TAMPA, Fla. — The Philadelphia Flyers are sending first-round draft pick Scott Laughton back to the minors.
The team announced today that 18-year-old center was being sent to Oshawa of the Ontario Hockey League.
Laughton, taken 20th overall by Philadelphia in the 2012 amateur draft, was pointless in five games with the Flyers.
"It's a difficult one," Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren said of the decision in a story on the team's website. "He played very well, but at the end of the day it was something that we talked about and it was in the best interest of the Flyers and also Scott."
If Laughton, a rookie from the junior leagues, had stayed with the Flyers for more than five games, the entry-level contract he signed last summer would have gone into effect and this season would have counted as his first.
Laughton had 33 points, including 13 goals, in 32 games with Oshawa this season before making his NHL debut in the Flyers' season opener on Jan. 19.
