The Philadelphia Flyers are beginning to turn the corner in their rebuild. They’re done being sellers at the deadline, instead extending guys like Christian Dvorak, who they might have traded in years past. Danny Briere and Keith Jones have done a great job of trimming down the fat and filling the prospect cupboards in recent years.

Matvei Michkov is already here. Denver Barkey hasn’t looked out of place in the NHL during his first professional season. Jett Luchanko made the roster out of training camp the last two seasons. And, of course, Porter Martone is dominating during his freshman year at Michigan State and had a great showing at the World Junior Championship.

Those are just the headliners, though. Alex Bump could be one of the next guys called up. Jack Berglund captained Team Sweden to gold at the World Juniors, and there’s another Michigan State forward who could be turning pro sooner than we think.

When talking with Jason Myrtetus on Friday’s episode of Flyers Daily about the team’s winger depth, Briere casually threw Shane Vansaghi’s name into the mix in the same breath as Martone.

Shane Vansaghi is “a few months away” from NHL

“There’s no doubt that, collectively, both wingers, right and left, are very strong, and it’s looking even stronger, too,” Briere said. “Denver Barkey just started playing; he doesn’t look out of place. You have Bump, that’s not too far away. You know, Martone and Vansaghi are a few months away as well. So it’s really exciting.”

It’s no surprise that Briere would mention Barkey, Bump, and last year’s sixth overall pick, but the Vansaghi mention is definitely interesting.

Vansaghi was ranked as highly as 27th in last year’s NHL Draft rankings, and many experts expected him to go early in the second round. However, despite the Flyers having a few picks early in that second round, they waited until the 48th overall pick to grab the big winger.

The 19-year-old forward stands at 6’2″ and 216 pounds. He had 16 points (6 goals, 10 assists) in 37 games during his freshman year at Michigan State, and has seen that scoring take a hit with just 6 points (1 goal, 5 assists) through 16 games.

Vansaghi also represented Team USA at the World Juniors, recording no points with a plus-minus of minus-four in the tournament.

A quick glance at the numbers might not lead you to believe that Vansaghi is ready for the professional game, especially the NHL, but the Flyers’ scouts and Briere apparently think highly of him.

The forward has had a few impressive games at Michigan State this season, though. He scored his lone goal and set up a few other chances in a win over the Boston University Terriers back on October 18:

“Vansaghi was one of the standouts in this contest, second to maybe only his linemate Cayden Lindstrom, with a game-high 10 shot attempts (six on goal, tied for game-high) and his first tally of the season. His line with Lindstrom and Gavin O’Connell was the most dangerous line for either team in this one, creating plenty of chances and cashing in twice.”

Then, just over a month later, Vansaghi was put on a new line and had another strong performance, this time against Colgate.

Vansaghi profiles as a bottom-six — potentially middle-six — power forward who can help out on the power play. He already has he frame for the NHL, and perhaps the Flyers could use him later in the season.

Of course, Vansaghi and Martone are both at Michigan State, and the Spartans are one of the favorites to win the NCAA Championship this season. So even though the regular season ends in early March, they’ll likely be playing until the Frozen Four from April 9 to 11.

That’d still leave two home games at the end of the season if the front office wanted to get those Michigan State products some NHL action with the Flyers this year. And they’d be eligible to play in the playoffs if the Flyers make it that far.

Martone and Vansaghi could be key additions for the Flyers late in the season, along with potentially Luchanko if the organization decides to bring him to the NHL rather than the AHL like last year. There’s also the chance that Tyson Foerster could return if the Flyers qualify for the postseason.