BREAKING: Flyers inked a new deal with promising forward!

Flyers inked a new deal with promising forward

Philadelphia Flyers general manager Ron Hextall announced today that his team has signed highly touted NCAA free agent Mike Vecchione to an entry-level contract. It’s been a whirlwind 24 hours for the NCAA's top scorer (tied with Pittsburgh Penguins prospect Zach Aston-Reese) as he was named a Hobey Baker Award finalist just yesterday, as well.

The right-handed shooting forward capped off an impressive college career at Union of the ECAC with an outstanding 2016-17 season. In addition to tying for the NCAA point lead, his 29 goals was second in the NCAA and his 63 points in 38 games set a new career high for the native of Saugus, MA.

The Flyers had been rumoured to be have strong interest in Vecchione for a while, so the signing comes as little surprise. In fact, Vecchione attended the Flyers’ Development Camp in 2016 and was formerly teammates with Flyers defencemen Shayne Gostisbehere at Union College.

Vecchione, captain for two of his four seasons at Union, has been described as a speedy player with all around playmaking and shooting skills. While the Flyers have a less than 1% chance of qualifying for this year’s playoffs, Vecchione should provide the team’s fans with some optimism for next season.