To prepare for Friday's NHL draft, to settle on the best way to use that No. 7 overall pick, Flyers general manager Ron Hextall has spent plenty of time on the phone with an old teammate, looking to improve what is already perceived to be the organization's long-term position of strength.
The Flyers are looking forward to having all those touted prospects on defense join them in the years to come: Travis Sanheim, Shayne Gostisbehere, Robert Hagg, Samuel Morin. Nevertheless, Hextall has been probing the mind of former Flyers defenseman Kerry Huffman - now the director of player development for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights of the Atlantic Youth Hockey League - for insight into Ivan Provorov.