Sam Morin’s Comeback Story: Take 2

To say that the career of Sam Morin has been like a roller coaster would be an understatement.

Background
Sam is a 6 foot 7, 202-pound beast that roams the blue line as a defenseman. He was born in Quebec, Canada, and started playing Pee-Wee hockey in 2007. During Sam Morin’s junior hockey days, he was selected to the 2011-12 QMJHL All-Rookie Team. Fast forward as he entered the NHL Draft in 2013 and was drafted by the Philadelphia Flyers with the 11th overall pick.

Later that year Sam signed a 3-year contract with the Flyers as stayed to play in Canada for the next 2 seasons. In 2015 he came to play for the Leigh Valley Phantoms (the Philadelphia Flyers minor league affiliate). He has been working his tail off to get to the major league level, but one thing has been holding him back in his professional career, injuries.

Not One but Two
Sam Morin was in the heat of the 2018 Calder Cup playoffs along with his teammates in Leigh Valley as he suffered a torn ACL in his right knee. It was a long road to recovery as he dedicated himself to get back to the player he once was.

He returned to action a year later and played in 3 games for the Phantoms and 1 for the Flyers before some more terrible news. He tore the same ACL in the same knee again. It seemed as if he cannot catch a break. Once a highly-touted prospect now has been knocked down the totem pole multiple times. Sam Morin is a fighter and refuses to give up and do whatever it takes to be a regular NHL player.

Defense to Left-Wing?
Speaking of doing whatever it takes, switching positions is one way to try and save your career. With the Flyers coming off a great 2019-20 season and filled at the defensive position, Sam was asked to move to left-wing to stay on the Flyers while not knowing if anyone else would take a chance on him.

All eyes were on Sam to see how his adjustment was going at his new spot in training camp, but honestly, he looked good. He was moving well and was learning every day on his positioning as a forward. All he needed was more reps at the position at the minor league level and he would be good to go.

That plan took a left turn as the Leigh Valley Phantoms had some injures at the defensive position while a small Covid outbreak spread throughout the team. Before Sam could blink, he was back playing defense.

After his first game back at defense, he talked to Flyers General Manager Chuck Fletcher and expressed how much he loved playing defense because of the comfort level he had at that position. Since that phone call, Sam Morin has played all of his games at defense and has been called up to the NHL.

The Relief of his 1st NHL Goal
In football, most rookies will be super nervous leading up until game time, but as soon as they get hit the first time, they realize that all of their nerves went away because it is just football now. Similarly to when a prospect gets called up to the big leagues, the cliche is “just have to get the first one, then the flood gates will open.”

The same thing applies to hockey and the NHL. As the Philadelphia Flyers were playing the New York Rangers in the 1-1 tie in the 3rd period, Sam lasered a snapshot, low glove side on the Rangers goaltender. The thing that made that moment even better was the fact that he just finished a 2-minute shift where he was left on the ice for a while as the Rangers kept applying pressure.

He made some key blocks and plays to help him get off the ice for the next group of defensemen to get out there. His next shift, however, lasted only 8 seconds as he hops over the boards and scored the eventual game-winning goal.

What may have been better than the goal was the reaction of his teammates, especially Shayne Gostisbehere. As soon as the puck crossed the goal line, the Flyers that were on the ice at the time immediately jumped all over him in celebration.

The 3,100 fans that were in attendance for the game made it sounds like it was a packed house. It was an incredible moment and that was topped off with a post-game interview with Jim Jackson as he states, “it’s probably the best moment of my life.”

Where does Sam go from here?
The Flyers are still struggling to find their footing as their playoff hopes are getting smaller by each game they lose, which has been a lot recently. Morin has played well in his short stint with the big club so far and he looks to continue his good play and encourage his teammates to do the same.

Keep an eye out for Sam Morin to be a key player for the Flyers down the stretch as they continue to search for their defense.