his back. It’s the little things at a young age when you can do it, with more reps he’s going to be really good at it.”
With Bonk getting a chance here, could other youngsters be far behind?
“You look at Cole (Knuble) down there (Lehigh Valley),” Tocchet said. “And ‘Luch’ (Jett Luchanko). . .they’re speedsters.”
>Konecny on IR
Travis Konecny, who was injured in last Thursday’s game at Ottawa, was placed on injured reserve.
“Definitely this week he will be out,” Tocchet said. “After that, I don’t know if it’s day to day or week to week. I would say after that (stint on IR), day to day.”
The coach said he doesn’t believe the lower-body injury will be long term.
>The effort is there
Going into Sunday night’s game, the Flyers were trying to avoid their worst start in team history. General manager Daniel Briere previously said the effort is there but sometimes that’s not always enough.
“I mean they’re hurting, they’re trying,” Tocchet said before the came against Carolina. “Every day they’re in there trying to do the right thing.
“What Danny’s talking about is how to win that puck battle. There’s just moments in a game you’ve just got to get done, you’ve got to squash plays. We’re not squashing plays this year. Then the reads become less and less.”
>Not completing assignments
One problem the Flyers seem to be having is completing assignments.
Veteran defenseman and alternate captain Travis Sanheim pointed this out the other day.
“He said we’re blowing assignments we shouldn’t blow,” Tocchet said. “If you stack those blown assignments, that leads to mistakes. But this is a close group. They all know we have to do better. I don’t think that’s a problem at all.”
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