Summer Synopsis: Philadelphia Flyers

The Philadelphia Flyers promoted Daniel Briere to the general manager chair on March 10, finally finding who they wanted commanding their rebuild. The 2023 summer marked Briere’s first chance to take strides toward improving the Flyers’ long-term outlook and he seized the opportunity, reeling in a tremendous draft class and using calm free-agent signings to shore up the NHL roster. There’s still a lot of uncertainty surrounding the Flyers but Briere’s busy summer opened the door to opportunities for a lot of the organization’s younger players, which should result in an interesting 2023-24 campaign, if nothing else.

Draft

1-7: F Matvei Michkov, Sochi (KHL)
1-22: D Oliver Bonk, London (OHL)
2-51: G Carson Bjarnason, Brandon (WHL)
3-87: G Yegor Zavragin, Mamonty (MHL)
3-95: F Denver Barkey, London (OHL)
4-103: F Cole Knuble, Fargo (USHL)
4-120: F Alex Ciernik, Västerviks (Swedish Div. 2)
5-135: D Carter Sotheran, Portland (WHL)
6-172: F Ryan MacPherson, Leamington (GOJHL)
7-199: D Matteo Mann, Chicoutimi (QMJHL)

Daniel Briere wasted no time before making a splash in the new GM role, getting seemingly everything he wanted out of the 2023 NHL Draft. This includes reeling in the polarizing Matvei Michkov, who many argued has a ceiling that might not be far behind Connor Bedard. Questions about how easily he’ll translate to NHL play and off-ice controversy make Michkov hard to project. But they also show how much of a swing for the fences this is from Briere. There’s undoubtedly risk involved with Michkov, who is on contract with the KHL until 2026, but there’s also no doubt that he could be the face of the next generation’s Philadelphia Flyers. The upside is tremendous and Briere is clearly not scared of taking on some risk. It’s a confident move that could pay incredible dividends for the Flyers.

Philadelphia was much calmer with their remaining draft class, maybe in an effort to hedge their bets after swinging for the downs. Teammates Bonk and Barkey bring the same high-offense potential, underlaid by reliable fundamentals. Cole Knuble and Alex Ciernik are both small-frame forwards whose games are defined by gritty forechecking and explosive plays with the puck. And the team get a duo of strong goaltending prospects in Carson Bjarnason and Yegor Zavragin. Both goalies had claims for “best in the draft class” at some point during last season, so it’s exciting to see Philly land both options.

Briere did well at funneling interesting talent into every position with his first NHL Draft.

Trade Acquisitions

G Calvin Petersen (Los Angeles)
D Sean Walker (Los Angeles)
D Helge Grans (Los Angeles)
F Massimo Rizzo (Carolina)

The Flyers only made one trade involving bringing in players this summer, as a part of a three-team trade involving the Columbus Blue Jackets and Los Angeles Kings. When all was said and done, the Flyers had relinquished Ivan Provorov, Kevin Connauton, and Hayden Hodgson and received Sean Walker, Helge Grans, Cal Petersen, the 2023 First Round pick used to select Oliver Bonk, and two 2024 Second Round picks, one carrying a condition.

That’s quite some movement for a rookie general manager and emphasizes the rebuild mindset. Grans is a former high-second round pick, going 35-overall in 2021. He’s spent the last two seasons with the AHL’s Ontario Reign, recording 33 points in 115 career games. While his draft day value has dissipated a little, he’s still an exciting shot at more upside. Grans could be apart of the battle to make the NHL roster our of training camp, although his lack of top-tier experience will likely keep any NHL stint short.

Walker and Petersen likely represent cap dumps from the Kings, who were in a bind for money before moving the duo’s combined $7.65MM. Most of that money is held up in Petersen’s $5MM cap hit, on a contract set to expire in the 2025 summer. He’ll compete for the team’s backup role with Felix Sandstrom, who played 20 NHL games last year. Walker, on the other hand, should have a much clearer path to an everyday role. The 28 year old can play both sides on defense and Provorov’s departure opens space in the team’s top four. With little competition elsewhere, that role will almost certainly become Walker’s.

Philadelphia also acquired prospect Massimo Rizzo in a player swap with Carolina. Rizzo is entering his junior year with the University of Denver, where he’s scored 82 points in 77 career games.

UFA Signings

D Marc Staal (one year, $1.1MM)
F Ryan Poehling (one year, $1.4MM)
F Garnet Hathaway (two years, $4.8MM)
D Victor Mete (one year, $775K)*
F Rhett Gardner (two years, $1.6MM)*

Continuing with the rebuilding theme, Philadelphia used their UFA signings to add aging veterans and any available players that may still have untapped potential. Staal, now 36, helps fill out the Flyers shallow defense depth chart and Hathaway provides assurance to the bottom-six, getting signed through his age-33 season.

Poehling and Mete will be the additions to watch closely. Both players have shown flashes of solid play throughout their NHL career but haven’t been able to string things together enough to stick on a roster. They each get cheap deals in Philadelphia, where roster vacancies should open the door to opportunity.

None of the UFA signings scream out high-impact but they help round out a Flyers roster that’s already looking towards the 2024 NHL Draft.

RFA Re-Signings

D Ronald Attard (two years, $1.7MM)*
D Cameron York (two years, $3.2MM)
F Noah Cates (two years, $5.2MM)
F Olle Lycksell (two years, $1.6MM)*
G Samuel Ersson (two years, $2.9MM)
F Morgan Frost (two years, $4.2MM)

The Flyers locked in three important roster players in York, Cates, and Frost. York started the season in the AHL but earned his way to the NHL roster in December. He scored 20 points in the 54 games he appeared in, doubling his point total from his rookie season. York was drafted 14-overall in 2019, one pick ahead of then-teammate Cole Caufield.

But despite the high selection, York has struggled to find his NHL footing. He gets a cheap, two-year contract that should give him a chance to build on the momentum he gathered in the second-half of last season. The Flyers blue-line will certainly give York every opportunity to thrive, with Travis Sanheim likely the only player ahead of him on the LD depth charts.

Cates and Frost, on the other hand, spent the entire year with the NHL club. Frost netted a career-high 46 points in 81 games while averaging over-16 minutes of ice time per-game. It was an incredibly strong showing from the young prospect, who played all over the lineup.  Fellow 24-year-old Noah Cates also had a strong year, scoring 38 points in 82 games while looking phenomenal defensively. His strong rookie season earned him the ninth-overall spot in Calder Trophy and 15th in Selke Trophy voting. Locking up this duo was arguably the most important part of Philadelphia’s off-season, as they represent a strong backbone from which Briere can add onto.

But most eye-raising of the RFA signings has to be Samuel Ersson’s one-way contract. Ersson played in 12 NHL games last season – the first of his career – and otherwise operated as the AHL Leigh Valley Phantoms’ starting goalie. A one-way contract could simply be a curtesy but with the 23-year-old Ersson’s lack of North American playing experience, it’s more likely evidence that he’ll have a shot at competing for an NHL role. This creates a really interesting situation in the Flyers goalie room, which is now comprised of Carter Hart, Cal Petersen, Ersson, and Sandstrom. Which pair will emerge as the NHL duo is, seemingly, entirely up in the air.

Departures

F Kieffer Bellows (one year, $775K)*
F Evan Barratt (Nurnberg, DEL)
D Wyatte Wylie (Ottawa Reign, minor league deal)
F Kevin Hayes (trade with St. Louis)
F Brendan Lemieux (Carolina, one year, $800K)
F Jackson Cates (unsigned UFA)
F James van Riemsdyk (Boston, one year, $1MM)
D Justin Braun (unsigned UFA)
F Max Willman (unsigned UFA)
G Troy Grosenick (Nashville, one year, $775K)*

The Flyers spent the offseason departing primarily with an array of older veterans that held minimal roles. Kevin Hayes is perhaps the most significant subtraction after recording 54 points in 81 games last season. The season marked Hayes’ highest point-totals  since 2018-19 and a career-high in games played. But with the emergence of Cates and Frost as genuine options down the middle and the Flyers’ rebuilding status, Hayes’ role presents as more of a barrier to opportunity than anything else. He leaves the club alongside James van Riemsdyk and Justin Braun, two long-term Flyers that operated in limited roles last season.

Brendan Lemieux also marks an interesting departure. The Flyers acquired Lemieux and a fifth round pick at the trade deadline, in exchange for Zack MacEwen. He’d go on to score six points in 18 games with Philadelphia but will fight for a roster spot for 2023-24 somewhere else. Like many of the team’s departures, Lemieux doesn’t leave a big hole to fill.

Salary Cap Outlook

After re-signing Morgan Frost, Philadelphia is left with a projected $867K in cap space; just enough of a buffer to comfortably enter the season. The team will also likely be placing Ryan Ellis on long-term injured reserve when the season opens up, bringing their projected cap hit up to $7.12MM. That figure assumes that both Sean Couturier and Cam Atkinson will return to the team, something that certainly seems possible, but neither player’s reunion can be guaranteed yet. Regardless, Philadelphia will be entering the 2023-24 with plenty of money to go around.

Key Questions

What Will Noah Cates Look Like? Noah Cates placed top-15 in Selke voting as a rookie. That’s an incredibly impressive feat, especially for a player exposed to the high-danger chances let up by Philadelphia last year. Recording a full season and 38 points on top of that warrants a lot of excitement. If either his defensive impact or his scoring can continue to climb as Cates becomes more adjusted to the NHL will be one of the most important questions to monitor throughout the 2023-24 season. If all goes well, he could become a vital piece of Philadelphia’s lineup for years to come, operating as the glue holding the bottom-six together. But the Flyers didn’t get better this off-season and the increased challenge could be a lot for the young Cates to take on.

Can Cam York Find His Way? Cam York was once Philadelphia’s prized prospect. And he hasn’t looked particularly bad throughout his early professional career. But he hasn’t looked particularly great either, struggling to earn an NHL role until the second-half of the 2022-23 season. Still, it looked like York was finally feeling comfortable. Travis Sanheim will still operate in the top LD role but York should have plenty of opportunity operating behind Sanheim. The two are the unrivaled bright spots on Philadelphia’s back-end. With the spotlight finally back on him, and little competition for minutes from his peers, a good season from York could revitalize the excitement that once surrounded him.

Who Will the Goalies Be? On the surface, it’s hard to argue that Carter Hart and Cal Petersen won’t be the team’s NHL duo. But if Philadelphia will actually role out the nearly-$9MM cap hit of the two goalies is yet to be seen. Philadelphia has used six different goalies over the last three seasons and awarded Sam Ersson with a one-way contract this summer. Does this mean fans are in store for an exciting training camp or does Philadelphia plan on carrying three netminders this season? they plan on carrying three netminders for the entire season? If that is the case, Ersson, who has only played one full season of North American hockey, could carry interesting potential throughout the season.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.