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Porter was expected to pass through waivers and ultimately serve as forward depth at the AHL level for the Flyers. However, the Wild apparently saw promise in the 31-year-old winger, who reportedly had been one of the standout players at Flyers camp. He will now head to Minnesota, where he will likely assume a bottom-six role and likely be on a checking line with a role that won't generate much scoring.
As has become an annual tradition, Porter bounced between AHL Chicago and the Blues last season, logging 38 games in the minors and 22 games with the NHL squad. While he’s shown some decent scoring touch during his time in the minors, the Blues have viewed him as nothing more than a bottom-six skater in his stints with the club. He did average over three hits per game with the Blues last season, but his inconsistent ice time and limiting scoring upside as a winger on the checking line don’t make him particularly interesting for fantasy purposes.
The Blues re-signed Porter to a one-year, two-way contract in the offseason after he played a career-high 47 games with St. Louis in 2011-12. At this point in his career, and perhaps forever, Porter is a fourth-liner who gives head coach Ken Hitchcock a speedier, more skillsy option when making out a nightly lineup. Whenever Hitchcock wants sandpaper on the fourth line, he goes with Ryan Reaves. If the coach wants someone who might be able to generate offense, he goes with Porter. It's likely Porter's experience lands him a similar role to last season when he was often the 13th or 14th forward on any given night, or as a fill-in for an injured center.
Injuries forced Porter into a larger-than-expected role, playing 45 games with the Blues in 2010-11. He’s been a disappointment at AHL Peoria, posting 32 goals and 91 points in 234 games, and had just seven points with St. Louis. So you can bet the Blues aren’t going to put themselves in a position to rely on Porter for significant minutes. That’s why they signed Jamie Langenbrunner and Jason Arnott in the offseason.
Time might be running out for Porter, who is 26-years-old entering this season. He's been a disappointment offensively, scoring just 54 points in 154 games the last two seasons for the Peoria Rivermen of the AHL. He'll return to the Rivermen for the upcoming season and may get a call up to St. Louis, but he's not in the organization's long-term plans.
Porter will likely start the season at Peoria (AHL) but will be on the "short list" for a callup should injuries hit the Blues' centers.
Porter brings good size, grit and a willingness to go to the net and wreak havoc in front of opposing goaltenders. The defensive aspect of his game could use some more work, however. Porter scored 30 points in 43 games in the NCAA last season with the University of North Dakota. He is not expected to make the NHL for at least another couple of seasons.
