There aren’t many 4th round selections that make it to the NHL. Even less 4th rounders make it to NHL after an injury takes a year of their development away. Luckily for Samuel Dove-McFalls, he isn’t like many 4th round selections.
Dove-McFalls sustained a knee injury early into last season and missed nearly all of it as a result. He played in five of the first seven games for the Saint John Sea Dogs before snagging the injury bug where he potted one goal and added two helpers. Fortunate for the Montreal native, his injury woes seem to be behind him.
“The injury happened in October, but I’m 100% now,” Dove-McFalls said.
Having not been able to showcase his skills for the majority of the year has given Samuel something to prove coming into development camp against fellow prospect who have had a year to hone their skills.
“I didn’t play many games this year,” Sam began. “I want to show [the Flyers] that I’m 100% back to work where I know I can be and where they know I can be. I think I’ve had a good summer so far and I obviously want to learn a lot this week. It’s development camp where I can develop my skills and my hockey knowledge.”
Although a good portion of his development was hindered, it’s water under the bridge for Dove-McFalls and the Flyers.
“It didn’t help getting injured. It was a bit of a setback, but having spoke with the organization, they’re happy with the way I finished off my year,” Dove-Mcfalls mentioned.
As for his expectations heading into next season, Sam said, “I assume I’m going back to Saint John unless some miracle happens. We have a really good team with a lot of guys coming back. We had a really good playoff run last year, but this year we want to win it all.”
Dove-McFalls is a noted two-way forward who uses his large frame at will. Known for his defensive play over his offensive prowess, Dove-McFalls scored six goals in 17 playoff games. The offense is there, but he projects as a defensive-minded forward at the NHL level. He has the size as it is; it’s simply a matter of overcoming the injury and picking up where he left off, which Dove-McFalls should not have any issues with.
