Hunter McDonald's hard-nosed, physical style of play is what endeared him to the Philadelphia Flyers when he was drafted 165th overall in 2022, and staying true to that identity is what he hopes will help him break into the senior roster.
This isn't McDonald's first rodeo, and he's been feeling good about the bonding happening between the group participating in this year's development camp.
"We're having a lot of fun," he said on the first day of camp. "We got together yesterday and did some team-building, did some paintball. We're all clicking together. It was fun, all bruised up."
He's also relishing the opportunity to be more of a leader in camp, highlighting how it's important for him to help the younger players settle in.
"It's awesome to be an older guy," he said. "There's a lot of young guys so it's fun to see [because] I was there too, and I can make it as comfortable as possible [for them]."
McDonald broke into the Lehigh Valley Phantoms during the second half of the season after signing his entry-level contract back in April—a huge step in his journey to the NHL level.
"From my standpoint, finishing up in Lehigh was great, and going into this summer knowing what I needed to work on in camp was great," he described. "[The AHL] is faster, bigger than college. In terms of myself, keep playing the way I want to play. It's only gonna get faster and bigger as I go up."
Staying faithful to his game is the priority, as he believes that's what will ultimately help him achieve his ultimate goal of making the Flyers roster.
"I'm super confident in myself," he stated. "That's my goal, so I'm just going to keep that mentality and see how it plays out. [I'm] just sticking to that—I'm not trying to be something I'm not. I think that's gonna take me far.
"[The Flyers] are really excited about [my style of play], but taking in things they want me to work on and keep playing my game. I think that's what's going to help them down the line and help the team win."
For now, though, he's focusing on preparing for his first full professional season with the Phantoms
"I talked with [Ian Laperriere] and the development guys," he told reporters. "We have a good plan. I'll be staying down here for about a month, so that'll be great for me to keep working on the things we talked about. This is a great time to get down here and have fun in the summer and keep meeting people, so I'm really comfortable going into camp and going into next year."
