The 11th edition of the annual Flyers Alumni Fantasy Camp ran from Friday, August 15, 2025 through Monday, August 18, at the Class of 1923 Arena on the University of Pennsylvania campus. The event is always a lot of fun for players and their Alumni coaches alike: a weekend full of laughs, competition, renewing friendships and making new ones. This year, a few special surprises were added into the weekend.
Team Toyota (Purple Jerseys)
1 G Conor McElwain Marriottsville, MD
3 F James Cox Glen Burnie, MD
9 F Nick Barretta Toronto, ON
13 D Bill Poulton Philadelphia, PA
14 D Phil Foster Philadelphia, PA
16 F Thomas Santoro Ashburn, VA
21 F John Hughes Kutztown, PA
22 D/F Brian McElwain Wilmington, NC
26 F Devon Richio Hatfield, PA
27 G Phil Brady King of Prussia, PA
45 D Jack McElwain Marriottsville, MD
51 F James Maenner Drexel Hill, PA
55 F Roger Burnish Leesport, PA
57 D Michael Renaud Carneys Point, NJ
Coaches: Daniel Briere and Patrick Sharp
Team River Rock Academy (White Jerseys)
5 D Robert Kunka Eagle Bay, BC
7 D/F John McCaskey Manassas Park, VA
10 D/F Lupo Dion Yamhill, OR
11 F Jason Freeland Mantua, NJ
16 F Ron DeBrigida Phoenix, AZ
18 F John Donnelly Lancaster, PA
21 F Brian George Hanover Park, IL
27 D Jay Indelicato Newman Lake, WA
30 G Glenn Moir Brookhaven, PA
39 F Ian Wessels Newtown Square, PA
47 G Dean Humphreys White Rock, BC
66 F Jason Green Sherwood, OR
67 D Brian Archer Vancouver, WA
84 F Mark Milik Barnegat, NJ
Coaches: John LeClair and Brad Marsh
Team New Balance (Green Jerseys)
5 F Jamie Sparenga Lansdale, PA
6 D Matt Steinberg Fort Washington, PA
9 D Howard Jaffe Ambler, PA
13 G Ben Yuter Salt Lake City, UT
15 F John Baumgartner Wanaque, NJ
16 D/F Troy Normandin Kenmore, NY
18 D Michael Mahoney Philadelphia, PA
20 F Mark Jaffe Cherry Hill, NJ
27 F Jordan Yuter Plymouth Meeting, PA
29 D Fred Jaffe Philadelphia, PA
42 F Anthony Asciutto Mount Laurel, NJ
56 G Chris Schultz Baltimore, MD
72 F Jay Goodman Philadelphia, PA
81 F Brian Wiechec Roaring Brook, PA
Coaches: Keith Jones and Joe Watson
Team PSS Group (Orange Jerseys)
1 G Dan Rieber Winter Harbor, ME
02 F Denis Rougeau Hatfield, PA
3 D Jim Young Pineville, PA
14 F Michael Donnelly Hatboro, PA
16 F Anthony Ciccarone Philadelphia, PA
25 D Scott Radman Souderton, PA
27 G Heather Meister Philadelphia, PA
28 F Zach Stahl Brockport, NY
31 D Dominic Koltenback Hatfield, PA
37 D Jenny Koltenback Hatfield, PA
44 F Ron Anthony Quinn Danbury, CT
48 F Greg Stahl Brockport, NY
92 F Alex Monti Turnersville, NJ
97 D/F Ronald Moore Danbury, CT
Coaches: Bill Clement and Mark Recchi
Training Staff: Dave Culp, Turk Evers, Sudsy Settlemyre, Joe Rivera, Rob Pomroy,
FRIDAY, AUGUST 15, 2025
After everyone checked into The Study hotel in University City, we headed out for our annual Welcome reception. Unlike previous years, when we did our “secret location” outing on Saturday night and the welcome reception in University City, we shook things up a bit in 2025. We boarded buses and visited the historic 23rd St. Armory. In continuous service to the country since 1774, the Armory (located at 22 S. 23rd St) is the historic locale of the First Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry,
Our extremely knowledgeable host and tour guide Matteo took us around the Armory and shared its rich history, artifacts and exhibits. The Alumni coaching staff plus longtime friends of the Alumni Dan Maggiani and Steve Capoferri, had a round of drinks in the non-commissioned officers quarters. We had drinks and dinner on site, including prime rib.
Flyers public address announcer Lou Nolan individually introduced all of the players and coaches on Team Toyota, Team River Rock Academy, Team New Balance and Team PSS (Payroll Service Solutions) and we took team photos on the Armory dining hall. After dinner, we walked back to the Study. Practices and games got underway on Saturday at the Class of 1923 rink.
Saturday, August 16, 2025
The morning hours saw each of the four teams practice on the Class of 1923 Arena ice. Team PSS went first. They were followed, in order, by Team Toyota, Team New Balance and Team River Rock Academy. Team New Balance coach Joe Watson arrived an hour early to watch the other teams practice, and noted his observations aloud on which players to watch out for on the other teams.
Those who know Joe were hardly surprised. By habit, Joe is a) extremely punctual, b) a born competitor. and c) still as smitten with hockey at age 82 as he was a youngster in Smithers, British Colualmbia. Joe loves to have fun but he takes winning as seriously now as he did as the alternate captain of the Broad Street Bullies.
As Watson himself is fond of saying, “Anyone can lose. Not anyone can win.”
With Paul Holmgren unavailable to co-coach Team River Rock due a conflicting commitment — the late Ilkka Sinisalo’s son was hosting a charity golf tournament — Flyers Alumni Association president Brad Marsh stepped in to co-coach the team with Flyers Hall of Famer John LeClair.
After the ice was resurfaced following the final practice, it was time for the tournament games to get underway. First, however, there was a special surprise for all the players.
Each of the four teams wore special game-day uniforms that were exact reproductions of the ones worn by Flyers’ farm teams in the American Hockey League over the years. The players also received commemorative t-shirts bearing the farm team’s logos and main colors. Team Payroll Service Solutions (orange) wore Richmond Robins’ sweaters. Team Toyota (purple) sported the look of the Phantoms during their years in Philadelphia. Team New Balance (green) channeled the look of the Flyers’ original farm team, the Quebec Aces. Finally, Team River Rock Academy (white) rocked the original Maine Mariners look from their years as the Calder Cup-winning Flyers farm team in the AHL.
Rob Baer, the Flyers’ director of amateur and youth hockey programs, shared the secret with me (under promise of keeping total secrecy from the players) during the Flyers Alumni’s recent golfing and sightseeing trip to Ireland. As a classic uniform enthusiast, it was hard not to tell anyone the secret! But it was well worth it in the end. Rob delivered a batch of the four logo t-shirts to my spot in the pressbox. However, I never could get the 21st St. Armory secret out of Rob ahead of our arrival on Friday night.
GAME 1: Team Toyota 13 – Team PSS 8
This was almost two different games rolled into one. Team Toyota roared out to an insurmountable 5-0 lead by the time the game was 7:56 into the first period. Thereafter, it was a competitive, albeit very high-scoring game the rest of the way. The two sides traded off eight goals apiece over the remainder of play.
Flyers Warriors veteran Devon Richio led the way for Team Toyota, channeling his inner Tim Kerr with a five-goal game. Meanwhile, Roger Burnish was a Fantasy Camp LeClair with a six-point performance (five goals, one assist). Nick Baretta collected three apples. Flyers Warriors defenseman Phil Foster tallied a pair of goals.
On the Team PSS side, Flyers Warriors regular Michael Donnelly notched two goals. Perennial Fantasy Camp scoring standout Zach “Gunnar” Stahl racked up a four-goal afternoon.
Prime scoring chances came in abundance for both teams as the match progressed, which made life tough on the goalies. Returning to Camp after a couple of years away, Heather Meister split the match in net with veteran netminder Dan Rieber (he of the classic NHL team logo wardrobe off the ice). Maryland’s Conor McElwain and camp perennial Phil Brady handled the goaltending chores for the victorious Team Toyota squad. (Side note: Thanks for the pressbox company and the beer during the second game, Phil!)
Game 2: Team RIver Rock 5 – Team New Balance 3
The day’s second match was up for grabs until near the end. Most of the match was played with the score tied or with River Rock Academy ahead by one goal. Finally, River Rock got an insurance goal. Jacob Green notched the game’s second and fifth goals for the winning side. He also assisted on a Mark Miller goal with 1:10 remaining in the first period.
Camp veteran Mark Jaffe contributed two goals for the New Balance side.James Sparenga opened the scoring in the first period, temporarily staking his team to a 1-0 lead;
Glenn Muir and British Columbia resident Dean Humphreys shared the goaltending duties for the winning team. Ben Yuter, the son of camp vet Jordan Yuter, returned to camp after a one-year absence. He and Baltimore’s Chris Schultz manned the net for New Balance.
Saturday Night Outing: Flyers Training Center
Normally, our annual surprise outing during camp takes place on Saturday evening, rather than the first night. This year, the Saturday destination — the Flyers Training Center in Voorhees — was announced ahead of time. However, the exact details were somewhat kept under wraps apart from having a barbecue dinner, dessert and open bar. Bacio Kitchen and Catering, which always caters the annual Friday Night Fights event each March, did their usual outstanding job preparing the food for the event.
Subsequently, one group at a time, the camp attendees were led on a top-to-bottom, all access tour of the Flyers Training Center. Patrick Sharp and Danny Briere led us through normally off-limits areas of the facility. (As a media member, I typically see ONLY the media workroom, the main locker room, and the press conference area). On this tour, we went into normally off-limits areas that are players-only, front office-only, and coaches-only portions of the inner sanctum. Meanwhile, Briere showed some of his tools of the trad trade that he puts to use on a daily basis.
SUNDAY, AUGUST 17, 2025
Sundays mark our marathon four-game day at Fantasy Camp each year. Team PSS drew the short straw this year of playing the back-to-back games on Day 3. The first two games were both highly competitive until one side pulled away in the third period.
Team Toyota 7 – Team New Balance 1
The game was tied at 1-1 after the first period and remained knotted until 4:22 of the (15-minute) second period. Thereafter, Team Toyota took control and pulled away. The Briere/Sharp squad in the Philadelphia Phantoms’ sweaters scored three times in the middle stanza and three more in the third period. Mike Barretta notched two goals for the winning time, while Roger Burnish, while Brian McElwain, Devin RIchio and Jack McElwain tallied once apiece. Jay Goodman’s first period goal stood as the lone score on the Jones/Watson team in the Quebec Aces sweaters. Conor McElwain and Phil Brady combined for the victory in goal.
Team PSS 10 – Team River Rock 7
It wouldn’t be a Flyers Fantasy Cup tournament without at least one game in which the father/son duo of Greg and Zach Stahl light up the scoreboard like one from an EA Sports NHL game. In this match, the Stahls accounted for seven of the 10 goals scored by the Clement/Recchi team in the Richmond Robins sweaters.Jason Green, Brian Archer and John McCaskey all scored second-period goals on the John LeClair/Brad Marsh side in the Maine Mariners uniforms. Team River Rock veteran Brian George gutted out the game while playing through a lower body injury that temporarily halted play..
With two games in the books, everyone had a few hours to rest, grab some lunch and head back to the Class of 1923 Arena. A perennial popular choice among camp attendees is the New Deck Tavern on 34th and Spruce Sts. No one could linger for too long, however. Two more games remained for the day
Team New Balance 6 – Team PSS 3
This was a highly competitive match until two goals by Michael Mahoney and one by Troy Normandin put New Balance in control to stay. The match got a bit feisty at times. It featured a penalty shot opportunity for New Balance offensive-minded defenseman and lead antagonist Matt Steinberg, a snipe by Mark Jaffe and, on the other side, more of the Stahl chemistry (two goals and an assist for Zach, two helpers for Greg). Ron Moore rounded out the scoring as Team PSS tried to mount a late comeback push.
Team River Rock 2 – Team Toyota 2
Team River Rock Academy held a 2-0 lead in an extremely competitive game until the 3:22 mark of the third period. That’s when power forward Devon Richio drew his Team Toyota squad back within a goal. You could feel the game-tying goal coming as the Team Toyota side pushed and pushed for an equalizer. Finally., with 1:49 remaining on the clock John Hughes scored to forge a 2-2 deadlock. The game ended in a tie. Earlier, Jason Green and Robert Kunka (the pride of Eagle Bay, British Columbia) built a 2-0 edge for Cappy’s River Rock team.
Final Games Set
In one of the most tightly-packed fields in the 11-year history of Fantasy Camp, Team River Rock Academy (1-1-1, four points) edged out Team PSS (1-2-0, three points) and Team New Balance (1-2-0, three points) for a spot in Monday’s championship match against still-undefeated Team Toyota (2-0-1). This set up a rematch of Sunday’s dramatic fourth game.
Farewell Dinner at The Study
Rather than holding the annual Farewell Dinner, silent and live auctions and Hot Stove Q&A session (hosted by Steve Coates) at the Class of 1923 Arena, the annual event took place instead on the second floor at the Study hotel. The food was outstanding, the laughs were plentiful and a great time was had by all. The biggest highlight of the night: The five members of Club Eleven — the camp attendees who’ve come out for each and every one of the 11 camps held to date from 2015 to 2025 — received special recognition and a gift from the Alumni to thank them for their loyalty and support for all we do. Brad Marsh highlighted most of our signature programs and events (he accidentally omitted The 12 Days of Christmas giving program). None of what we do — Every Child Deserves a Bike, the Alumni helping Alumni programs such as House Calls or our new scholarship program for the kids and grandchildren of Alumni or our four-tiered wellness program would be possible without our sponsors, event attendees and the support of Flyers fans everywhere.
Monday, August 18, 2025: Team Toyota Wins the Fantasy Camp Cup
Congratulations to the 2025 Fantasy Camp Cup champions, Team Toyota! Our best-yet weekend of hockey came to a fitting end on Monday with an extremely competitive championship game. Team Toyota nipped Team River Rock Academy, 5-4, in an extremely competitive game. Late goals by Jason Green and Jason Freeland brought River Rock back within one, but the “Phantoms” squad prevented an equalizer and captured the Cup,
On the victorious Team Toyota side, Roger Burnish’s hat trick and two tallies from Nick Barretta supplied the offense the goalie tandem of Conor McElwain and Phil Brady needed to deliver a championship to the Briere/Sharp team. Meanwhile, Brian George returned to action for the championship game and attempted to start the comeback bid with a tally that made it 4-2 at 2:46 of the third period. A mere 14 seconds later, Barretta struck for his second goal of the game to restore a three goal lead. This proved to be the championship winning goal.
Team River Rock goalies Dean Humphreys and Glenn Moir kept the game in reach for their team until the offense could get going. Green’s first of two goals (assisted by John McCaskey at 5:31 of the second period) narrowed an early 2-0 lead to one goal and helped set the tone for a tough fight to the finish. There were no penalties in this match, but both sides went all out from the drop of the opening faceoff until the final buzzer.
Consolation Gage: Team New Balance 8- Team PSS 4
The consolation game was played immediately before the championship match. Team New Balance rode a pair of goals apiece from John Baumgartner and Anthony Asciutto to a 6-3 lead through two periods. Mark Jaffe also scored for the New Balance side, while Jordan Yuter added an empty net goal off a pass from Baumgartner.
On the PSS side, Zach Stahl had a goal and an assist to capture the tournament overall point lead for the third straight year. Defenseman Jim Young, the Flyers Warriors inaugural captain, scored a nice goal late in this game and, earlier, exhorted his teammates to backcheck to help keep the match within reach.