Philadelphia Flyers – NBC10 Philadelphia

Briere: Tortorella will coach Michkov ‘just like he does everybody else'

Jordan Hall — Mon, Jul 01 2024 09:58:03 PM

VOORHEES, N.J. — Danny Briere opted to not divulge the specifics on how a long wait for Matvei Michkov turned into an expedited arrival.

After all, the decision wasn’t really up to the Flyers. They’re just happy to see him two years earlier than anticipated.

So on Monday, an hour and a half after the Flyers announced Michkov’s entry-level contract had ink on the dotted line, Briere smiled and offered the obvious.

“We’re excited that he’s finally coming,” the Flyers’ general manager said, one year and four days after calling Michkov’s name at the NHL draft. “I think there were a lot of things that needed to happen in the background, but that was mostly for him and the team in Russia and his representative.”

Last Tuesday, Michkov, a talented 19-year-old winger and inarguably the Flyers’ top prospect, was given his release from SKA St. Petersburg. For almost two months prior, it was all reports and speculation.

Michkov was only one year into his three-year deal to play in the KHL, Russia’s top pro league. That commitment and the uncertainty with the geopolitical landscape made Michkov drop to the Flyers at No. 7 in last summer’s draft. The Flyers couldn’t pass on him, especially after courting him leading up to the draft.

Now they have him.

And John Tortorella is ready to coach him.

“When I told Torts, he was really excited,” Briere said. “And that’s one of the things that I’m most excited about, too — the chance for Matvei to learn from a coach like Torts. I know he’s going to coach him the right way, just like he does everybody else. He’s going to be tough on him, he’s going to be fair and he’s going to teach him the right way.”

The 66-year-old has adapted over his 1,547 games as an NHL head coach. But he’s still John Tortorella. He will coach a player in a hard and direct way. Everyone is treated the same. There are no exceptions.

Michkov has been regarded for his competitiveness, even in practice. That should jibe with Tortorella (and his notorious skating test to open training camp).

“I think that’s some of the best news about all of this, he’s going to come here and nothing’s going to be given to him, he’s going to have to earn it,” Briere said. “Knowing how competitive we’ve been told he is, it’s going to be great, it’s going to be fun to see. I know I’m really excited about that matchup.”

The Flyers know Michkov has the capability of giving their rebuild a real jolt in the offensive department. But they will stress patience, as well. He’s a teenager jumping to the best league in the world. The language barrier is also a factor. The Flyers are going to provide Michkov a tutor to help him further grasp English and best communicate with the coaches. As a French Canadian, Briere had a similar transition in the AHL.

“We’re going to work with him,” Briere said. “I went through it, I barely knew any English when I started my first year pro in Springfield (Massachusetts). I get the culture difference is a lot less coming from Quebec than coming from Russia, but the players want to help and he’s going to be surrounded. Having Egor Zamula and Ivan Fedotov around, as well, we’re hoping will help his case, feel better and at home here.”

One of the next steps for the Flyers is adding more talent to put around Michkov down the road. They hope last weekend’s draft was a part of that initiative. Next summer, they have three first-round picks and three second-rounders.

“It’s a lot of picks early on, we’re going to try to leverage that the best we can,” Briere said. “It’s too early to tell if we’re going to pick or if we’re going to move them or if we’re going to use them to upgrade somewhere. But we’re going to look at all different scenarios.”

Once the offseason settles and September arrives, fans will have their eyes on Michkov. The touted youngster and the veteran head coach will get to work.

“Just on the power play alone, we hope that he can help us there,” Briere said. “As far as the rest of his game, he’s going to be in control of that and how much he’s committed to playing 200 feet for Torts. But look, to be honest, we don’t have really anyone like him in the organization as far as a player, as far as the skill level. He’s got a lot to learn and he’s not going to be put above anybody else, but he’s an exciting player and he’s a very talented player.”

Flyers fans going completely feral over Matvei Michkov news

Brooke Destra — Mon, Jul 01 2024 03:02:17 PM

It’s not a dream. You don’t have to wake yourself up. This is really happening.

Matvei Michkov is going to be a Philadelphia Flyer for the 2024-25 NHL season. It’s one of those “Where were you when …” moments that you’ll never forget.

Michkov’s contract with SKA St. Petersburg was terminated June 25 and he officially signed his three-year entry-level contract Monday.

The Flyers took a risk in the 2023 NHL Draft when selecting the Russian forward seventh overall. But you know what they say about a high risk … high reward.

The No. 1 prospect in the organization has rejuvenated Flyers fans, who have sat on the fence with the franchise in recent years. They’ll welcome the 19-year-old winger to Philadelphia with open arms.

Let’s check in on how everyone is reacting to the news. Heads up – it’s as crazy and chaotic as you’d expect it to be (in the best way possible):

We should’ve known:

This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.

Matvei Michkov time is now as Flyers' top prospect signs contract

Jordan Hall — Mon, Jul 01 2024 02:38:15 PM

Matvei Michkov is a Flyer.

Following two months of reports, questions and speculation, the No. 1 prospect in the organization signed his three-year entry-level contract Monday, a little over a year after being drafted by the Flyers at seventh overall.

Michkov was officially released by his KHL club SKA St. Petersburg last Tuesday, clearing the way for the 19-year-old winger to pursue his NHL dream in Philadelphia. On Monday, he put ink to paper.

“I’m extremely happy to officially become a part of the Flyers family,” Michkov said in a statement released by the team. “Being in the NHL has been a dream for me since childhood. I would like to say a huge thank you to the Flyers management for their trust. I will do everything possible to meet their expectations. I can’t wait to join my teammates and start preparing for the new season together, and I would especially like to greet our fans. We have the same dream to win the Stanley Cup and I promise that I will do my best to help this team and make that possible.”

More: Briere says Tortorella will coach Michkov ‘just like he does everybody else’

Michkov is coming to the Flyers two years earlier than anticipated. When he was drafted last summer, the 2026-27 season was the expectation for his arrival because of his three-year contract to play in the KHL, Russia’s top pro league. That and the precarious geopolitical landscape made Michkov drop down the board.

But the Flyers courted Michkov prior to the draft, making them comfortable with the risk and wait.

“We took a big swing, but we hope that this turns out to be a home run,” Flyers general manager Danny Briere said at the 2023 draft. “Time will tell, it’s a little early, but we feel when he’s ready to come, he could really be a difference-maker. That’s the risk that we were willing to take, to wait a little bit to hopefully have a difference-maker on our hands.”

More: How Flyers prospect Michkov’s rise was evident in ‘a title fight’

Last season, Michkov played only one game for SKA St. Petersburg, one of the premier teams in Russia. After sitting three times and playing just 6:12 minutes in his lone appearance, he was loaned to Sochi, a lesser KHL team. He put up 41 points (19 goals, 22 assists) in 47 games.

“Matvei was extremely frustrated not playing,” Flyers assistant general manager Brent Flahr said last September. “He had a goal of being the top scorer in the league and he was sitting there. They have 40-something players on their roster. Obviously he was frustrated. As a young guy in Russia, you kind of have to bite your tongue and just put in the work and hopefully you get to play.”

As a teenager playing against men, Michkov recorded 66 points (30 goals, 36 assists) in 91 career KHL games. He tore up the junior level in his home country, putting up 68 goals and 107 points over 84 career MHL games.

He now becomes what the Flyers hope is a pillar to their process, both in the present and future.

This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.

No contract year for Hathaway, who signs 2-year extension with Flyers

Jordan Hall — Mon, Jul 01 2024 01:51:25 PM

The Flyers really liked what they got out of Garnet Hathaway in his first season as they signed him to a two-year, $4.8 million contract extension Monday.

The north-south, hard-hitting winger was entering the final year of his two-year, $4.75 million contract. He’s now under contract for the next three seasons, with his new deal starting in 2025-26 and having an average annual value of $2.4 million.

“Garnet has been a great addition to our team and we’re very happy to extend him to be a Flyer for the next several seasons,” Flyers general manager Danny Briere said in a statement released by the team. “His style of play and level of professionalism had a big effect on our group last season, and he embodies the standard our team set out to build both on and off the ice.”

Hathaway was one of four Flyers to play all 82 games last season. He chipped in 17 points (seven goals, 10 assists) over 12:29 minutes per game and had the NHL’s second-most hits with 326. The 32-year-old is also a key penalty killer for the Flyers, scoring one of the team’s league-leading 16 shorthanded goals.

“A player like that, you’re going into next year and you get to the trade deadline, and if the team’s not doing well, now you’re thinking, ‘Are we trading him?'” Briere said Monday. “Now you’ve got to negotiate with him and all the teams start calling, [the AAV] can escalate in the [$3 million range]. We wanted to keep the cap hit [around] the same. When we saw that he was also willing to extend for pretty much the same cap hit, it got interesting for us.”

Some may argue that a rebuilding team shouldn’t commit too many years to an older role player. But Hathaway’s role is an important one and the Flyers are still going to be a young group up front moving forward. They could have eight forwards 25 years old or younger in their 2024-25 season-opening lineup.

“When we heard last year, you heard me say it, other teams are telling us we’re hard to play against, he’s a big reason why,” Briere said. “Coming into Philadelphia and having to face players like him, it’s not fun.”

Hathaway has been a tone-setter for how the Flyers want to play and he stands up for his teammates, an important quality with many young forwards.

“That’s what we’ve built on,” Hathaway said in April, “that’s what this organization has brought in to create a culture that plays for each other, that builds that team camaraderie.”

The next question is will the Flyers avoid a contract year with Travis Konecny? The team’s All-Star and leading scorer is entering the final year of his six-year, $33 million deal. He’s in line for a pretty good raise from his $5.5 million average annual value and at his exit interview he sounded open to signing an extension.

“Nothing new,” Briere said Monday on the Konecny front. “This is the first day that officially we could extend him. I’ve said from the beginning, I’m not going to negotiate through the media. But we love Travis and we hope he’s here for a long time.”

Flyers re-sign Cup-winning D-man who they acquired at trade deadline

Jordan Hall — Mon, Jul 01 2024 11:22:46 AM

Erik Johnson, a defenseman with nearly 1,000 career games under his belt, raved about the Flyers’ locker room after joining the team in March as a trade deadline pickup.

He’ll be a part of it again, this time from the start, as the Flyers re-signed the 36-year-old veteran to a one-year, $1 million contract Monday.

The Flyers gave up a 2024 fourth-round draft pick for Johnson to provide stability on the back end last season. The club’s defensive depth was decimated down the stretch by injuries and the trade of Sean Walker.

Johnson will give the Flyers a reliable presence in 2024-25 and a good example for their younger blueliners. He has played in 987 career NHL games and won the 2022 Stanley Cup with the Avalanche.

“We’re very happy to bring Erik back for next season,” Flyers general manager Danny Briere said in a statement released by the team. “Since arriving at the deadline, Erik has fit seamlessly into our locker room and logged important minutes for us. His presence and championship experience, especially for our defensive core of players, will be valuable for our team throughout an entire season.”

In 17 games with the Flyers, Johnson had two goals, an assist, 50 hits, 29 blocked shots and a minus-9 rating. The 2006 first overall pick had high praise for the Flyers’ locker room.

“I didn’t know anybody on the team, so it was all new to me,” Johnson said March 26 before a game at Madison Square Garden. “But it didn’t take long to see that these guys care about winning and care about each other. If you have those two things, you can do a lot of great things as a team. It has been a lot of fun coming to the rink every day.

“It stands out because I think it’s pretty unique. I haven’t been in a lot of ones that have been this good. I just think there’s a time and place to have fun and there’s a time and place to focus, and I think this team has a really good balance of that. I think they definitely care about each other a lot.”

He’ll be the oldest and most established player on a team that has the potential to take another step but will not lose focus of its rebuild. As of right now, the Flyers’ defensive group is looking like it will be Johnson, Travis Sanheim, Cam York, Nick Seeler, Jamie Drysdale, Egor Zamula and Rasmus Ristolainen. Ronnie Attard, Adam Ginning and Emil Andrae should be pushing for games, too.

York, Drysdale and Zamula are 24 years old or younger. Briere clearly values Johnson’s influence on them.

“His leadership in the room was amazing,” the Flyers’ GM said Monday. “He was fantastic, some of the players loved him, the coaches all loved him. It’s intangibles that he brings. Look, at the end of the day, he’s also a 6-foot-4, right-shot defenseman. He’s not going to be in the way, slowing the growth of our young guys. He’s there to help them grow, that’s the way we see it.”

Briere has a good read on the defenseman. They were teammates on the Avalanche in 2014-15, Briere’s final NHL season.

“We had a really good relationship in Colorado,” Johnson said. “He was only there the one year and I was in my mid-20s. I remember really looking up to him and respecting him a ton, and still did. We kept in touch over the years since he retired. If we didn’t have that good relationship, maybe I’m not here right now, I don’t know. But I know we each had a mutual respect for each other.

“When he was in Colorado, everyone looked up to him and he always had very good words of wisdom to tell our younger team. Things kind of have come full circle and now I’m kind of in that role that he was, towards the end of my career. It’s kind of funny how it all works out because Danny and I remain close and now we can have a chance to do something special together.”

Flyers part ways with Carter Hart, who becomes unrestricted free agent

Jordan Hall — Sun, Jun 30 2024 04:53:10 PM

Carter Hart’s career with the Flyers came to an end Sunday.

A restricted free agent amid a sexual assault case, the 25-year-old goaltender did not receive a qualifying offer from the Flyers, a source confirmed. As a result, Hart became an unrestricted free agent.

Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli first reported the news.

In early February, London, Ontario police announced it had charged Hart and four other players from the 2018 Canadian world junior team with sexual assault, stemming from a June 2018 incident.

Hart’s legal representation stated in late January that “he is innocent and will provide a full response to this false allegation in the proper forum, a court of law.”

The goalie had been away from the Flyers since Jan. 23, when he requested and was granted an indefinite leave of absence.

The possibility of Hart returning to the ice at any point in the 2024-25 season was looking more and more unlikely. The Hockey Canada sexual assault case will be back in criminal assignment court Aug. 13, the same day Hart turns 26 years old, and no trial start date has been set.

With his three-year, $11.937 million contract expiring, Hart was a restricted free agent this offseason. The Flyers could have retained his NHL rights by issuing him a qualifying offer but they chose against it, cutting ties with the 2016 second-round draft pick who had been deemed their franchise goalie.

The club plans to go into September training camp with Samuel Ersson and Ivan Fedotov forming their goaltending tandem.

Hart’s career in Philadelphia started with great promise. He made his NHL debut at 20 years old and later won eight straight games, tying the NHL record for most consecutive victories by a goalie before his 21st birthday.

The following year, he helped lead the Flyers to the 2020 bubbled playoffs, going 24-13-3 with a 2.42 goals-against average and .914 save percentage during the regular season. In the postseason, Hart went 9-5-0 with a 2.23 goals-against average and .926 save percentage, giving him the best GAA by a Flyers goalie with five or more starts in one playoff run since Roman Cechmanek in 2003 (2.14 GAA in 13 starts).

In 2023-24, Hart started his fifth straight season opener for the Flyers. It turned out to be his last one with the club.

Free agency opens Monday at noon ET. Outside of inexpensive depth pieces, the Flyers are unlikely to be real active because of how tight they are on the salary cap.

“We don’t expect to do much on free agency day,” general manager Danny Briere said last week. “The reality is, we have a lot of dead money going into Year 2 of my tenure, but that was the plan also. We acquired assets to help us for the future like picks. So, this summer is going to be tough. Next summer should ease up a little bit, but we’re still going to be in a little bit of a crunch.”

Flyers wrap up 2024 NHL draft by taking 6-foot-4 D-man in seventh round

Jordan Hall — Sat, Jun 29 2024 03:34:49 PM

The Flyers wrapped up their 2024 NHL draft class with Austin Moline, a defenseman they grabbed in the seventh round.

The righty shot had 35 points (eight goals, 27 assists) in 57 games this season for Shattuck St. Mary’s at the under-18 prep level.

The 6-foot-4, 193-pound Moline is from Las Vegas, where the draft was held. He was the 181st-ranked North American skater by NHL Central Scouting.

Moline is going to play for the Brooks Bandits next season in the BCHL, a junior A league and solid stepping-stone for college-bound players. The 18-year-old is committed to Northern Michigan.

He was one of two defensemen the Flyers selected in the draft. They took another 6-foot-4, righty shot in Spencer Gill during the second round.

More Flyers draft coverage

• Flyers trade back one spot, take Luchanko with No. 13 pick in 2024 NHL draft

• After trade with Oilers, Flyers could have three 2025 first-round picks

• Flyers pick 6-foot-4 Swedish center in second round of 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers trade for another second-rounder, grab big, righty-shot D-man

• Flyers trade up again, snag another center at 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers take USHL’s leading goal scorer in fifth round of 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers use sixth-round pick on Russian winger at 2024 NHL draft

Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

Flyers use sixth-round pick on Russian winger at 2024 NHL draft

Jordan Hall — Sat, Jun 29 2024 03:03:09 PM

With their sixth-round pick in the 2024 NHL draft Saturday, the Flyers grabbed winger Ilya Pautov.

At the Russian junior level, the 18-year-old put up 45 points (15 goals, 30 assists) and a plus-6 rating in 46 games this season for the MHL’s Krasnaya Armiya Moskva.

The Flyers took Pautov at 173rd overall. They also had the 177th overall pick but moved it in the package to grab Finnish center Heikki Ruohonen during the fourth round.

The 5-foot-11, 167-pound Pautov was the 73rd-ranked European skater by NHL Central Scouting. He was one of two wingers the Flyers selected in the draft. They grabbed Noah Powell in the fifth round.

More Flyers draft coverage

• Flyers trade back one spot, take Luchanko with No. 13 pick in 2024 NHL draft

• After trade with Oilers, Flyers could have three 2025 first-round picks

• Flyers pick 6-foot-4 Swedish center in second round of 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers trade for another second-rounder, grab big, righty-shot D-man

• Flyers trade up again, snag another center at 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers take USHL’s leading goal scorer in fifth round of 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers wrap up 2024 NHL draft by taking 6-foot-4 D-man in seventh round

Flyers take USHL's leading goal scorer in fifth round of 2024 NHL draft

Jordan Hall — Sat, Jun 29 2024 02:34:09 PM

The Flyers selected winger Noah Powell in the fifth round of the 2024 NHL draft Saturday at 148th overall.

The 19-year-old led the USHL in goals with 43 over 61 regular-season games for the Dubuque Fighting Saints. He added 31 assists to finish with 74 points and collected five points (two goals, three assists) in 11 playoff games.

After scoring one goal in his first 16 games, Powell took off, scoring 42 over his final 45 games. The Ohio State commit had a plus-18 rating and was the 77th-ranked player in the draft by EliteProspects.com.

He has good size at 6-foot-2, 201 pounds.

General manager Danny Briere acquired this pick from the Golden Knights at the trade deadline when the Flyers played the role of third party in a deal between Vegas and Calgary.

More Flyers draft coverage

• Flyers trade back one spot, take Luchanko with No. 13 pick in 2024 NHL draft

• After trade with Oilers, Flyers could have three 2025 first-round picks

• Flyers pick 6-foot-4 Swedish center in second round of 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers trade for another second-rounder, grab big, righty-shot D-man

• Flyers trade up again, snag another center at 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers use sixth-round pick on Russian winger at 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers wrap up 2024 NHL draft by taking 6-foot-4 D-man in seventh round

Steve Gassman/Dubuque Fighting Saints

Flyers trade up again, snag another center at 2024 NHL draft

Jordan Hall — Sat, Jun 29 2024 01:45:04 PM

The Flyers badly needed centers heading into the 2024 NHL draft. Trading up again Saturday, they took another one, grabbing Finnish prospect Heikki Ruohonen at 107th overall.

General manager Danny Briere moved into the fourth round by trading one of his two 2024 fifth-rounders (No. 150 overall) and one of his two 2024 sixth-rounders (No. 177) to the Flames.

The Flyers drafted center Jett Luchanko at 13th overall Friday night and opened their Day 2 work Saturday by taking center Jack Berglund at 51st overall.

Playing at the junior level in Finland (U-20 SM-sarja), Ruohonen had 47 points (20 goals, 27 assists) and a plus-19 rating over 37 games this season for Kiekko-Espoo.

At the 2024 IIHF U-18 World Junior Championship over a month and a half ago, the 6-foot-2, 204-pounder had five points (three goals, two assists) and a plus-4 rating in five games for Finland.

The 18-year-old was the 35th-ranked European skater by NHL Central Scouting and the 95th-ranked player in the draft by EliteProspects.com.

According to Jim Leitner of the Telegraph Herald, Ruohonen will play for the USHL’s Dubuque Fighting Saints before heading to Harvard in the future.

More Flyers draft coverage

• Flyers trade back one spot, take Luchanko with No. 13 pick in 2024 NHL draft

• After trade with Oilers, Flyers could have three 2025 first-round picks

• Flyers pick 6-foot-4 Swedish center in second round of 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers trade for another second-rounder, grab big, righty-shot D-man

• Flyers take USHL’s leading goal scorer in fifth round of 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers use sixth-round pick on Russian winger at 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers wrap up 2024 NHL draft by taking 6-foot-4 D-man in seventh round

Flyers trade for another second-rounder, grab big, righty-shot D-man

Jordan Hall — Sat, Jun 29 2024 12:30:09 PM

The Flyers traded up for another second-round pick at the 2024 NHL draft Saturday and grabbed Spencer Gill, a 6-foot-4 Canadian defenseman.

To take Gill at 59th overall, the Flyers moved their 2024 third-round pick (No. 77 overall) and the 2025 third-rounder they acquired Friday night to the Predators.

A little earlier in the second round, the Flyers took Swedish center Jack Berglund.

For the QMJHL’s Rimouski Oceanic, Gill had 46 points (12 goals, 34 assists) and a plus-8 rating in 65 games this season. The 186-pound righty shot then added five assists over five playoff games.

Similar to the Flyers’ first-round pick Jett Luchanko, Gill doesn’t turn 18 years old until August.

TSN’s Bob McKenzie reported that at least one NHL scout considered Gill as a first-round prospect. TSN’s Craig Button considered him the 51st-best player in the draft, while NHL Central Scouting had him as the 29th-ranked North American skater. EliteProspects.com rated him at No. 68 overall.

Gill was one of two defensemen the Flyers selected in this draft. They took Austin Moline, another 6-foot-4, righty shot, in the seventh round.

More Flyers draft coverage

• Flyers trade back one spot, take Luchanko with No. 13 pick in 2024 NHL draft

• After trade with Oilers, Flyers could have three 2025 first-round picks

• Flyers pick 6-foot-4 Swedish center in second round of 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers trade up again, snag another center at 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers take USHL’s leading goal scorer in fifth round of 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers use sixth-round pick on Russian winger at 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers wrap up 2024 NHL draft by taking 6-foot-4 D-man in seventh round

Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

Flyers pick 6-foot-4 Swedish center in second round of 2024 NHL draft

Jordan Hall — Sat, Jun 29 2024 12:03:14 PM

To lead off their Day 2 work at the 2024 NHL draft Saturday, the Flyers selected Jack Berglund, a 6-foot-4 Swedish center.

The Flyers had the 51st overall pick as compensation for not signing 2018 first-round selection Jay O’Brien.

Berglund, a 210-pounder who can play on the wing, as well, had 34 points (15 goals, 19 assists) over 41 games this season for Farjestad BK in Sweden’s top junior league.

At the 2024 IIHF U-18 World Junior Championship over a month and a half ago, Berglund had five points (two goals, three assists) in seven games for a Sweden team that won bronze.

He got a taste of the SHL, Sweden’s top pro league, scoring a goal over eight games.

Berglund was the 28th-ranked European skater by NHL Central Scouting, jumping 10 spots from his midterm mark. TSN’s Craig Button considered him the 55th-best player in the draft, while TSN’s Bob McKenzie had him at No. 64. EliteProspects.com pegged Berglund down at No. 131.

He was the 14th center taken in the draft. The Flyers went into the draft badly needing centers and took three of them through their first four picks. Jett Luchanko was their headliner at 13th overall Friday night and they traded up into the fourth round Saturday to grab Heikki Ruohonen.

“Let’s face it, we’re lacking centers coming up throughout the organization,” Flyers general manager Danny Briere said last week. “We haven’t tried to hide that; it’s a reality.”

More Flyers draft coverage

• Flyers trade back one spot, take Luchanko with No. 13 pick in 2024 NHL draft

• After trade with Oilers, Flyers could have three 2025 first-round picks

• Flyers trade for another second-rounder, grab big, righty-shot D-man

• Flyers trade up again, snag another center at 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers take USHL’s leading goal scorer in fifth round of 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers use sixth-round pick on Russian winger at 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers wrap up 2024 NHL draft by taking 6-foot-4 D-man in seventh round

Michael Miller/Getty Images contributor

After trade with Oilers, Flyers could have three 2025 first-round picks

Jordan Hall — Fri, Jun 28 2024 10:56:19 PM

The Flyers did not make their second first-round pick Friday night at the 2024 NHL draft.

Danny Briere moved the 32nd overall selection — from the Claude Giroux trade — to the Oilers in exchange for a conditional first-round pick, which will convey in 2025 or 2026.

The Flyers’ general manager told reporters in Las Vegas, via The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz, that the pick they received from Edmonton is top-12 protected. The Oilers are coming off a Game 7 loss in the Stanley Cup Final, so one would think they will not be picking in the top 12 next summer.

So with the pick likely conveying in 2025, the Flyers will have three first-rounders for that draft, which is expected to have a strong crop of prospects. Earlier this month, Flyers president of hockey operations Keith Jones called it “a very important draft.”

The Flyers netted their second 2025 first-rounder from the Avalanche in the Sean Walker trade two days before the deadline. That pick is top-10 protected. Safe to say there’s a good chance Colorado won’t be picking in the top 10.

Earlier Friday night, after trading back one spot, the Flyers grabbed center Jett Luchanko at No. 13 overall. They acquired a 2025 third-rounder in that pick swap with the Wild.

A little over a week ago, Briere was asked about the Flyers having a possible emphasis on acquiring more picks for 2025.

“We’re looking at all kinds of things,” the GM said. “We’re looking to possibly move up with certain picks, we’re looking to move back. Obviously if we move up, we might have to give up a pick or two, but if the value is worth it to move up, to give up a pick on the back end to acquire a player or pick a player that we really love, we’ll jump on it. On the flip side, if there’s a clump of players that we feel comfortable with, we might try to move back to acquire more assets, either later in the draft or next year.”

The Flyers are slated to make seven picks Saturday as the draft wraps up with Rounds 2-7 (11:30 a.m. ET/NHL Network). They will not have the Blue Jackets’ second-round pick (No. 36 overall). Columbus decided to keep that slot, so the Flyers will instead have the Blue Jackets’ 2025 second-rounder, a pick they acquired in the Ivan Provorov trade last June.

More Flyers draft coverage

• Flyers trade back one spot, take Luchanko with No. 13 pick in 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers pick 6-foot-4 Swedish center in second round of 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers trade for another second-rounder, grab big, righty-shot D-man

• Flyers trade up again, snag another center at 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers take USHL’s leading goal scorer in fifth round of 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers use sixth-round pick on Russian winger at 2024 NHL draft

• Flyers wrap up 2024 NHL draft by taking 6-foot-4 D-man in seventh round

Should Boisvert, a future ‘impact center,' have Flyers' attention?

Jordan Hall — Wed, Jun 26 2024 03:18:10 PM

Despite overachieving for the majority of the 2023-24 season, the Flyers still have a rebuilding mindset. The club’s decision-makers know there’s a need for more talent and that the entry draft remains the best avenue to acquire it.

“The bulk of it still needs to be done through our young guys, mostly through the draft,” general manager Danny Briere said in April.

The Flyers will have a good opportunity to augment their future when the 2024 NHL draft arrives June 28-29 at the Sphere in Las Vegas. The first round is Friday at 7 p.m. ET, while Rounds 2-7 are Saturday starting at 11:30 a.m. ET.

Like last summer, the Flyers could have up to 10 picks, including two first-rounders. Barring a trade, they’ll make their top overall selection at No. 12. Briere believes the Flyers “can get a very talented player” at that spot.

More: Trade candidates? How many picks? Five Flyers things to know for the 2024 NHL draft

In the first round of the 2023 draft, the Flyers took a swing on Matvei Michkov at No. 7 and grabbed Oliver Bonk at No. 22. They should also have two first-round picks in 2025.

Leading up to the 2024 draft, we’re breaking down targets for the Flyers at No. 12.

Next up:

Sacha Boisvert

Position: Center
Height: 6-foot-2
Weight: 183
Shoots: Left
Team: Muskegon Lumberjacks

Scouting report

Boisvert is a center with great size, an advanced shot and a fervor to play the full length of the rink.

The 18-year-old ranked fifth in the USHL with 36 goals over 61 games for the Lumberjacks. Adding 32 assists, he finished the regular season with 68 points and a plus-5 rating. Boisvert put up 11 multi-goal games and 21 multi-point games.

The North Dakota commit had a quieter playoffs, recording three assists in eight games. But that shouldn’t overshadow his pro qualities. Boisvert is a tough kid, he wants the puck and there’s upside.

“He’s another young guy who came into his own this year, had a really strong, consistent performance in the USHL with Muskegon,” Dan Marr, the vice president of NHL Central Scouting, said a little under four weeks ago in a phone interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia. “He’s the guy that brings the combination of skill and physicality, he likes to play that power forward game, he can defend himself, he can win the 1-on-1 battles and he initiates the 1-on-1 battles. This is a guy that when you go into a scrum, he’s going to come out with the puck.”

Boisvert needs to improve on the intricacies of playing center and it’s fair to wonder how his scoring ability will translate at the pro level.

He’s the 16th-ranked North American skater by NHL Central Scouting and considered the 21st-best prospect in the draft by EliteProspects.com. TSN’s Bob McKenzie has Boisvert at No. 22 overall, while TSN’s Craig Button put him 25th.

“He’s got the NHL speed, the smarts and the skills to make plays, to set up chances,” Marr said. “I think he’s going to a good program where they’re just going to let his game mature there. Just a solid, all-around, two-way center that really is going to be an impact center.”

Muskegon Lumberjacks

Fit with Flyers

The fact that Boisvert plays center — a premium position and arguably the Flyers’ weakest area — doesn’t hurt his case. He has top-six potential and the Flyers need more goal-scoring threats.

Could he be a linemate of Michkov or Tyson Foerster down the road? It’s appealing.

But Boisvert may not be the best player available on the Flyers’ list at No. 12. He could be considered a reach in that range. Perhaps he falls deep into the first round and the Flyers might have a shot at him with the 32nd overall pick or trading up into the 20s.

More targets

• Flyers should like Helenius, ‘one of the top talents in the draft’

• Flyers draft target Catton has ‘ingredients’ to be first-line center

• Flyers could have shot at Yakemchuk, a defenseman with ‘rare combination’

• Flyers draft target Iginla has impressive NHL lineage and ‘very high ceiling’

• Eiserman, ‘the best goal scorer in this draft,’ an option for Flyers?

• ‘The full package’ Connelly has interesting draft case for Flyers

• With ‘no real holes to his game,’ Jiricek an option for Flyers at No. 12

• Is Brandsegg-Nygard close to pro-ready and a possibility for Flyers?

• Sennecke, a big winger set to ‘explode offensively,’ will be on Flyers’ radar

• ‘He’s a special, special hockey player’ — Greentree a fit for Flyers at No. 12?

Sennecke, a big winger set to ‘explode offensively,' will be on Flyers' radar

Jordan Hall — Tue, Jun 25 2024 07:25:02 PM

“The bulk of it still needs to be done through our young guys, mostly through the draft,” general manager Danny Briere said in April.

More: Trade candidates? How many picks? Five Flyers things to know for the 2024 NHL draft

In the first round of the 2023 draft, the Flyers took a swing on Matvei Michkov at No. 7 and grabbed Oliver Bonk at No. 22. They should also have two first-round picks in 2025.

Leading up to the 2024 draft, we’re breaking down targets for the Flyers at No. 12.

Next up:

Beckett Sennecke

Position: Winger
Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 182
Shoots: Right
Team: Oshawa Generals

Scouting report

There’s so much intrigue to Sennecke, who is a growing winger with excellent hands and vision.

He has climbed draft boards after putting up 10 games of three or more points for the OHL’s Generals, with half of those performances coming over the final two months of the regular season. The Toronto native finished with 68 points (27 goals, 41 assists) and a plus-33 rating in 63 games for an Oshawa team that went 40-19-9.

Sennecke then had a monstrous playoffs with 22 points (10 goals, 12 assists) and a plus-9 mark in 16 games. He suffered injury in the Eastern Conference championship series, causing him to miss the Generals’ final five games.

“Beckett’s game just continually improved as the season had gone along,” Dan Marr, the vice president of NHL Central Scouting, said three and a half weeks ago in a phone interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia. “Oshawa is a pretty competitive team, strong team, they had a really good season. He was one of the younger players on the team, so he had to earn every second of ice time. Next year, he’s just going to explode offensively. This year, he was just going a little over a point a game.”

With a blend of force and finesse, Sennecke has first-line upside. He’ll have to round out his overall game when he gets to the next level. But it looks like he’s just starting to scratch the surface.

“When you watch him play in the offensive zone, he’s always a dangerous threat,” Marr said. “He reads the ice, he knows how to get open, he’s got the speed, the quickness and the skill to take the puck to the net and to bury his chances. He’s the guy in the game that’s always getting the scoring chances just because he reads the play well and he’s always in the right spot.”

Sennecke is the 13th-ranked North American skater by NHL Central Scouting and considered the ninth-best prospect in the draft by EliteProspects.com. Both TSN’s Bob McKenzie and TSN’s Craig Button have him at No. 11 overall.

“He still has a long way to go with his strength,” Marr said. “Once he gets that strength, it gives him a little bit more confidence, he’s going to be one of those power forwards that is hard to stop. He’s going to be intimidating against defenders and goalies.”

Terry Wilson/OHL Images

Fit with Flyers

The Flyers will draft who they view as the best player available at No. 12. If Sennecke hasn’t been snatched up yet when the Flyers are on the clock, there’s a good chance he’s that best player available.

The potential seems endless with a 6-foot-3, dexterous winger who will get only bigger and stronger as he develops.

The Flyers’ picture on the wing already features promise in Michkov, who is 19 and the organization’s top prospect, and the 22-year-old Tyson Foerster, who is coming off a 20-goal rookie NHL season. Add Sennecke and factor in the other 25-or-younger wingers like Owen Tippett, Joel Farabee, Noah Cates and Bobby Brink, and there’s a good bit to like.

In a perfect world, the Flyers would love a center to be their best player available at No. 12. But if Sennecke is there, he’d be a real fine addition to the Flyers’ rebuild.

More targets

• Flyers should like Helenius, ‘one of the top talents in the draft’

• Flyers draft target Catton has ‘ingredients’ to be first-line center

• Flyers could have shot at Yakemchuk, a defenseman with ‘rare combination’

• Flyers draft target Iginla has impressive NHL lineage and ‘very high ceiling’

• Eiserman, ‘the best goal scorer in this draft,’ an option for Flyers?

• ‘The full package’ Connelly has interesting draft case for Flyers

• With ‘no real holes to his game,’ Jiricek an option for Flyers at No. 12

• Is Brandsegg-Nygard close to pro-ready and a possibility for Flyers?

• Should Boisvert, a future ‘impact center,’ have Flyers’ attention?

• ‘He’s a special, special hockey player’ — Greentree a fit for Flyers at No. 12?

Michkov officially released from KHL team, contract with Flyers likely next

Jordan Hall — Tue, Jun 25 2024 12:48:20 PM

The process of Matvei Michkov becoming a Flyer is almost complete.

A source confirmed Sunday that the 19-year-old prospect had been released by his KHL club SKA St. Petersburg, clearing the way for him to pursue his NHL dream in Philadelphia. On Tuesday, Michkov’s release became official.

The 2023 seventh overall draft pick originally had two more years left on his three-year commitment in Russia’s top pro league. Now, he’s poised for the NHL two years earlier than anticipated.

Flyers general manager Danny Briere released the following statement Tuesday:

The Philadelphia Flyers were informed earlier today of Matvei Michkov’s release from his KHL contract with SKA Hockey Club.

We are certainly excited to learn of this news and look forward to reconnecting with Matvei’s representatives in the coming days.

Additionally, we are appreciative of SKA Saint Petersburg for allowing Matvei Michkov to pursue his dream of playing in the NHL.

Last month, Russian media outlet Sport-Express reported that Michkov’s contract with SKA St. Petersburg would be terminated so that the young winger could “continue his career in Philadelphia.” That came about three weeks after the club’s chairman Alexander Medvedev told Russian media outlet Match TV that it would “talk about all the options” with Michkov.

Next up for Michkov is signing his entry-level contract with the Flyers. Stay tuned.

More: Flyers surrounding Michkov with help just as important as his arrival

This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.

Flyers surrounding Michkov with help just as important as his arrival

Jordan Hall — Mon, Jun 24 2024 11:29:11 AM

Matvei Michkov is a bona-fide prospect with plenty of validation behind the hype.

One of his former development coaches called him a “spotlight player” with a “very unique skill set.”

An opposing coach was “confident that Philly’s got one of the top talented players of his age group in the world.”

When the Flyers drafted him at seventh overall last summer, they felt he was unlike anyone they had in the organization.

So if Michkov is poised for Philadelphia two years earlier than anticipated, he would absolutely shift the Flyers’ outlook to a degree. But the key will be the Flyers helping him, a plan likely in place to make this an effective transition for the 19-year-old Russian.

Because while Michkov puts the rebuild into a different gear, he won’t turn the Flyers into a contender overnight.

Update: Michkov officially released from KHL team, contract with Flyers likely next

Four days ago, general manager Danny Briere labeled the 2023, 2024 and 2025 NHL drafts “critical” for the Flyers’ rebuild. The team had two first-rounders last summer, the first of which they used on Michkov. They have two first-rounders coming up this week and two more in 2025.

These will be huge opportunities for the Flyers to identify more talent, particularly down the middle of the ice. Michkov comes with clear-cut first-line potential on the wing. Can the Flyers find him a first-line pivot? Center is a premium position and it’s the franchise’s thinnest area.

“Let’s face it, we’re lacking centers coming up throughout the organization,” Briere said. “We haven’t tried to hide that; it’s a reality.”

Morgan Frost is the only center the Flyers have taken in the first round over the past 11 drafts that is currently on their roster. It’s no secret the club needs to hit on more centers in the draft.

As the team’s roster stands right now early in the offseason, Sean Couturier and the 25-year-old Frost should give the Flyers solid options to center a line with Michkov. Next offseason, prior to the 2025-26 campaign, the Flyers could be in a better, more advantageous spot to spend in free agency, another avenue to supplement what’s around Michkov.

Over their four-year playoff drought, the Flyers have ranked 29th in goals per game with 2.72. Michkov may bolster the club’s scoring efforts in the future, but it can’t fall solely on him, just like it can’t fall solely on Travis Konecny now.

Briere, president of hockey operations Keith Jones and assistant general manager Brent Flahr have more work to do. And the good thing is they know it.

Make no mistake, though, Michkov joining the picture just a year after he was drafted is a significant victory for the Flyers’ rebuild. It’s even more significant when you factor in the loss of Cutter Gauthier five and a half months ago.

Fans have pleaded for more high-end talent. The Flyers answered by taking a swing on Michkov.

And they followed through.

Sources: Matvei Michkov out of KHL deal; his arrival to Flyers looks real

Jordan Hall — Sun, Jun 23 2024 01:01:05 PM

So much for the great wait?

Matvei Michkov, the Flyers’ top prospect who wasn’t slated to join the team until 2026-27, very well could be coming over two years earlier than anticipated. While there are plenty of moving parts to the situation, things are looking more positive toward Michkov joining the Flyers in 2024-25, a source confirmed Sunday.

A source also confirmed Michkov has been released by his KHL club SKA St. Petersburg. That would lead you to believe that Michkov to the Flyers in 2024-25 is appearing very real.

The Fourth Period’s Anthony Di Marco first reported the news.

Michkov originally had two more years left on his three-year contract with SKA St. Petersburg.

Update: Michkov officially released from KHL team, contract with Flyers likely next

“We would welcome him with open arms, we absolutely love what he is going to bring to the Flyers,” president of hockey operations Keith Jones said this month. “If that timeline is sped up, that would be wonderful. But we don’t know. We’ll watch along closely like you guys are, as well. When he arrives, our fan base is going to be pretty excited about getting a highly talented player that is different than what we have right now. I think our fans are looking forward to that, for sure.”

The 19-year-old Michkov is a dynamic and prolific winger that the Flyers drafted seventh overall last summer. As was speculated, Michkov dropped down the board because of a precarious geopolitical landscape and his three-year commitment to play in the KHL, Russia’s top pro league. The Flyers did their homework and were fine with the wait.

“Seeing the talent level of this player, we don’t have anybody like him in the organization,” Flyers general manager Danny Briere said at the 2023 draft. “We’ve talked for how many years now about how we’ve needed to bring more skill, more talent to our team. This was a great opportunity to hopefully develop a player that can play kind of that role for us.”

More: Flyers surrounding Michkov with help just as important as his arrival

Last month, Russian media outlet Sport-Express reported that Michkov’s contract with SKA St. Petersburg would be terminated so that the young prospect could “continue his career in Philadelphia.” This came about three weeks after the club’s chairman Alexander Medvedev told Russian media outlet Match TV that it would “talk about all the options” with Michkov.

The Flyers, though, have had to be careful to not overstep any boundaries in their comments or interfere with Michkov’s camp and his KHL club.

Michkov played only one game for SKA St. Petersburg in 2023-24. After sitting for three games and playing just 6:12 minutes in his lone appearance, he was loaned from SKA St. Petersburg to Sochi, a lesser KHL team. He put up 41 points (19 goals, 22 assists) in 47 games.

And now Michkov’s work appears headed for Philadelphia.

Is Brandsegg-Nygard close to pro-ready and a possibility for Flyers?

Jordan Hall — Fri, Jun 21 2024 03:42:12 PM

“The bulk of it still needs to be done through our young guys, mostly through the draft,” general manager Danny Briere said in April.

More: Trade candidates? How many picks? Five Flyers things to know for the 2024 NHL draft

In the first round of the 2023 draft, the Flyers took a swing on Matvei Michkov at No. 7 and grabbed Oliver Bonk at No. 22. They should also have two first-round picks in 2025.

Leading up to the 2024 draft, we’re breaking down targets for the Flyers at No. 12.

Next up:

Michael Brandsegg-Nygard

Position: Winger
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 207
Shoots: Right
Team: Mora IK

Scouting report

The 18-year-old Norwegian is built like a pro and plays like a pro. With a real moxie for puck battles and owning a big shot, Brandsegg-Nygard has a game that can scale a lineup.

Playing against men in HockeyAllsvenskan, a Swedish pro league that is a tier below the SHL, Brandsegg-Nygard recorded 18 points (eight goals, 10 assists) and a plus-3 rating over 41 games this season for Mora IK. After playing 14:20 minutes per game in the regular season, he saw 17:29 during the playoffs and put up 10 points (four goals, six assists) through 12 games.

“He’s one of these players that already plays a mature game, plays a pro level game,” Dan Marr, the vice president of NHL Central Scouting, said over three weeks ago in a phone interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia. “And he has been playing pro hockey. He understands the game to where he makes smart plays, smart decisions where maybe he can be that difference-maker on a play.”

Brandsegg-Nygard has been strong on the international scene, as well. At the 2024 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship last month, he had five points (three points, two assists) in seven games for Norway. In the winter at the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship, he also had five points (three goals, two assists) over five games.

The knock on Brandsegg-Nygard might be his lack of upside. Some teams may prefer higher ceilings in first-round picks. But there’s nothing wrong with a prospect who plays the right way. Winning teams want those pieces.

NHL Central Scouting has Brandsegg-Nygard as the fifth-ranked European skater. He’s considered the 16th-best prospect in the draft by EliteProspects.com, while TSN’s Bob McKenzie and TSN’s Craig Button both have him at No. 17.

“He doesn’t come at you with a lot of flash or bang or anything, but he has got the hockey IQ to be a really strong two-way forward,” Marr said. “His maturity level and composure are off the charts, so he could be a little more pro-ready than a lot of players that are in this draft class. It’s going to be intriguing to see where the teams consider him because you’re drafting somebody here who’s going to have a short runway to the National Hockey League.”

DeFodi Images/Getty Images contributor

Fit with Flyers

The Flyers should absolutely like Brandsegg-Nygard’s size and style. And a quick riser is never a bad thing, especially with a rebuilding team that is asking younger players to push for its lineup.

Brandsegg-Nygard would give the Flyers some goal-scoring potential in the system and a possible Swiss Army knife.

But it’s important to note the Flyers have wanted to take bigger swings in the first round, starting last summer. At No. 12 overall, they could try to find a player with more prolific attributes. It’ll all depend on how the board falls ahead of the Flyers.

More targets

• Flyers should like Helenius, ‘one of the top talents in the draft’

• Flyers draft target Catton has ‘ingredients’ to be first-line center

• Flyers could have shot at Yakemchuk, a defenseman with ‘rare combination’

• Flyers draft target Iginla has impressive NHL lineage and ‘very high ceiling’

• Eiserman, ‘the best goal scorer in this draft,’ an option for Flyers?

• ‘The full package’ Connelly has interesting draft case for Flyers

• With ‘no real holes to his game,’ Jiricek an option for Flyers at No. 12

• Sennecke, a big winger set to ‘explode offensively,’ will be on Flyers’ radar

• Should Boisvert, a future ‘impact center,’ have Flyers’ attention?

• ‘He’s a special, special hockey player’ — Greentree a fit for Flyers at No. 12?

With ‘no real holes to his game,' Jiricek an option for Flyers at No. 12

Jordan Hall — Thu, Jun 20 2024 03:06:12 PM

“The bulk of it still needs to be done through our young guys, mostly through the draft,” general manager Danny Briere said in April.

More: Trade candidates? How many picks? Five Flyers things to know for the 2024 NHL draft

In the first round of the 2023 draft, the Flyers took a swing on Matvei Michkov at No. 7 and grabbed Oliver Bonk at No. 22. They should also have two first-round picks in 2025.

Leading up to the 2024 draft, we’re breaking down targets for the Flyers at No. 12.

Next up:

Adam Jiricek

Position: Defenseman
Height: 6-foot-2
Weight: 167
Shoots: Right
Team: Plzen

Scouting report

Jiricek might not jump off the screen, but has a slew of promising qualities for a future NHL defenseman.

He sees the ice exceptionally well, he’s a plus passer and his size to go along with a right-handed shot are appealing.

What will likely hurt his stock was a draft year cut significantly short. Per The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler, Jiricek injured his knee in Czechia’s first game of the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship. Because of the injury, he played only 19 games this season in Czech Extraliga, his country’s top pro league. He had one assist and a minus-10 mark.

The 17-year-old Jiricek is the brother of David Jiricek, the sixth overall selection in the 2022 NHL draft. The Blue Jackets grabbed the defenseman a pick after the Flyers took Cutter Gauthier.

Despite the small sample size this season, the younger Jiricek is the fourth-ranked European skater by NHL Central Scouting.

“There’s just a lot of history with watching him play,” Dan Marr, the vice president of NHL Central Scouting, said three weeks ago in a phone interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia. “He plays all situations, but he has just got that composure and poise with the puck to read plays, to make good decisions and to get the job done. There are no real holes to his game.”

Like many draft prospects, Jiricek will have to add some muscle and prove he can eventually be up to snuff with the physicality of the NHL. But, while on the thinner side, he has a real confidence with the puck under pressure.

Jiricek, who turns 18 next Friday, is considered the draft’s 16th-ranked prospect by TSN’s Bob McKenzie and No. 19 by TSN’s Craig Button. EliteProspects.com has him at 28th overall and Daily Faceoff’s Steven Ellis has him pegged as the eighth-best defenseman.

“He has got the good size and strength combination, good speed and balance with his skating, he can handle the puck, he can pass the puck, he sees the ice well,” Marr said. “He just makes good reads and good plays all the time. I think words that people are going to be using for him all the time is that he’s very solid, very steady, knows how to get the job done. And those types of players are appealing, especially to coaches. The coaches want the mistake-free guys.”

Chase Agnello-Dean/Getty Images contributor

Fit with Flyers

The 2024 draft is pretty rich with defensemen. There’s a possibility four or five go in the top 10, so Jiricek is expected to be there for the Flyers.

If they were to take him, they’d have a good chance at improving their outlook on the all-important right side. Jiricek would join the 19-year-old Bonk and the 22-year-old Jamie Drysdale, among others, as the organization’s up-and-coming righty shots. That’s not too shabby.

However, Jiricek may be viewed as somewhat of a reach at 12th overall. The Flyers could have a defenseman or two — perhaps Carter Yakemchuk — higher on their board and available to them when they’re on the clock.

Regardless, a player like Jiricek should give the Flyers a good option at No. 12.

More targets

• Flyers should like Helenius, ‘one of the top talents in the draft’

• Flyers draft target Catton has ‘ingredients’ to be first-line center

• Flyers could have shot at Yakemchuk, a defenseman with ‘rare combination’

• Flyers draft target Iginla has impressive NHL lineage and ‘very high ceiling’

• Eiserman, ‘the best goal scorer in this draft,’ an option for Flyers?

• ‘The full package’ Connelly has interesting draft case for Flyers

• Is Brandsegg-Nygard close to pro-ready and a possibility for Flyers?

• Sennecke, a big winger set to ‘explode offensively,’ will be on Flyers’ radar

• Should Boisvert, a future ‘impact center,’ have Flyers’ attention?

• ‘He’s a special, special hockey player’ — Greentree a fit for Flyers at No. 12?

‘The full package' Connelly has interesting draft case for Flyers

Jordan Hall — Wed, Jun 19 2024 05:03:09 PM

“The bulk of it still needs to be done through our young guys, mostly through the draft,” general manager Danny Briere said in April.

More: Trade candidates? How many picks? Five Flyers things to know for the 2024 NHL draft

In the first round of the 2023 draft, the Flyers took a swing on Matvei Michkov at No. 7 and grabbed Oliver Bonk at No. 22. They should also have two first-round picks in 2025.

Leading up to the 2024 draft, we’re breaking down targets for the Flyers at No. 12.

Next up:

Trevor Connelly

Position: Winger
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 160
Shoots: Left
Team: Tri-City Storm

Scouting report

Behind superb length and skill, Connelly is a dazzling offensive player.

He put up a USHL-best 1.50 points per game this season with 31 goals and 47 assists in 52 games for Tri-City. He had 23 multi-point games, while his 240 shots led the league and his 78 points were second most.

The Providence commit is difficult to contain in transition as his speed and elusiveness take over.

“Highly skilled, highly talented player,” Dan Marr, the vice president of NHL Central Scouting, said a little under three weeks ago in a phone interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia. “He’s got that get up and go, that drive and energy to his game. He’s one of these players that will be very good playing alongside pros. He plays the game at such a high pace that he’s making plays where some of his teammates still haven’t caught up to him on the play.”

At the 2024 IIHF U-18 World Junior Championship a month and a half ago, Connelly had nine points (four goals, five assists) and a plus-7 rating in seven games on a U.S. team that took home silver medals.

But teams may be hesitant to take Connelly because of some off-the-ice concerns, which he discussed last summer in a story by Jordan McAlpine of The Rink Live. Connelly could also face skepticism over his frame. How will his game translate to the next level? Will he add strength to fend off adult defenders and score with less time and space?

NHL Central Scouting has Connelly as the sixth-ranked North American skater. He’s considered the 14th-best prospect in the draft by EliteProspects.com and No. 15 by TSN’s Bob McKenzie, while TSN’s Craig Button has Connelly at 27th.

“He’s got that NHL speed and quickness already; he just needs to get stronger,” Marr said. “He’s going to Providence, where Nate Leaman runs a solid program. Players go there, they become better players. So he’s still going to just continue to learn the game and get stronger. But as far as speed and smarts and skills, he’s the full package.”

Eldon Holmes/Tri-City Storm

Fit with Flyers

Connelly would certainly give the Flyers a lift in the talent department. There’s plenty of upside with a smooth, 6-foot-1 skater who can both facilitate and finish.

If the Flyers were to draft Connelly, they’d have a promising picture on the wing for the future. He would join Michkov, who is 19 and the Flyers’ top prospect, and the 22-year-old Tyson Foerster, who is coming off a 20-goal rookie NHL season.

But will the Flyers view Connelly as the best player available? It’s possible that he’s deeper on their list and considered more of a reach at No. 12. A center or defenseman might be a better, lower-risk option.

More targets

• Flyers should like Helenius, ‘one of the top talents in the draft’

• Flyers draft target Catton has ‘ingredients’ to be first-line center

• Flyers could have shot at Yakemchuk, a defenseman with ‘rare combination’

• Flyers draft target Iginla has impressive NHL lineage and ‘very high ceiling’

• Eiserman, ‘the best goal scorer in this draft,’ an option for Flyers?

• With ‘no real holes to his game,’ Jiricek an option for Flyers at No. 12

• Is Brandsegg-Nygard close to pro-ready and a possibility for Flyers?

• Sennecke, a big winger set to ‘explode offensively,’ will be on Flyers’ radar

• Should Boisvert, a future ‘impact center,’ have Flyers’ attention?

• ‘He’s a special, special hockey player’ — Greentree a fit for Flyers at No. 12?

Eiserman, ‘the best goal scorer in this draft,' an option for Flyers?

Jordan Hall — Tue, Jun 18 2024 05:00:10 PM

“The bulk of it still needs to be done through our young guys, mostly through the draft,” general manager Danny Briere said in April.

More: Trade candidates? How many picks? Five Flyers things to know for the 2024 NHL draft

In the first round of the 2023 draft, the Flyers took a swing on Matvei Michkov at No. 7 and grabbed Oliver Bonk at No. 22. They should also have two first-round picks in 2025.

Leading up to the 2024 draft, we’re breaking down targets for the Flyers at No. 12.

Next up:

Cole Eiserman

Position: Winger
Height: 6-foot
Weight: 197
Shoots: Left
Team: USNTDP

Scouting report

A bona-fide sniper, Eiserman scored 58 goals in 57 games this season for the U.S. national U-18 team. He finished with 89 points and a plus-23 rating, while 25 of his goals came on the power play.

The 17-year-old set a U.S. national team development program record with 127 career goals, more than names like Auston Matthews, Patrick Kane, Phil Kessel and Cole Caufield. And he doesn’t turn 18 until the end of August.

Eiserman’s shot is considered second to none in the draft. With an NHL release, he puts the puck where he wants it to go and at top speed.

“I think he’s the best goal scorer in this draft class, period,” Dan Marr, the vice president of NHL Central Scouting, said two and a half weeks ago in a phone interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia. “Goal scoring is a premium at the NHL level, he went through the year and ended up with 58 goals. Teams know what he can bring.”

There’s reasonable concern about why Eiserman’s stock dipped on scouting services over the course of the season. He has work to do on his overall game and will need to prove he’s not just a one-trick pony, that he can impact a team in multiple ways.

He went from a No. 8 midterm mark among North American skaters to No. 12 in NHL Central Scouting’s final rankings. TSN’s Craig Button rated him as the fifth-best player in the draft, while EliteProspects.com slotted him 13th and TSN’s Bob McKenzie pegged him at No. 14.

“He fell just outside of the top 10 but he’s in that range,” Marr said. “At the U-18 world championships, he showed what he can bring to the table. … I think sometimes expectations are you want all these players to be able to do everything well, everything great. But he has got one great asset and then he’s a scorer. He can finish, he knows how to get open, he’s got a variety of shots and he can bury them. That’s a really high commodity.”

At the 2024 IIHF U-18 World Junior Championship a month and a half ago, Eiserman finished tied for second in the tournament with nine goals over seven games on a U.S. team that took home silver medals.

“I do think he probably moved up on [every team’s] list after the U-18s,” Marr said. “He had a very strong performance there.”

David Reginek/USA Today Images

Fit with Flyers

If you have the opportunity to grab the top goal scorer in a draft at No. 12 overall, there’s likely some interest. The Flyers have needed more shoot-first, pure goal scorers. It’s a big reason why they drafted Tyson Foerster at 23rd overall in 2020 despite the winger being somewhat raw in other areas of his game.

The Flyers have had the NHL’s worst power play in each of the last three seasons. Eiserman could potentially give them a big answer there down the road.

But, with where the Flyers are slotted in the first round, it’s fair to wonder if they’ll view other players as better, more multifaceted options, especially if they like a center or defenseman that is still available.

More targets

• Flyers should like Helenius, ‘one of the top talents in the draft’

• Flyers draft target Catton has ‘ingredients’ to be first-line center

• Flyers could have shot at Yakemchuk, a defenseman with ‘rare combination’

• Flyers draft target Iginla has impressive NHL lineage and ‘very high ceiling’

• ‘The full package’ Connelly has interesting draft case for Flyers

• With ‘no real holes to his game,’ Jiricek an option for Flyers at No. 12

• Is Brandsegg-Nygard close to pro-ready and a possibility for Flyers?

• Sennecke, a big winger set to ‘explode offensively,’ will be on Flyers’ radar

• Should Boisvert, a future ‘impact center,’ have Flyers’ attention?

• ‘He’s a special, special hockey player’ — Greentree a fit for Flyers at No. 12?

Flyers preseason schedule has most games since 2019-20

Jordan Hall — Mon, Jun 17 2024 03:56:15 PM

The Flyers will be busy as they make roster decisions ahead of their 2024-25 regular-season opener.

The team’s preseason schedule consists of seven games in 12 days. The seven games are the most the Flyers have had in the preseason since 2019-20, when they also played seven, including an overseas loss to Lausanne HC.

John Tortorella’s club will open the exhibition slate Sunday, Sept. 22, when it visits the Capitals. It’ll wrap things up Thursday, Oct. 3, at home against the Devils.

The Flyers will start training camp in September. It marks Year 3 under Tortorella and the second season for general manager Danny Briere and president of hockey operations Keith Jones.

The regular-season schedule should be announced later this month or in early July.

Below is the Flyers’ 2024-25 preseason schedule. The broadcast information will be announced at a later date.

• Sunday, Sept. 22 — at Capitals (3 p.m. ET)
• Monday, Sept. 23 — at Canadiens (7 p.m. ET)
• Thursday, Sept. 26 — vs. Islanders (7 p.m. ET)
• Saturday, Sept. 28 — vs. Bruins (7 p.m. ET)
• Monday, Sept. 30 — at Islanders (7 p.m. ET)
• Tuesday, Oct. 1 — at Bruins (7 p.m. ET)
• Thursday, Oct. 3 — vs. Devils (7 p.m. ET)

What the Flyers can learn from the 2024 NHL playoffs

Joe Fordyce — Mon, Jun 17 2024 01:46:11 PM

If this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs have taught us anything, it’s that the Flyers still have a sizable amount of work to do on their rebuild before they’re able to stand skate to skate with some of the NHL’s best teams.

This fact is not lost on the Flyers’ front office, as the phrase “we still have some work to do” is among the most frequently used at Flyers Training Center when president of hockey operations Keith Jones, general manager Danny Briere or head coach John Tortorella address the state of the team.

So let’s talk about what the Flyers can glean from these playoffs. The first and foremost lesson that has been on display, particularly when you focus on the four teams that reached conference final series, is the need for go-to guys. The NHL, like most leagues nowadays, is a star-driven league, and when you look at the teams that make lengthy playoff runs, it’s no mystery why. These teams are loaded with star talent and they’re deep.

Star power and depth are two things that are a big void for this Flyers team. Tortorella’s team lacks a true go-to guy during some stretches. Travis Konecny can be a go-to guy, but he would need more consistency to be considered on the level we’re highlighting. The 27-year-old is a fully established player in this league, so it would seem we already know what the Flyers have in Konecny.

Owen Tippett is the wild card as he’s shown glimpses of being that go-to guy since coming to the Flyers in a trade. He’s still a young player whose game is growing. However, the 25-year-old needs to develop consistency and accuracy with his shot, which his coach didn’t hesitate to bring up during the season on a number of occasions.

The Flyers’ lack of depth in the scoring department is perhaps their most glaring need, along with the need for a true No. 1 center. When you look at the Panthers, they’re deep and have all different levels of players who can step up when teams focus a lot of their attention on someone like Matthew Tkachuk. The same can be said of the Oilers with Connor McDavid. However, we can leave McDavid out of this conversation because while we are talking about stars, his talent is once in a generation, therefore tough to compare.

The second lesson from these playoffs is a need for defensive structure and that includes all five skaters on the ice. The Panthers are a suffocating team to play against, but unlike traditional defensive-oriented teams, their aggressive defensive play can turn to aggressive offensive play in a blink, and that takes personnel.

The Flyers are hoping 2019 first-round pick Cam York can build on his late-season play in which the team leaned on the 23-year-old and Travis Sanheim, and show why the Flyers chose him so high in the draft.

The wild card on the blue line for the Flyers is Jamie Drysdale. The talent is there but the health has not been. It wasn’t prior to Drysdale coming to the Flyers and it wasn’t when he came to the Flyers. He missed a good amount of time with an upper-body injury as the result of a big hit and also dealt with an issue in his core area.

Drysdale is another defenseman whose ability to create offense is perhaps the key part of his game, but the old saying in sports is “the greatest ability is availability,” and that has been a challenge for the 22-year-old early in his career.

Sanheim took a big leap this season, however he did finish the season as a minus-20, something he and the Flyers surely would like to see improve.

These defensemen and their ability to create offense will only get better as the talent on the forward lines improves. The playoffs have shown the need for depth on the forward lines and the ability to play on both ends.

The goaltending piece of this equation is understandably the most painful for Flyers fans because the one-time Flyer Sergei Bobrovsky had been otherworldly in these playoffs prior to Florida’s Game 4 loss to Edmonton. Bobrovsky was never able to fully develop as a Flyer. But since leaving the orange and black, his trophy case is getting pretty full and in all likelihood will continue to do so.

The Flyers, on the other hand, will head into September training camp with Samuel Ersson and Ivan Fedotov as their goaltenders and a looming question mark with Carter Hart’s situation. Ersson played well when you consider he didn’t expect to play as much as he did with the absence of Hart, but it was clear Ersson started to wear down late in the season. Meanwhile, Fedotov with limited experience is a true unknown.

So while the Flyers were close to a playoff spot, and if not for a number of losses to inferior teams, they would have likely made the playoffs, it’s clear there’s still a long way to the top of the league.

This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.

Flyers re-sign young depth defenseman to 2-year contract

Jordan Hall — Mon, Jun 17 2024 12:20:09 PM

Adam Ginning, who gave the Flyers reliable minutes in a playoff race, signed a new two-year, $1.575 million contract Monday.

The deal is a two-way contract in Year 1 and a one-way contract in Year 2, while the average annual value of it is $787,500. Ginning was a restricted free agent and will be an RFA again when this deal expires, according to PuckPedia.com.

With the trade of Sean Walker and injuries to Nick Seeler, Jamie Drysdale and Rasmus Ristolainen, Ginning was first called up to the Flyers in March and played nine of the team’s final 19 games.

The 24-year-old defenseman was solid in 14:09 minutes per game, scoring his first career NHL goal to go along with 18 hits, nine blocked shots and an even plus-minus rating.

Ginning, a 6-foot-3, defensive-minded blueliner, had two goals, 13 assists and a minus-5 rating in 58 regular-season games for AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley. The season prior, he was a team-leading plus-24 with the Phantoms. He made his NHL debut that season in the Flyers’ second-to-last game.

The Flyers could have one or two jobs open on defense in 2024-25. Ginning will be competing for one come training camp in September.

The club also needs to re-sign Egor Zamula, another 24-year-old restricted free agent defenseman.

Flyers draft target Iginla has impressive NHL lineage and ‘very high ceiling'

Jordan Hall — Sat, Jun 15 2024 06:28:21 PM

“The bulk of it still needs to be done through our young guys, mostly through the draft,” general manager Danny Briere said in April.

More: Trade candidates? How many picks? Five Flyers things to know for the 2024 NHL draft

In the first round of the 2023 draft, the Flyers took a swing on Matvei Michkov at No. 7 and grabbed Oliver Bonk at No. 22. They should also have two first-round picks in 2025.

Leading up to the 2024 draft, we’re breaking down targets for the Flyers at No. 12.

Next up:

Tij Iginla

Position: Winger/center
Height: 6-foot
Weight: 191
Shoots: Left
Team: Kelowna Rockets

Scouting report

Oozing with confidence and savvy, Iginla climbed plenty of 2024 NHL draft rankings this season by putting up 84 points (47 goals, 37 assists) in 64 regular-season games for the WHL’s Rockets.

His 47 goals were tied for sixth most in the WHL, while his nine playoff markers led Kelowna as he finished with 15 points over 11 games. Including the postseason, he recorded 11 multi-goal games, featuring three hat tricks.

And he did all of it as a 17-year-old. Iginla, who doesn’t turn 18 until August, has some Hockey Hall of Fame bloodlines to boot. His father Jarome Iginla is enshrined in Toronto after playing 1,554 career NHL games and producing 1,300 points (625 goals, 675 assists).

The young Iginla plays on the wing like his dad but can also chip in at center. He’s a strong skater with a knack for the puck and might project more as a winger at the pro level.

“I like to use the term dynamic because he’s got the skill and the speed to make things happen,” Dan Marr, the vice president of NHL Central Scouting, said over two weeks ago in a phone interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia. “And it has kind of continuously evolved and improved over the course of the year. He’s got a quick burst up the middle to break through the defense, go around players to get to the net, he’s quick from the corners to the front of the net. Very elusive, hard to check.”

At the 2024 IIHF U-18 World Junior Championship, Iginla helped lead Team Canada to a gold medal with 12 points (six goals, six assists) in seven games.

He’s the ninth-ranked North American skater by NHL Central Scouting and considered the third-best prospect in the draft by TSN’s Craig Button. EliteProspects.com has Iginla at sixth overall, while TSN’s Bob McKenzie put him at No. 10.

“When he has the puck, he’s very tenacious, he really wants to have the puck,” Marr said. “If you give him a scoring opportunity, he knows how to get open, he’s got a good release, he’s got a good shot and he’s a good finisher. This is a kid that has a very high ceiling and he’s going to be a very productive offensive player.”

Steve Dunsmoor/Kelowna Rockets

Fit with Flyers

If Iginla fell out of the top 10, the Flyers would conceivably have serious interest. There’s a lot to like with his ability to score and win puck battles at only 17 years old.

Of course, the Flyers know his dad well. Briere was a teammate of Iginla’s in 2014-15 with the Avalanche, president of hockey operations Keith Jones played against him and John Tortorella coached against him in the 2004 Stanley Cup Final.

Over their four-year playoff drought, the Flyers have ranked 29th in goals per game with 2.72. They’ve needed more players who can beat the goalie without help. Plugging Iginla into the picture with Michkov and Tyson Foerster would give the Flyers nice pop on the wing for the future. Michkov is 19 and the Flyers’ top prospect, while the 22-year-old Foerster has arguably the best shot in the organization and is coming off a 20-goal rookie NHL season.

Iginla isn’t the flashiest of players and will need to work on the defensive side of his game, but he possesses so many translatable strengths. A rebuilding team like the Flyers would welcome those strengths.

More targets

• Flyers should like Helenius, ‘one of the top talents in the draft’

• Flyers draft target Catton has ‘ingredients’ to be first-line center

• Flyers could have shot at Yakemchuk, a defenseman with ‘rare combination’

• Eiserman, ‘the best goal scorer in this draft,’ an option for Flyers?

• ‘The full package’ Connelly has interesting draft case for Flyers

• With ‘no real holes to his game,’ Jiricek an option for Flyers at No. 12

• Is Brandsegg-Nygard close to pro-ready and a possibility for Flyers?

• Sennecke, a big winger set to ‘explode offensively,’ will be on Flyers’ radar

• Should Boisvert, a future ‘impact center,’ have Flyers’ attention?

• ‘He’s a special, special hockey player’ — Greentree a fit for Flyers at No. 12?

Flyers sign another big forward out of the SHL

Jordan Hall — Sat, Jun 15 2024 01:08:05 PM

The Flyers added a potential bottom-six piece to their 2024-25 picture on Saturday when they signed Rodrigo Abols to a one-year, two-way, $775,000 contract.

The 28-year-old has been a productive player in the SHL, Sweden’s top pro league. This season, he had 14 goals and 12 assists over 50 games for Rogle BK. He played 18:23 minutes per game in the regular season and then 18:57 in the playoffs, adding 12 points (five goals, seven assists) through 15 games.

The 6-foot-4, 205-pounder has 85 goals and 78 assists in 266 career SHL games. He has been very good in the playoffs, recording 39 points (15 goals, 24 assists) over 47 games.

Abols is the second forward the Flyers have signed out of the SHL with notable size. They inked Oscar Eklind, a 6-foot-4 winger, to a one-year deal in April.

A Latvian native, Abols has played for his country at the Olympics and IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship. He was a seventh-round draft pick of the Canucks in 2016.

Abols will compete for a spot on the Flyers’ roster come training camp in September and should be a call-up option throughout the season if he’s playing for AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley.

Flyers could have shot at Yakemchuk, a defenseman with ‘rare combination'

Jordan Hall — Thu, Jun 13 2024 03:18:03 PM

“The bulk of it still needs to be done through our young guys, mostly through the draft,” general manager Danny Briere said in April.

More: Trade candidates? How many picks? Five Flyers things to know for the 2024 NHL draft

In the first round of the 2023 draft, the Flyers took a swing on Matvei Michkov at No. 7 and grabbed Oliver Bonk at No. 22. They should also have two first-round picks in 2025.

Leading up to the 2024 draft, we’re breaking down targets for the Flyers at No. 12.

Next up:

Carter Yakemchuk

Position: Defenseman
Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 202
Shoots: Right
Team: Calgary Hitmen

Scouting report

There’s a lot of intrigue to Yakemchuk and it goes well beyond his size and right-handed shot.

He’s immensely mobile and skilled for a big defenseman. But he’s not all flash. He likes to defend with some nastiness and physicality.

“He scored 30 goals and he had over 100 minutes in penalties,” Dan Marr, the vice president of NHL Central Scouting, said two weeks ago in a phone interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia. “That’s a rare combination.”

Yakemchuk’s 30 goals for the WHL’s Hitmen ranked second among all defensemen in Canadian major junior hockey this season. Only Zayne Parekh of the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit had more with 33 and he’s a potential top-five pick in this draft.

Adding 41 assists, Yakemchuk finished second on Calgary with 71 points in 66 regular-season games. His 120 penalty minutes put him in a three-way tie for the WHL’s fifth most. The long and lithe blueliner can dance around defenders with the puck on his stick and likes to quickly close gaps when he’s in coverage.

“I don’t know if he has fully matured into his body yet, so the upside with him is very, very intriguing,” Marr said. “When you see him with the puck at the offensive blue line and in the offensive zone, you’d swear he’s a forward. He has got that type of skill set, that type of offensive capabilities to him.

“He’s tough, he defends with a purpose, he’s not afraid to utilize his size. It takes a lot to get over 100 minutes in penalties.”

Yakemchuk, who is considered older for his draft year, turning 18 last September, will have to refine his defensive game. That is common for most prospects. Defending at the junior level is different than defending against pros. In three seasons with the Hitmen, Yakemchuk owns a minus-33 rating.

He’s the 11th-ranked North American skater by NHL Central Scouting and considered the 17th overall prospect by EliteProspects.com. TSN’s Bob McKenzie has Yakemchuk at No. 13 and TSN’s Craig Button has him at No. 15.

“There are parts of his game that just have to be taught yet, which he’ll learn at the NHL level,” Marr said. “I think as he becomes a pro, his defensive game will tighten up even more than what it is. But he has got the skating, which is very elite for someone his size, to where he has got the mobility and the agility to stay with the forwards when he’s defending.”

Jenn Pierce/Calgary Hitmen

Fit with Flyers

The 2024 draft class is heavy on defensemen. There’s a possibility four or five go in the top 10, so Yakemchuk could be the next one up for the Flyers if they view him as the best player available at No. 12.

The righty-shot component is always attractive to NHL clubs. If the Flyers were to draft Yakemchuk, they’d have a chance at a bright future on the right side when you include the 19-year-old Bonk and the 22-year-old Jamie Drysdale, among others.

Flyers amateur scout Mark Greig has long watched the WHL and the club has plucked a few blueliners from Calgary’s program: Travis Sanheim (2014 first-round pick) and Egor Zamula (2018 undrafted free-agent signing).

The Flyers need to find more answers for their future on defense and really build from the back to the front. Yakemchuk has the potential to help them prevent goals and also create them on the power play.

“He has got all the ingredients to be a complete package and it’s just going to take some experience and maturity before it all comes together,” Marr said. “You draft him now and then two to three years down the road, this is what you’re projecting. I kind of think he’s an easy projection. He’s one of these players that could go top 10 or he could slide a little bit, you just never know how the teams are going to approach it.”

More targets

• Flyers should like Helenius, ‘one of the top talents in the draft’

• Flyers draft target Catton has ‘ingredients’ to be first-line center

• Flyers draft target Iginla has impressive NHL lineage and ‘very high ceiling’

• Eiserman, ‘the best goal scorer in this draft,’ an option for Flyers?

• ‘The full package’ Connelly has interesting draft case for Flyers

• With ‘no real holes to his game,’ Jiricek an option for Flyers at No. 12

• Is Brandsegg-Nygard close to pro-ready and a possibility for Flyers?

• Sennecke, a big winger set to ‘explode offensively,’ will be on Flyers’ radar

• Should Boisvert, a future ‘impact center,’ have Flyers’ attention?

• ‘He’s a special, special hockey player’ — Greentree a fit for Flyers at No. 12?

Carter Hart, Hockey Canada sexual assault case back in court Aug. 13

Jordan Hall — Tue, Jun 11 2024 01:22:11 PM

The trial in the sexual assault case involving Carter Hart and four other players from the 2018 Canadian world junior team is not expected to begin anytime soon.

A trial start date was not set in court Tuesday, a spokesperson for the Ontario superior court told NBC Sports Philadelphia. The case will be back in criminal assignment court Aug. 13, the same day Hart turns 26 years old.

As reported in April, it does not appear that the trial will begin until after the 2024-25 NHL season is underway. TSN correspondent Rick Westhead reported Tuesday that, “because of court backlogs, it’s doubtful the Hockey Canada trial will begin before late April 2025 at the earliest.”

The Flyers open training camp in September and the regular season in October. An NHL regular season typically ends around mid-April. The possibility of Hart returning to the ice at any point next season is appearing more and more unlikely.

The goaltender is a restricted free agent this offseason. It’s uncertain if the Flyers will need to extend Hart a qualifying offer this month to retain his rights as the legal process plays out in court. According to a source, the Flyers have not made a decision on that front as they wait for direction from the NHL.

Update: Flyers part ways with Hart, who becomes unrestricted free agent

Hart has been away from the team since Jan. 23, when he requested and was granted an indefinite leave of absence.

On Feb. 5, London, Ontario police announced it had charged Hart, the Flames’ Dillon Dube, the Devils’ Cal Foote and Michael McLeod and former NHLer Alex Formenton with sexual assault, stemming from a June 2018 incident.

A week after Hart left the Flyers, his legal representation stated that “he is innocent and will provide a full response to this false allegation in the proper forum, a court of law.”

At Danny Briere’s end-of-the-season press conference April 19, the general manager did not have any update on Hart’s status. The Flyers plan to go into camp with Samuel Ersson and Ivan Fedotov forming their goaltending tandem.

Flyers draft target Catton has ‘ingredients' to be first-line center

Jordan Hall — Mon, Jun 10 2024 06:18:15 PM

“The bulk of it still needs to be done through our young guys, mostly through the draft,” general manager Danny Briere said in April.

More: Trade candidates? How many picks? Five Flyers things to know for the 2024 NHL draft

In the first round of the 2023 draft, the Flyers took a swing on Matvei Michkov at No. 7 and grabbed Oliver Bonk at No. 22. They should also have two first-round picks in 2025.

Leading up to the 2024 draft, we’re breaking down targets for the Flyers at No. 12.

Next up:

Berkly Catton

Position: Center
Height: 5-foot-10
Weight: 175
Shoots: Left
Team: Spokane Chiefs

Scouting report

As a shifty and sly pivot, Catton put up some of the gaudiest numbers in Canadian major junior hockey this season.

The 18-year-old amassed 116 points (54 goals, 62 assists) in 68 regular-season games for the Chiefs. He delivered seven games of four or more points and 14 multi-goal performances, while his seven shorthanded goals led the WHL.

The way Catton changes direction at full speed but under control makes him a constant threat with the puck. He can score and impact a game in a variety of ways.

Does he have first-line potential at the NHL level?

“He does in the sense that one of his strongest assets is his ability to control the game with his hockey sense,” Dan Marr, the vice president of NHL Central Scouting, said a week and a half ago in a phone interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia. “His vision, his anticipation, just the way he sees the ice and reads the play allows him to set up and make plays, execute plays when it’s needed. He’s just a very, very smart player out there.”

Catton is on the smaller side, which will naturally create debate about how his game will fare against pros. He’s the eighth-ranked North American skater by NHL Central Scouting and EliteProspects.com considers him the eighth-best prospect in the draft. TSN’s Bob McKenzie has Catton at No. 12 overall, while TSN’s Craig Button has him at No. 14.

“He’s highly skilled and highly intelligent,” Marr said, “and those are the ingredients that you want in a top-line centerman.”

Larry Brunt/Spokane Chiefs

Fit with Flyers

Catton would be a fine fit for the Flyers, who could really use high-end talent, especially down the middle.

Morgan Frost is the only first-round center the Flyers have taken over the past 11 drafts that is currently on their roster. With Catton, the Flyers’ future would get a huge lift in scoring upside and a player that could complement Michkov.

While Catton comes with risk because the desired size isn’t there, the rebuilding Flyers have wanted to take more swings in the first round. They didn’t go the safe route last summer. This summer, if they have a chance at Catton with the 12th overall pick, they’d have to strongly consider taking him.

More targets

• Flyers should like Helenius, ‘one of the top talents in the draft’

• Flyers could have shot at Yakemchuk, a defenseman with ‘rare combination’

• Flyers draft target Iginla has impressive NHL lineage and ‘very high ceiling’

• Eiserman, ‘the best goal scorer in this draft,’ an option for Flyers?

• ‘The full package’ Connelly has interesting draft case for Flyers

• With ‘no real holes to his game,’ Jiricek an option for Flyers at No. 12

• Is Brandsegg-Nygard close to pro-ready and a possibility for Flyers?

• Sennecke, a big winger set to ‘explode offensively,’ will be on Flyers’ radar

• Should Boisvert, a future ‘impact center,’ have Flyers’ attention?

• ‘He’s a special, special hockey player’ — Greentree a fit for Flyers at No. 12?

Jones: Flyers were a playoff team with Walker, didn't forget rebuild

Jordan Hall — Fri, Jun 07 2024 03:33:18 PM

The word “collapse” was frequently used to describe the Flyers’ finish to the 2023-24 season.

And that word was fair. Had the Flyers stayed afloat down the stretch, they would have punched a playoff ticket.

With 11 games to go, they had an 83.4 percent chance to make the postseason, according to Hockey-Reference.com’s probabilities report. They had held down third place in the Metropolitan Division for over two months before losing eight straight and being outscored 42-18 through that skid. They went 2-7-2 in those final 11 games and were eliminated from the race on the final day of their regular season.

What’s also fair is acknowledging that the Flyers’ decision-makers didn’t get caught up in one playoff run when the March 8 trade deadline neared. From the start, the organization vowed to focus on the future and try to build a sustainable contender. The Flyers stayed true to that promise by moving one of their best defensemen in Sean Walker two days before the deadline. The deal with the Avalanche netted the Flyers a conditional 2025 first-round pick.

But it did hurt the Flyers at an area in which they were already hurting. With Nick Seeler hitting injured reserve the same day of the Walker trade, the Flyers lost arguably their most effective defensive pair. They were also missing Rasmus Ristolainen and Jamie Drysdale to injuries, making the club awfully thin on the back end as it tried to nail down a playoff berth.

The Flyers went 6-10-3, surrendered 3.95 goals per game and had a minus-30 goal differential after trading Walker. His absence didn’t completely break the Flyers, but it absolutely factored into their nosedive.

“I don’t think the messaging should be lost in the fact that we did trade a player for a first-round pick next year in a very important draft,” president of hockey operations Keith Jones said Wednesday. “Had Sean Walker stayed with the team, is there three points in there for us? Yes, then we’re in the playoffs, we would have battled hard, we would have been a difficult opponent for everyone.

“And that’s kind of what we established last year. I don’t think there were many teams that came in and felt like they could get an easy two points playing the Flyers. If you look at our record against the final four teams or even the two teams that are playing in the Stanley Cup Final, it was respectable to say the least. So I do think there’s been some incredible growth in that regard.”

More: Hilferty ‘thrilled’ with Flyers’ direction, Jones opens up on rebuild timeline

The Flyers picked up 13 wins over top-10 teams. They went a combined 5-4-2 against the clubs that made the East and West Final (Panthers, Rangers, Oilers and Stars) and 3-2-0 against the teams in the Cup Final (Panthers and Oilers).

However, the Flyers also had 13 losses to bottom-10 teams. Half of their losses in that costly eight-game skid came against teams in the bottom five of the NHL standings.

“I think some of the disappointment and the losses at the end of the season is going to be something that our players carry with them,” Jones said. “I think it’s going to be valuable for them. We didn’t lose to the best teams in the league. We lost to some of the worst teams in the league. It wasn’t playoff teams ramping up their play and taking advantage of us. It was us overlooking the opponents that we were playing. So there are valuable lessons in that.”

The finish to the season has the Flyers making the 12th overall selection — their first of two first-round picks — in the June 28-29 NHL draft.

“Does it diminish what our guys accomplished throughout the year? I don’t think it does,” Jones said. “Does having the 12th pick overall help us in this draft? It does. Is it something that we were hoping for as our guys were battling for the playoffs? No, but we have to make good on it now.”

After the season, head coach John Tortorella was adamant that the Flyers made the right decisions at the trade deadline. On Wednesday, Comcast Spectacor chairman and CEO and Flyers governor Dan Hilferty backed the front office, as well.

“We never lost sight of the goal, [which] was the longer-term positioning of the team,” Hilferty said. “As an observer, I appreciated that, it was really encouraging to watch. This is the plan and we’re sticking with it. You’re right, we were all sad to see Sean go. But the truth is, there’s a pick that came from that and there’s an opportunity to build towards the future.”

This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.

Hilferty ‘thrilled' with Flyers' direction, Jones opens up on rebuild timeline

Jordan Hall — Wed, Jun 05 2024 09:42:00 PM

This season, his first as the Flyers’ head of ownership, Dan Hilferty attended close to 60 of the team’s 82 games.

That’s a lot.

That’s not missing a beat at home, that’s going on the road and that’s getting a real pulse of the Flyers’ rebuild.

Hilferty would watch the staff after games. Win or loss, he’d always visit the locker room.

He was left impressed.

“Just the love between those players and the folks that work from the equipment management on up to the coaches,” the Comcast Spectacor chairman and CEO and Flyers governor said. “It’s telling.”

Hilferty, who noticeably put himself out there this season, had a press conference Wednesday alongside president of hockey operations Keith Jones. The two discussed the state of the Flyers about a month and a half after general manager Danny Briere and head coach John Tortorella did the same three days following the season finale.

“We’re going to do this every year,” Hilferty said, “and it’s our way of making sure that you hear from all four of us.”

The 2023-24 season was the organization’s first with Hilferty, Jones and Briere in their roles, and Year 2 of Tortorella being the steward behind the bench. Last summer, the Flyers publicly embraced a rebuild as all four figures spoke on a stage in the middle of the Wells Fargo Center.

The Flyers turned out to be a surprise playoff contender this season. But a 2-7-2 finish, including an eight-game losing streak, saw the Flyers go from a driver’s seat in the race to being eliminated on Game 82. In the grand scheme, though, the Flyers overachieved and stayed true to their future at the trade deadline.

“I’m just really excited about where we are,” Hilferty said. “Thrilled with Keith’s leadership, thrilled with Danny’s leadership, how the two of them work together. Thrilled with Coach Tortorella and the way the three of them can finish each other’s sentences, and how, together, we’re going to build a winner.

“I think we all have healthy egos and I think these guys, obviously if you play in the NHL at the level Keith and Danny did, coach in the NHL at the level that Torts has, ego is involved. But I’ve never once seen — now maybe when they close the doors and really talk hockey, the sparks fly — but I’ve never seen an unwillingness to share and listen to other points of view. For me, that’s No. 1, that we’re building this culture of collaboration. I see it, day in and day out.”

More: Jones says Flyers were a playoff team with Walker, didn’t forget rebuild

Considering the Flyers are focused on the long term but narrowly missed the playoffs, the debate over the club’s timeline has been fueled. When might the Flyers become a spender? When could they look to shed the rebuild label?

“I think the one indicator on the timeline that’s out there for everyone to see is the money that we have tied up right now for players that aren’t playing for our team,” Jones said. “A lot of that is going to start to come off of the cap. I do think that, if you’re looking further down the line, that is where we’re going to start to have some real key decisions to make. We have to get them right. There’s no room for error on whatever players we add to the mix in a couple of years. Those are things that we have to pay a lot of attention to right now. And that’s something that we’re really focused on.”

The Flyers are awfully tight on cap space. However, after next season, they’ll have some money coming off the books. Cam Atkinson ($5.875 million cap hit), Cal Petersen ($5M) and Ryan Johansen ($4M) are all on expiring contracts in 2024-25, which is also the final season of Tony DeAngelo’s buyout. The retained salary from the Kevin Hayes trade spans two more seasons.

We’ll see if the Flyers make a decision on Atkinson’s future this offseason. Petersen was acquired in the Ivan Provorov trade last summer to help the Flyers net a first-round pick and Johansen’s contract was taken on in the Sean Walker trade this season, a deal that also yielded a first-round pick. Including last summer’s draft, the Flyers have a chance to make six first-round selections in a three-year span.

If the Flyers are able to spend come 2025-26, they need to make sure they’re in position to attract free agents, that they’re a team built to take the next step.

“I think there’s a blueprint out there that we can maximize and hit on, but we’ve got to do it right,” Jones said. “I’m pretty confident that we have a group of people around with Dan’s support and Danny Briere pounding the pavement to find those type of players. I think we’re going to be in a position to get things to a point where we’re playing in the playoffs, not just for one year, but for multiple seasons trying to contend and win a Stanley Cup.

“Some of that is growth from within, some of our younger players, and whoever we draft with the two first-round picks we have this year and then the multiple first-round picks next year. It’s going to be key. But at the same time, the removal of money off the cap, the dead money, is something that we’re going to be able to use to our benefit, as long as we do everything right here and make sure that this is a place that people want to play.”

The Flyers wanted to put a significant emphasis on reconnecting with their fans this season and the team’s new braintrust to be as transparent as possible through the start of the rebuild.

Part of the transparency was Wednesday’s press conference.

“If you look at the track record that we’ve had over the past decade, it’s been not a great one,” Hilferty said. “We needed to change the discussion around, ‘Oh, here they go again, it’s a losing environment,’ to, ‘What are they up to? They’re not overpromising, but they’re looking us in the eye and having a conversation about where we’re headed.’ And that’s what we’ve tried to change.”

This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.

No Matvei Michkov news from Flyers, whose expectations remain the same

Jordan Hall — Wed, Jun 05 2024 04:44:06 PM

Dan Hilferty will often remind you that he’s not just the head of ownership for the Flyers.

He is also a fan.

He was a fan before he became the Flyers’ governor and chairman and CEO of Comcast Spectacor. And he won’t lose the fan inside of him because that’s what drives his passion for his role, it’s how he connects with the fan base.

Since the end of April, Flyers fans have been gaga over top prospect Matvei Michkov and the possibility of his early arrival.

As a fan, does Hilferty ever bug his president of hockey operations for a Michkov update?

“Three times a day,” he said Wednesday with a laugh, looking at Keith Jones seated to his left. “No, I say that in jest.”

“I don’t answer his calls,” Jones joked.

Hilferty wouldn’t be the only one hoping for an answer on Michkov’s status. The Flyers likely have at least a little more clarity than the public does on the landscape between Michkov and his KHL club SKA St. Petersburg in Russia. But the Flyers very much have to operate in wait-and-see mode, just like their fans.

Jones admitted the outside buzz around Michkov doesn’t alter the Flyers’ plan internally.

“It really doesn’t affect it because when we drafted him, the expectation was he would finish his contract with SKA,” he said at an offseason press conference alongside Hilferty. “So we are listening, we are reading many of your articles and kind of following along. But we have no update on it.”

More: Hilferty ‘thrilled’ with Flyers’ direction, Jones opens up on rebuild timeline

Michkov, a talented forward who the Flyers drafted at seventh overall last summer, has two more years left on his three-year KHL contract. If that deal is fulfilled, Michkov won’t be a Flyer until 2026-27.

Last month, Russian media outlet Sport-Express reported that Michkov’s contract with SKA St. Petersburg would be terminated so that the 19-year-old could “continue his career in Philadelphia.” This came about three weeks after the club’s chairman Alexander Medvedev told Russian media outlet Match TV that it would “talk about all the options” with Michkov.

The Flyers, though, have to be careful to not overstep any boundaries in their comments or interfere with Michkov’s camp and his KHL club.

“Look, I’m a fan, the way I look at it, he’s still a young individual,” Hilferty said. “As much fun as it would be, as good as it would be from creating that environment, getting fans excited, yeah, I hope it happens.

“But we knew he’s under a three-year contract. I can’t be just a fan about this. I totally understand that it’s a situation where we have zero control over it and we’ll continue to watch him regardless of where he plays. At some point, at some point, it’ll be a great thing for the Philadelphia Flyers.”

In the Flyers’ eyes, if Michkov arrives next season, great. If he arrives in 2026-27, that was the plan all along.

“We would welcome him with open arms, we absolutely love what he is going to bring to the Flyers,” Jones said. “If that timeline is sped up, that would be wonderful. But we don’t know. We’ll watch along closely like you guys are, as well. When he arrives, our fan base is going to be pretty excited about getting a highly talented player that is different than what we have right now. I think our fans are looking forward to that, for sure.”

This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.

Flyers should like Helenius, ‘one of the top talents in the draft'

Jordan Hall — Tue, Jun 04 2024 04:15:12 PM

“The bulk of it still needs to be done through our young guys, mostly through the draft,” general manager Danny Briere said in April.

More: Trade candidates? How many picks? Five Flyers things to know for the 2024 NHL draft

In the first round of the 2023 draft, the Flyers took a swing on Matvei Michkov at No. 7 and grabbed Oliver Bonk at No. 22. They should also have two first-round picks in 2025.

Leading up to the 2024 draft, we’ll break down targets for the Flyers at No. 12.

First up:

Konsta Helenius

Position: Center
Height: 5-foot-11
Weight: 189
Shoots: Right
Team: Jukurit

Scouting report

Helenius is an intelligent playmaker who produced at an impressive clip as a 17-year-old playing against men in his home country.

In Liiga, Finland’s top pro league, Helenius put up 36 points (14 goals, 22 assists) and 212 shots over 51 games this season on loan with Jukurit. He was a point-per-game player in the playoffs, recording two goals and four assists.

Through 84 career Liiga games, Helenius has 47 points (17 goals, 30 assists) and a plus-6 rating. He just turned 18 years old last month.

At the 2024 under-20 IIHF World Junior Championship, Helenius had a goal and an assist in seven games for Finland.

“He’s a really smart hockey player,” Dan Marr, the vice president of NHL Central Scouting, said last Thursday in a phone interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia. “His hockey sense is one of his best assets, but then he has the puck skills to execute the plays and generate the offense. Talent-wise, he is one of the top talents in the draft.”

NHL Central Scouting pegged Helenius as the top-ranked European skater in its midterm marks before having him finish at No. 3. He’s considered the sixth-best prospect in the draft by TSN’s Craig Button and ninth by TSN’s Bob McKenzie, while EliteProspects.com has him at No. 11.

“A lot of the really good Finnish players in the NHL, they’re not flashy, they’re not loud, they’re just very effective, very consistent,” Marr said. “He’s going to be one of these really high-end, smart, skilled players that goes out there and just makes good plays and makes things happen. He’s going to be the guy that you can go to when you need a goal, when you’re defending a lead. He’s a smart player, he understands the game so well.”

DeFodi Images/Getty Images contributor

Fit with Flyers

There’s first-line upside with Helenius, which should intrigue the Flyers if he falls into their range at No. 12. Center is a premium position and it’s arguably the team’s weakest area from an organizational standpoint.

The Flyers eventually want to identify and develop a high-end pivot to play alongside Michkov, their top prospect. There was hope that Cutter Gauthier would play down the middle for them, which makes his loss even tougher to stomach.

Helenius would give the Flyers a potential top-six center who might not be all that far away from making an impact at the NHL level. And they have good people like player development coach and scout Sami Kapanen and amateur scout Sami Sandell that could help Helenius transition to North America.

More targets

• Flyers draft target Catton has ‘ingredients’ to be first-line center

• Flyers could have shot at Yakemchuk, a defenseman with ‘rare combination’

• Flyers draft target Iginla has impressive NHL lineage and ‘very high ceiling’

• Eiserman, ‘the best goal scorer in this draft,’ an option for Flyers?

• ‘The full package’ Connelly has interesting draft case for Flyers

• With ‘no real holes to his game,’ Jiricek an option for Flyers at No. 12

• Is Brandsegg-Nygard close to pro-ready and a possibility for Flyers?

• Sennecke, a big winger set to ‘explode offensively,’ will be on Flyers’ radar

• Should Boisvert, a future ‘impact center,’ have Flyers’ attention?

• ‘He’s a special, special hockey player’ — Greentree a fit for Flyers at No. 12?

Flyers have to be intrigued by the potential of a healthy York-Sanheim pair

Jordan Hall — Tue, May 28 2024 06:06:15 PM

Travis Sanheim understands that things can change from the end of one season to the start of the next.

He played primarily alongside Cam York in 2023-24, forming a pair that took on big minutes down the stretch.

Something to build on in the future?

“I’m not sure what the case is moving forward, but I love playing with him,” Sanheim said at his end-of-the-season press conference last month. “I hope that we can continue to play together.”

Part of a rebuild is trying to find answers and sustain them over time. Why wouldn’t the Flyers keep York and Sanheim together to start next season? Especially when you think of what they can do without injuries testing their mettle.

On Feb. 15, York suffered a grade 2 AC joint sprain to one of his shoulders. The 23-year-old didn’t miss a game all season, putting up 10 goals and 20 assists in 22:37 minutes per game.

From the beginning of March to the end of the season in mid-April, only three NHL players saw more minutes per game than York’s 25:06: the Canadiens’ Mike Matheson (25:58), the Capitals’ John Carlson (25:57) and the Kings’ Drew Doughty (25:14).

“I think Yorky took huge steps this season,” Sanheim said. “For me, I think everyone knew the skill set that he had. I think the maturity of his game that developed this season, the way that he played without the puck, his checking, his ability to make plays under pressure, his ability to make plays when the game’s on the line I think are all big steps that he took this season. And I was fortunate to be able to play with him.”

Sanheim appeared to injure his left knee on March 9. He was seen at times wearing a brace and pushing through discomfort during games. It’s uncertain if that was the exact or only injury that plagued him. While Sanheim had some maintenance days throughout the rest of the season, he played in 81 of 82 games, missing only one because of an illness.

The 28-year-old finished with career highs across the board, featuring 44 points (10 goals, 34 assists) and 23:48 minutes per game. And this was after the lefty shot was moved to the right side just a few days before training camp.

Over the final quarter of the season, the Flyers had to rely heavily on York and Sanheim. Their back end was depleted by the trade of Sean Walker and injuries to Nick Seeler, Jamie Drysdale and Rasmus Ristolainen.

“We were both pretty banged up there, but the situation we were in, we had defensemen injured and when you’re right there in the playoff hunt, I think you want to just lay it all on the line. I think we did that,” York said. “Kudos to [Sanheim], he had a pretty serious thing going on there. We had to battle and grind, but just proud of how we handled that. Not an easy situation when you’re playing 25-plus [minutes] a night.”

The Flyers lost nine of their last 11 games and were eliminated from the playoff race on the final day of the regular season. But York and Sanheim more than held their own as the minutes piled up. In the team’s final 20 games, each had eight points, while York was only a minus-4 and Sanheim a minus-5.

“Obviously playing a lot, a little banged up, as well, battling through some injuries, there was a lot at stake,” Sanheim said. “In saying that, I think me and Yorky fully wanted that. We wanted to be carrying the load, we wanted to be a big part of it. For the most part, I thought me and Yorky played pretty well. It’s disappointing with the outcome, but I’m happy with how me and him played down the stretch.”

At his end-of-the-season press conference last month, when asked about the Flyers’ rebuild possibly being expedited, Danny Briere mentioned York and Sanheim as reasons for optimism.

“Cam York, the way he has taken his game to an extra level,” the Flyers’ general manager said. “Travis Sanheim, how he has stepped up big time after being challenged last summer.”

After a rocky offseason showered in trade speculation, a determined Sanheim raced out of the chute with 16 points over the first 17 games. He had a minus-20 rating to end the season but was asked to do a lot for a team that finished with two rookies in net and a minus-26 goal differential.

“The way I attacked my offseason, obviously based on a lot of things that went on, used it as motivation,” Sanheim said. “Came in ready to prove a point, ready to show the type of player I thought I was capable of. I thought for that first quarter of the season, that was the best hockey I’ve played in my career. I would have liked to have played that way for a full 82 [games], that’s usually not possible, usually you have ups and downs throughout the course of a season.

“But definitely proud of what I did, what I accomplished. I set career highs in all categories. Those were goals I had coming in, that was kind of what I set in the offseason, so I’m happy with that. In saying that, I’m going to do the exact same this offseason. I’m going to find motivation. I think the last couple of weeks is motivation in itself, where this team wants to get to, what we’re capable of. I think we understand we’re capable of reaching the postseason.”

The Flyers hope the experience pays off down the road for players like York and Sanheim.

“To play in meaningful games and come out on the wrong side of it, you definitely learn a lot,” York said. “You definitely want to do everything you can the next few years to make sure that doesn’t happen again. Not the way we wanted it to end, but I think there are a lot of positives. This young core is really good and we’re going to be really good for a long time.”

This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.

Ersson focused on a ‘key word' as he prepares for Flyers' No. 1 goalie job

Jordan Hall — Fri, May 24 2024 05:42:16 PM

After playing his 51st game of the season and 32nd of the Flyers’ final 38, Samuel Ersson wanted to keep playing.

He wanted the playoffs, an admirable wish from a 24-year-old rookie goaltender who had played far more than anyone imagined he would at the start of the season.

“Obviously played a lot, especially the second half of the year,” he said following the team’s finale last month. “But that’s the type of player I want to be.”

Ersson, currently playing for Sweden at the 2024 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship, is slated to be the Flyers’ No. 1 in net next season. He was suddenly thrown into that role this season on Jan. 23 when Carter Hart requested and was granted an indefinite leave of absence because of the Hockey Canada sexual assault case.

Flyers general manager Danny Briere did not have an update on Hart’s status last month and it appears the trial will not start until after the 2024-25 season is underway. The Flyers are planning to have Ersson and 27-year-old rookie Ivan Fedotov make up their goalie tandem to open next season.

Heading into last training camp, Ersson was trying to win the Flyers’ backup job. Does his mindset change this time around as the favorite to be the Flyers’ No. 1?

“I would say it stays pretty much the same,” Ersson said at his end-of-the-season press conference last month. “You always try to take steps, right? You just try to get better and put myself in a good spot to compete for as many games as I can for next year.”

Ersson will be trying to prove he can be a regular starter at the NHL level. He showed early signs of great potential this season and had struggles down the stretch as the year wore on and the outings piled up.

“It was a really tough situation for him, to lose his partner and to have to play almost every other night,” Briere said last month. “I know down the stretch it got a little difficult and maybe he got overplayed, but overall it was an impressive season for a young goaltender.”

John Tortorella noted that Ersson was originally penciled in to play 18 to 22 games.

“I’ve played the hell out of him,” the Flyers’ head coach said last month. “And he’s tired.”

From Jan. 18 to the end of the regular season, Ersson’s 32 appearances were tied with the Sabres’ Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen for the second most among all NHL goalies. Only the Capitals’ Charlie Lindgren played in more games over that span with 33.

The Flyers ended up playing five goalies this season and were tied with the Senators for the league’s worst save percentage at .884.

“Let’s face it, things got thrown into a really weird situation when we lost Carter,” Tortorella said. “But having said that, we had discussions in the summer about the situation with Carter and figured something was going to go on, right? We’ve got to be honest about it, it’s not a great situation for our team when we lost him. But it showed me a lot of good things about a specific guy in Ers, how he handled it. But it has been a lot. I made the decision — I made the decision — that I’m going to live or die with Ers when I played him all those games.”

From Nov. 3 to Jan. 18, the Flyers went 21-9-5 over a 35-game span. In that stretch, Ersson went 12-3-2 with a 1.82 goals-against average and .930 save percentage. Over his final 15 starts of the season, he was pulled four times and went 5-7-2 with a 3.65 goals-against average and an .861 save percentage.

On the season, Ersson finished 23-19-7 with a 2.82 goals-against average, an .890 save percentage and four shutouts.

“I felt like it was some ups and downs,” he said. “I had some tough stretches and I also felt like I had a long stretch where I think I played well consistently over a period of time. I think that is the key word that I’m trying to push is consistency. I feel like that is the key for me to be an impactful player in this league.”

The Flyers dropped nine of their last 11 games (2-7-2), a stretch that included a costly eight-game losing streak. With three games left, the Flyers were able to halt the skid and stay alive in the playoff race for a Game 82 that mattered. Ersson was strong over those three games, picking up a 4-1 win over the NHL-best Rangers, a 1-0 shutout of the Devils and allowing only one goal in a 2-1 loss to the Capitals.

“I feel like I can hold my head a little bit higher,” he said. “It was a tough stretch and it happened at a tough time of the year but I think coming out of it, we did make a valid push. I think that’s something that is also a good experience for us.

“This is the first time we experienced it, for a lot of us. The grind of the season, the stretches where you’re playing every other day for a month basically. It’s something that I haven’t done and you have to kind of learn how to deal with that, how to keep your body and your mind at the best level you can so you’re ready for those games.

“We got to play some meaningful games here at the end of the season and chasing the playoff spot is something we can definitely learn from and take experience from.”

‘Identity crisis' for Cates may be blessing in disguise

Jordan Hall — Tue, May 21 2024 04:22:12 PM

Noah Cates went from Sean Couturier comparisons as a rookie to adversity as an NHL sophomore.

After playing all 82 games last season and receiving some Selke Trophy votes, Cates missed over a month and a half of this season and faced an “identity crisis” with his game.

But the positive for the Flyers is Cates is the type of player to make himself better because of it.

The 25-year-old had to deal with a broken foot that cost him 22 games and admitted to struggling with an enhanced focus on scoring. Last season, Cates earned his way at the NHL level by playing an effective 200-foot style, which led to promising point production (13 goals, 25 assists) in 17:46 minutes per game.

Seemingly, his next step was more offense.

“There was a bit of an identity crisis, wanting to be offensive and build off a good year last year,” Cates said in April at his end-of-the-season press conference. “I think I needed to build off of it even more defensively than offensively. I think it was a great learning experience this year for me, for the team kind of where we were at.

“But you can’t stray too far from what you are, obviously I want to build on myself offensively, but at the end of the day, defense leads to offense. For me personally, that’s especially true.”

Cates finished this season with six goals and 12 assists in 59 games. He played 13:48 minutes per game and had a minus-8 rating.

“Just kind of an identity crisis and then some confidence stuff, some injuries,” Cates said. “Definitely just a year I’ll look back on and I think it will help propel me to even higher levels just because of what I went through.”

The Flyers have loved Cates’ development from a 2017 fifth-round draft pick out of high school into an NHL player with great defensive smarts. They like that he can bounce between center and winger. But they’ll need him and other young forwards to start defining their roles in the team’s rebuild.

Three days after the Flyers’ 2023-24 campaign officially fell short of the playoffs, Danny Briere mentioned Cates and Joel Farabee as two players that can be better next season.

“For me, I hope Farabee takes a step,” the Flyers’ general manager said in April. “I hope that Cates takes a step. I think both of these guys maybe didn’t develop quite as much as I would have hoped for. I think there’s more there with those two guys, they can take a bigger role on the team.”

Next season, Cates will be in the final year of a two-year, $5.25 million contract. What he can take into the summer is how he played at the end of this season. In April, he led the Flyers with three goals and five points over seven games. He was opportunistic offensively and had that tough-to-play-against look to him.

“I think, at the end of the day, it kind of comes from the little things that my game is built on, whether it’s being physical or a good stick, getting in on the forecheck,” Cates said. “Just those little things that help you find your game. One goes in and then you kind of feel like you can’t miss.”

Is the great wait for Michkov nearing early end? Flyers, fans on standby

Jordan Hall — Mon, May 20 2024 12:38:19 PM

One can picture the Flyers’ brass eagerly awaiting word just like the team’s fan base.

In the situation with Matvei Michkov, the Flyers have to very much operate under wait-and-see mode.

Sport-Express, a Russian media outlet, reported Sunday that Michkov’s contract with the KHL’s SKA St. Petersburg would be terminated so that the 19-year-old could “continue his career in Philadelphia.” Michkov, a talented forward who the Flyers drafted at seventh overall last summer, is on a three-year deal through 2025-26 in Russia’s top pro league.

According to the report, SKA St. Petersburg would retain Michkov’s KHL rights.

As we noted last month, the Flyers’ hope of having their top prospect arrive next season really falls in the hands of SKA St. Petersburg and Michkov’s camp. It comes down to those two — what they all want and are willing to do.

“On his end, he would have to find a way out of his deal before we can do anything,” Flyers general manager Danny Briere said last month. “So that’s kind of out of our control. As far as I know, we have to wait two more years.”

More: How Flyers prospect Michkov’s rise was evident in ‘a title fight’

Per a story last month on the website of Match TV, a Russian media outlet, SKA St. Petersburg chairman Alexander Medvedev said the club has “very good relations” with the Flyers’ front office and “will talk about all the options” with Michkov.

In a recent interview with Match TV, SKA St. Petersburg head coach Roman Rotenberg said the club wants to support Michkov and his family.

“There is no official decision yet,” Rotenberg said, via the story on Match TV’s website. “And we can’t say that we are letting anyone go. You see, this is a serious question. We can talk about some agreements, including rights. You know that Michkov is a high-level player. And if someone wants to buy these rights, let’s discuss.”

More: What makes Flyers prospect Michkov a ‘spotlight player’

Michkov has not played a whole lot for SKA St. Petersburg, one of the KHL’s most powerful teams. This season, after sitting for three games and playing just 6:12 minutes in his lone appearance, Michkov was loaned from SKA St. Petersburg to Sochi, a lesser KHL team. He put up 41 points (19 goals, 22 assists) in 47 games.

Where Michkov plays next season remains uncertain. The Flyers and their fans must wait a little bit more.

After losing Walker, Seeler believes in potential with young Drysdale

Jordan Hall — Thu, May 16 2024 08:43:13 PM

If Nick Seeler popped on an Avalanche playoff game, he could probably predict most of Sean Walker’s decisions.

That’s how in sync the two players were with the Flyers, making up arguably the team’s best defensive pair.

And in one day, the Flyers lost them both.

Walker was traded to Colorado in March on the same day Seeler hit injured reserve. The Flyers struggled without them, going 4-5-2 while allowing 4.00 goals per game and 10 power play goals.

“I don’t think there was a first or second pair, especially when we saw the marriage between Walks and Seels, how that worked,” head coach John Tortorella said in March. “They played some big minutes as a first pair would.”

So when the calendar turned to April, with seven games left in the Flyers’ playoff push, Seeler and Jamie Drysdale were just getting started together, forming a pair with a forward-looking feel to it. This season, Seeler signed a four-year contract extension and Drysdale was the talented young defenseman to come back in the Cutter Gauthier trade.

Clear-cut potential to be the Walker replacement.

“He’s a heck of a player and he has the ability to skate up the ice and move the puck really well,” Seeler said of Drysdale a month ago at his end-of-the-season press conference. “I think we’ll mesh well here.”

Seeler has become the Flyers’ truest defender who plays with great pace and effort. He was an ideal complement to Walker, who thrived in Tortorella’s aggressive, risk-taking scheme.

Drysdale, who turned only 22 years old in April, is a plus skater and puck mover. A valid question looms, though, about him staying healthy. He has fought injuries and the Flyers know there’s “a lot of work to do” with his defensive game.

As a new pair late in the season, Seeler and Drysdale experienced some bumps. They were a combined minus-11 in the Flyers’ season-worst 9-3 loss to the Canadiens, the team’s eighth straight defeat. But they improved over the final three games as the Flyers won twice and allowed only two goals, excluding an empty-netter.

“Obviously we had that tough one in Montreal, but I thought we played well together the three games after that,” Seeler said. “Just kind of started trusting each other a little bit more. As we play together more and more, I think the reads and staying connected is going to be better and better.

“I was with Walks for most of the year and you really didn’t have to say much, we just kind of knew where each other was going to be. That’s nice, that’s what I’m hoping me and Jamie can get to is where we just know where we’re going to be at on the ice.”

Drysdale has been limited to 42 games over the last two seasons. He dealt with a lower-body issue this season and also missed close to five weeks because of a left shoulder injury. Fortunately for Drysdale, that injury wasn’t nearly as severe as the one he had last season, when he played only eight games for the Ducks because of a torn labrum in his left shoulder.

At his end-of-the-season press conference a month ago, Drysdale didn’t rule out an offseason surgery. General manager Danny Briere said if a surgery was needed, it would be for the injury to Drysdale’s core area.

The 2020 sixth overall draft pick had two goals, three assists and a minus-18 rating in 24 games with the Flyers.

“Jamie was pretty banged up,” Briere said. “It was impressive, the character that he showed, coming back from the surgery that he had, being traded, trying to adapt to a new team. He couldn’t skate at 100 percent and that’s kind of the key to his game. So I’m excited to see a Jamie Drysdale fully healthy next season. I think we’re going to see a different player.

“The type of person he is, the work ethic, the character — those were all the things we kept hearing about him. That’s what he showed us. Most players would not have been willing to fight through and play through the injuries that he was dealing with. They would have preferred just getting [a surgery] done and get out of the way. He fought through, he put in time for his rehab — not just the shoulder, the other issue with the core area.”

Drysdale was excited about the opportunity to play alongside Seeler in April. He should have a chance to build on it next season. He’s hoping a good offseason and more work with assistant coach Brad Shaw leads to a healthy and effective start in 2024-25, his first full season with the Flyers.

“It’s definitely been a tough couple of years for me just to begin with, just being out a lot,” Drysdale said. “But Shawsy’s been unbelievable since the moment I got here. He’s a pretty wild hockey mind and just the little details that he tells.

“He kind of tells you, whether it’s in video or just during the game, little things to look out for that I’ve never heard in my life. Just little things here and there that I think can, over time, make a big difference in consistency and being a better player overall. I really hope I can work with him for a while.”

Next steps in Carter Hart, Hockey Canada sexual assault case to come in June

Jordan Hall — Wed, May 15 2024 09:50:16 AM

The start date of the trial for the sexual assault case involving Carter Hart and four other players from the 2018 Canadian world junior team could come out in about a month.

When the case appears in court June 11, the trial start date is anticipated to be scheduled, a spokesperson for the Ontario superior court confirmed Wednesday to NBC Sports Philadelphia. As reported in April, it does not appear that the trial will begin until after the 2024-25 NHL season is underway.

Update: Hart, Hockey Canada sexual assault case back in court Aug. 13

The Flyers open training camp in September and the regular season in October.

Hart has been away from the team since Jan. 23, when he requested and was granted an indefinite leave of absence.

A week after the goaltender left the Flyers, Hart’s legal representation stated that “he is innocent and will provide a full response to this false allegation in the proper forum, a court of law.”

Hart, who turns 26 years old in August, will be a restricted free agent this offseason. He was on the final year of a three-year, $11.937 million contract. In June, the Flyers can extend him a qualifying offer to retain his rights.

Frost saw another obstacle in Flyers' finale but left his GM impressed

Jordan Hall — Fri, May 10 2024 05:11:05 PM

Morgan Frost’s season ended with him sitting on the Flyers’ bench at the Wells Fargo Center, watching helplessly as his team lost and was officially knocked out of the playoff race.

From a personal perspective, it was an unfortunate finish for Frost, who had overcome 11 healthy scratches to put himself in a firm lineup spot. But here he was, watching again, an awful feeling to stomach into the offseason.

In need of a regulation win and two other results to go the Flyers’ way, John Tortorella whittled down his lineup considerably as the team’s regular-season finale played out three and a half weeks ago.

Frost, Bobby Brink and Cam Atkinson didn’t play for the entire back half of the game, which was tied 1-1 until the final three minutes. When the buzzer sounded on the Flyers’ 2-1 loss to the Capitals, Frost had played only 8:02 minutes, Brink 7:37 and Atkinson 4:41.

Symbolic of his season, Frost handled it like a pro.

“Obviously you want to be out there, especially in a game like that, an important game, it’s pretty devastating to not play,” he said a day later at his end-of-the-season press conference. “But at the same time, I have a lot of respect for Torts and I think he’s a great coach. If he felt that’s what he needed to do to try to win that game, then I understand it.

“I think those last couple of games, I could have played a little bit better. I think there were a lot of guys that were playing good, I thought they were working hard and doing a lot of good things last night. It’s easy to say right now that I’m unhappy about it, but at the same time, that wasn’t what was important in that game anyway. I just wanted to get the win and I was happy to cheer on my teammates.”

Reasonable doubt over Frost’s future with the Flyers had built in the first two months of the season. The young playmaking center was benched for six straight games and 10 of the Flyers’ first 20. And this was on a rebuilding team emphasizing youth.

But in early January, after sitting an 11th time and seeking out Tortorella for an “honest conversation,” Frost never sat again the rest of the regular season. Like last season, his game improved down the stretch. Since that final benching on Jan. 4, Frost put up eight goals and 22 assists in 44 games. His 30 points over that span were the third most on the Flyers, behind only Travis Konecny’s 33 and Owen Tippett’s 31.

“I have to say, I was really impressed with how Morgan Frost handled the situation this season,” Flyers general manager Danny Briere said three weeks ago at his end-of-the-season press conference. “He has shown a lot of maturity, the way he handled it, didn’t want to create waves, waited for his turn and when he had the chance, really stepped up and was a really good player for us. Maturity-wise, Morgan was great.”

Frost had career highs in assists (28) and plus-minus (plus-4) despite playing 10 fewer games than he did last season, when he recorded 19 goals and 46 points. This season, he had 13 goals and 41 points.

There was also moderate trade buzz around Frost. The Flyers don’t have him signed long term and Tortorella hasn’t exactly fallen in love with the player. But, despite the Flyers being open for business, you’d expect Frost to be back for an important 2024-25 season. The 2017 first-round draft pick turns 25 years old next week and is entering the final year of a two-year, $4.2 million contract.

“I feel like I matured a lot, especially going through some hard times at the start of the season and kind of coming out of it,” Frost said. “I think just in general, in my time here, from the first year I’ve been here to now, I’ve definitely grown up a lot and I’ve learned how to handle situations better.”

Why Laughton appreciated this phone call from Tortorella

Jordan Hall — Thu, May 09 2024 05:16:18 PM

Three years of trade speculation would wear on anybody.

At this point, Scott Laughton appreciates any reprieve from the rumor mill.

Even if it’s just a couple of months.

For a third straight trade deadline, Laughton heard his name bandied about this season but remained a Flyer when the 3 p.m. ET cutoff arrived. Now is the break until the NHL draft in late June, when trade buzz always picks back up.

“It would be nice not to think about it until the draft I guess,” Laughton said a little over three weeks ago at his end-of-the-season press conference.

The Flyers mean a lot to Laughton and Laughton means a lot to the Flyers. He has been in the organization since 2012, making his NHL debut at 18 years old. As he turns 30 this month, Laughton is entrenched in the community, has taken on a leadership role the last two seasons and has played his best hockey over those seasons, which has only fueled his trade value.

Head coach John Tortorella didn’t wait to reach out to Laughton after the alternate captain’s name hit the trade winds at the start of February. Being open for business in a rebuild, the Flyers’ decision-makers have tried to be transparent with their players.

“Right from the get-go, when my name was in rumors, I got a call from Torts right away, we had a good chat about it,” Laughton said. “All of them were very upfront with me of kind of what they saw and what they were thinking. I was never in the dark, which was a really good feeling.”

The 2023-24 season was the organization’s first with Comcast Spectacor chairman and CEO and Flyers governor Dan Hilferty, president of hockey operations Keith Jones and general manager Danny Briere in their roles. They were formally introduced right around this time last year.

Laughton commended them for their in-person involvement.

“You don’t see your team president and owner coming down and shaking your hand after every game, Danny’s in the locker room,” he said. “That feeling makes the players want to be a part of this, those guys care. And you see it on a day-to-day basis, especially with Dan Hilferty and Jonesy, you don’t see that with many teams.

“They’re there, they’re active with us and they’re around all the time, they let you know. I think it’s so beneficial, not only for the young guys, but the older guys, too, to feel that. It feels like a family.”

Laughton has been a popular trade candidate for many reasons. He can play center or winger, he has a playoff edge and he can help both special teams, most importantly the penalty kill. Over the last two seasons, Laughton has led the NHL in shorthanded scoring with 15 points (five goals, 10 assists). He also has a team-friendly $3 million cap hit and two more years left on his contract.

All those aspects have made him a tough decision for a Flyers team that has been open about having “a long ways to go.”

“It’s the part of the process we’re in as a team,” Tortorella said in February. “We can’t look for things not to continue our process. We have so many things to do, so much more of the process to build this team that we can’t be getting too emotional. If it’s the best thing for our future of our team in building it the proper way, we have to follow through. We have to. The guys know it, we’ve been very forthright publicly about this. We need to stay with it.”

The Flyers’ rebuild looked expedited this season for about four and a half months. How the players dictate the club’s timeline moving forward will go a long way for Laughton’s future.

“I want to be here, I’ve made it pretty clear, I want to be a part of this,” he said. “I accept my role wherever it is. I’ve built a life here and I want to see it succeed, I want to be a part of this city when we’re at the top. I came in after a couple of big playoff series in 2010 and ’11, I felt the energy and we started to get it back this year.

“I really want to be a part of this, so we’ll see what happens here. I haven’t really put much thought into it, I’ll let Danny and Jonesy and those guys take care of that stuff and whatever they think they need to do for the team going forward. I’ve said it all along and I’ll keep saying it, I love it here, I want to be here and I want to win here. That’s what I want to do.”

Beloved former Flyer Lindblom returns to his Swedish club

Jordan Hall — Wed, May 08 2024 12:51:16 PM

Oskar Lindblom is headed back to where his impressive climb all started.

The former Flyers winger signed a contract Wednesday with Brynäs IF in the SHL, Sweden’s top pro league. Lindblom came up with Brynäs IF, going from a fifth-round NHL draft pick almost 10 years ago and developing into one of the Flyers’ better prospects in 2017.

He was the SHL Forward of the Year in 2016-17, his final season with Brynäs IF before coming to North America.

The Swedish native went on to play parts of five seasons for the Flyers and won the city over in his courageous fight against Ewing’s sarcoma, a rare form of cancer that occurs in bones or in the soft tissue around the bones.

At 23 years old, Lindblom was diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma in December 2019. In July 2020, he rung the bell on the 5th floor of the Abramson Cancer Center at Pennsylvania Hospital to signify the completion of his treatments.

Lindblom, now 27, has been cancer-free ever since and even returned to the Flyers’ lineup in the middle of the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs that September.

After two more seasons with the Flyers, Lindblom returned to Philadelphia in October 2022 with the visiting Sharks.

“I feel like all of the sports together, it’s just a big family here,” Lindblom said before receiving a standing ovation from the fans and Flyers. “You can have downs and ups, but they’re always going to be there for you. Whatever it is, they’re going to cheer for you. It was a great time for me here and the fans were awesome to me.”

Lindblom spent the majority of this season playing for San Jose’s AHL affiliate in the final year of his two-year deal.

This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.

Flyers stay put after NHL draft lottery; West team grabs No. 1 pick

Jordan Hall — Tue, May 07 2024 06:55:08 PM

There was no climb or fall for the Flyers in the 2024 NHL draft lottery.

After the drawings Tuesday night, the Flyers stayed at No. 12 overall, their most likely landing spot.

The Sharks, who had the best lottery odds at 18.5 percent, won the first overall pick.

The Flyers had a 2.5 percent chance to finish with the No. 1 lottery drawing, but they had no chance to surge atop the draft board. In March 2021, the league modified the lottery format, which makes only the top 11 seeds eligible to receive the first overall pick. A team can only jump 10 spots, so the highest the Flyers could pick was No. 2.

Per Tankathon.com, the Flyers held a 5.1 percent chance at moving up to No. 2 and 0.1 percent shot at Nos. 3 and 4. They were most likely to remain at No. 12 (85.7 percent), while having an 8.9 percent chance at sliding to No. 13. They could drop no lower than 14th overall (0.2 percent).

Right now, the Flyers have 10 selections for the 2024 draft, which will be held June 28-29 in Las Vegas. They own two first-round picks, the second one coming from former general manager Chuck Fletcher’s Claude Giroux trade. They also have two second-rounders, one from GM Danny Briere’s Ivan Provorov trade last June and the other being a compensatory pick for not signing 2018 first-rounder Jay O’Brien.

Assistant general manager Brent Flahr has overseen the Flyers’ draft efforts since 2019. In the first round under Flahr, the Flyers have taken Cam York (14th overall — 2019), Tyson Foerster (23rd overall — 2020), Cutter Gauthier (fifth overall — 2022), Matvei Michkov (seventh overall — 2023) and Oliver Bonk (22nd overall — 2023).

York developed into a top-pair defenseman this season and was the Flyers’ most improved player, while Foerster scored 20 goals as a rookie winger and opened eyes with his 200-foot play.

Gauthier turned into a massive loss for the Flyers, who had to trade him this January because the 20-year-old forward didn’t want to sign with the organization.

Bonk, a righty-shot defenseman, has had an excellent junior campaign with the OHL’s London Knights (67 points and a plus-28 rating in 60 regular-season games).

Michkov is a transcendent talent the Flyers hope becomes a pillar to their future. The 19-year-old Russian forward slid to the Flyers at No. 7 last summer because of the geopolitical landscape and his three-year KHL commitment. He has two more years left on his contract with SKA St. Petersburg and time will tell if he can arrive to the Flyers any earlier than 2026-27.

“Where we’re going to draft this year, the player that we’re going to get most likely is not going to play for us for the next three years, if we’re realistic,” Briere said at his end-of-the-season press conference last month. “That’s kind of the approach we had with Michkov, it’d be the same as if we had drafted a player No. 7 and we have a development curve that would take him three years. That was our vision when we drafted him and we were OK with that.

“Even though he was a high-end prospect that probably would have gone second or third in the draft, was probably ready to play pro immediately, we saw it more as a normal draft pick that would need that timeline.”

Among the 2024 NHL draft prospects, Boston University center Macklin Celebrini is the consensus top overall pick. Berkly Catton, Carter Yakemchuk, Cole Eiserman, Beckett Sennecke and Trevor Connelly are five players that could be within the Flyers’ range at No. 12, according to TSN’s Bob McKenzie.

2024 lottery results

1. Sharks
2. Blackhawks
3. Ducks
4. Blue Jackets
5. Canadiens
6. Utah
7. Senators
8. Kraken
9. Flames
10. Devils
11. Sabres
12. Flyers
13. Wild
14. Sharks (from Penguins)
15. Red Wings
16. Blues

NHL draft lottery 2024: Date, time, how to watch and Flyers' odds

Jordan Hall — Fri, Apr 26 2024 04:12:26 PM

The Flyers are set to learn the position of their top overall pick for this summer’s draft.

The 2024 NHL draft lottery is Tuesday, May 7, at 6:30 p.m. ET in Secaucus, New Jersey. ESPN will broadcast the event and it can be live streamed here.

In 2023-24, the Flyers lost nine of their last 11 games (2-7-2) and were eliminated from the playoff race on the final day of their regular season. They’re now slotted to draft at No. 12 overall if they don’t climb or fall in the lottery.

The Flyers have a 2.5 percent chance to finish with the first lottery drawing. However, they can’t win the top overall pick. In March 2021, the league modified the lottery format, which now makes only the top 11 seeds eligible to receive the first overall pick. A team can only jump 10 spots, so the highest the Flyers can pick is at No. 2.

They are most likely to stay at No. 12. Per Tankathon.com, here are the Flyers’ odds for each pick:

• No. 2 — 5.1 percent
• No. 3 — 0.1 percent
• No. 4 — 0.1 percent
• No. 12 — 85.7 percent
• No. 13 — 8.9 percent
• No. 14 — 0.2 percent

On Tuesday night, there will be a lottery drawing for both the No. 1 and No. 2 selections. Once the top two spots are drawn, the remaining teams will be slotted in the order of their regular-season finish.

Here are the chances for each lottery club at winning the first overall draw:

• Sharks — 18.5 percent
• Blackhawks — 13.5 percent
• Ducks — 11.5 percent
• Blue Jackets — 9.5 percent
• Canadiens — 8.5 percent
• Utah — 7.5 percent
• Senators — 6.5 percent
• Kraken — 6.0 percent
• Flames — 5.0 percent
• Devils — 3.5 percent
• Sabres — 3.0 percent
• Flyers — 2.5 percent
• Wild — 2.0 percent
• Penguins (Sharks if pick is not in top 10) — 1.5 percent
• Red Wings — 0.5 percent
• Blues — 0.5 percent

Right now, the Flyers have 10 selections in the draft, two of them first-rounders. The draft is expected to be held June 28-29 in Las Vegas.

Last summer, the Flyers made 10 picks, a draft class that was headlined by seventh overall selection Matvei Michkov.

Two summers ago, the Flyers picked in the top five for the first time since 2017. They took Cutter Gauthier at fifth overall. The Flyers were forced to trade him this January because he did not want to play for the organization.

The last time the Flyers finished with a pick in the top three overall was 2017, when they improbably climbed from the 13th position to No. 2 overall. They had a 2.4 percent chance at the second pick that summer and landed it, selecting Nolan Patrick out of the WHL.

The center’s time in Philadelphia did not pan out the way some had hoped and anticipated. Following a 30-point rookie season and a 31-point Year 2, Patrick missed all of 2019-20 as he battled a migraine disorder. After playing 52 of 56 games in the shortened 2020-21 campaign, Patrick was dealt away in the July 2021 Ryan Ellis trade.

When and where is the 2024 NHL Draft?

Sanjesh Singh — Thu, May 02 2024 08:59:15 PM

Cam Atkinson said he had “a lot of juice left in the tank for the right situation.”

After having the final year of his contract bought out by the Flyers last Friday, he has found that situation.

The veteran winger signed a one-year, $900,000 deal with the Lightning on Tuesday. He joins a pedigree-laden Tampa Bay team that is looking to make another Stanley Cup push.

At 35 years old, Atkinson would love a chance to play a role in a playoff run.

“I’ve been in the league 13 years and have only made the playoffs five times, so it’s really hard just to make the playoffs,” he said in February. “Once you make the playoffs, anything can happen.”

Last season, with the rebuilding Flyers in a postseason race, Atkinson’s role diminished down the stretch and he sounded open to a change of scenery at his exit interview.

“I don’t care what anyone says, I’ve just got to believe in myself like I always have and prove everyone wrong like I always have my whole life and just go from there,” Atkinson said in April. “I know this is a very important summer for me, getting back to the player I want to be and I know I can be. That’s all I’m going to focus on.”

Atkinson will return to Philadelphia on March 13 when the Lightning make their one and only trip to the Wells Fargo Center. He thanked the Flyers’ organization and fans Tuesday night in a social media post.

This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.

Contract year for Konecny? ‘I love Philly,' Flyers' leading scorer says

Jordan Hall — Thu, May 02 2024 06:23:11 PM

Travis Konecny wanted to be a part of the Flyers’ future when Danny Briere took over as interim general manager in March 2023 and expressed an openness to the idea of rebuilding.

“Been through a lot of good times and also down times,” Konecny said then. “So when you go through that stuff as a team and some of the guys that have been here, it would mean that much more when you can get to the end goal and winning. It means a lot to be a part of a process like that.”

That sentiment hasn’t changed for the two-time All-Star, who is coming up on a contract year after posting career highs in goals (33) and points (68). Now 27 years old and with eight seasons under his belt, the go-go winger has developed into the heartbeat of a younger Flyers team that pushed for the playoffs through Game 82.

Come July 1, Konecny will have entered the final year of his six-year, $33 million deal. He’s in line for a pretty good raise from his $5.5 million average annual value and sounded open to signing a contract extension before the 2024-25 campaign rolls around.

“I love Philly,” Konecny said over two weeks ago at his end-of-the-season press conference.

“I’m sure down the road here, I’ll deal with that. I’ve been focusing so much on trying to get [into the playoffs], but we’ll see moving forward.”

The Flyers should be interested in hammering down a deal ahead of next season. If the team’s rebuild didn’t see progress this season and if Konecny didn’t play like an All-Star, maybe there would be doubt about his long-term fit. But say the Flyers are two or three years away from contending, Konecny still projects well in their timeline. He’d be 29 or 30 years old and very possibly in his prime.

The counterargument is the Flyers let Konecny head into the 2024-25 season without an extension and see if he becomes one of the most sought-after targets at the NHL trade deadline. But they’d also run the risk of their best player inflating his value even more, potentially being bothered by not having a new contract and thinking of hitting the free-agent market in the offseason.

“I think his inner confidence has grown that he can be a great player; not a good player, that he can be a great player,” head coach John Tortorella said in December. “And that he can put some people on his shoulders and carry.”

Over the last two seasons, Konecny has put up 129 points (64 goals, 65 assists) in 136 games. He has played just under 20 minutes per game and his nine shorthanded goals lead the NHL.

“Especially last year, I think his game took over. He has been our best player for a little bit here now,” Scott Laughton said after Konecny’s Gordie Howe hat trick in February. “Always brings it, he’s a little pest and a little bit of a rat. It helps out when you make that many plays and you’re on both special teams. He brings it every night, so guys follow him.”

The Flyers haven’t seen the postseason since the 2020 bubbled playoffs. Does Konecny feel they’re getting closer to being a regular contender?

“I’d love to say right now that it’s going to be next year, I don’t know,” he said. “You see the steps we took this year, everyone’s a year older next year and we go through it again and see where we’re at. I believe that this team could be great and be in the playoffs consistently every year. We have all the tools to do it.

“I think this year was good for us being in the spot we were at and learning the importance of … not just the last couple of games there, but going into next year, maybe it makes you realize that nothing game on a Tuesday, random city, like that game matters. It’s a good mindset for our team to have.”

Could Matvei Michkov join Flyers before 2026-27 season?

Jordan Hall — Mon, May 20 2024 09:57:26 AM

It’s not a secret that the Flyers would love to have Matvei Michkov as soon as possible.

What’s also not a secret is the decision very much being out of their hands.

The Flyers’ top prospect has two more years left on his three-year contract with the KHL’s SKA St. Petersburg. If Michkov fulfills that commitment, the Flyers will see him in 2026-27.

“Look, if there’s an opportunity, we would jump on it to get him here quicker,” Flyers general manager Danny Briere said a week and a half ago. “But as far as I know, at the moment, it’s still the same timeline. … On his end, he would have to find a way out of his deal before we can do anything. So that’s kind of out of our control. As far as I know, we have to wait two more years.

“Believe me, we keep watching him, we have heavy interest in what he does. He had a tremendous year, it was fun to see some of the highlights. But, at this time, I don’t hold too much hope that we’ll be able to get him out sooner.”

But is it possible the talented 19-year-old forward arrives earlier? That call boils down to SKA St. Petersburg. And perhaps there’s a chance the club would be open to it.

According to a story published Tuesday on the website of Match TV, a Russian media outlet, SKA St. Petersburg chairman Alexander Medvedev said the club has “very good relations” with the Flyers’ front office and “will talk about all the options” with Michkov. However, Medvedev also noted that “it’s too early to talk about this because legally Michkov is under a contract with SKA” and the Flyers have “sent us their assurances that they would not commit any violations of contractual rights.”

More: How Flyers prospect Michkov’s rise was evident in ‘a title fight’

Flyers fans may be holding out hope after seeing Ivan Fedotov’s sudden arrival a month ago just a year into his new two-year commitment with CSKA Moscow. But the circumstances were significantly different. The goaltender is 27 years old, had already signed his entry-level contract with the Flyers in May 2022 and even fulfilled military duty in Russia.

Update: Is the great wait for Michkov nearing early end? Flyers, fans on standby

Michkov has not played a whole lot for SKA St. Petersburg, one of the premier teams in Russia’s top pro league. This season, after sitting for three games and playing just 6:12 minutes in his lone appearance, Michkov was loaned from SKA St. Petersburg to Sochi, a lesser KHL team. He put up 41 points (19 goals, 22 assists) in 47 games.

You’d have to think a powerful team like SKA St. Petersburg would want Michkov to play at least a full season before making any kind of decision on his future. But you never know for certain.

h/t PHLY Sports contributor Alexander Appleyard.

Despite his career year, Flyers hope Farabee ‘takes a step,' sees ‘more there'

Jordan Hall — Mon, Apr 29 2024 05:13:05 PM

Joel Farabee became a 50-point scorer this season and played all 82 games for a second straight year.

His career highs in goals (22) and assists (28) made him one of three Flyers to record 50 or more points.

He’s the only Flyer to score 15 or more goals in each of the last four seasons.

But by looking at the 24-year-old’s role down the stretch and listening to Danny Briere’s comments, it appears the Flyers weren’t overly thrilled with Farabee’s 2023-24 season.

And that’s not an awful thing. The Flyers see more upside in Farabee. If they are proven right, that will be good for their rebuild.

Does Farabee have 30-goal, 60-point potential? Can he be an all-situation player? These were the type of questions the Flyers had a couple of offseasons ago with Travis Konecny.

At his end-of-the-season press conference 10 days ago, Briere highlighted Farabee and Noah Cates as two young forwards that can be better next season.

“For me, I hope Farabee takes a step,” the Flyers’ general manager said. “I hope that Cates takes a step. I think both of these guys maybe didn’t develop quite as much as I would have hoped for. I think there’s more there with those two guys, they can take a bigger role on the team.”

Farabee was on a tear past the halfway mark of the season, putting up 17 goals and 22 assists in 47 games. He had a plus-11 rating and was a key reason why the Flyers had surged into second place around mid-January.

Over the final 35 games, Farabee had five goals, six assists and a minus-24 mark.

“Personally, I would have liked to help a lot more and produce more, but the past is the past,” he said 12 days ago at his end-of-the-season press conference. “It sucks. I take a lot of responsibility for a lot of that stuff. I definitely need to be a lot better.”

Over the Flyers’ last 12 games, a stretch in which the team lost eight straight and fell out of the playoff race, Farabee had one goal and no assists. But it’s worth noting that he saw fourth-line minutes in April, playing under 12 minutes three times.

“I think any year, after the All-Star break, the games get a lot harder, teams are fighting for playoff spots, so the game changes a bit,” Farabee said. “I think my role on the team, too, where I was playing, I think I’m one of those guys that can play up and down the lineup, for sure. I think when you’re playing third and fourth line sometimes, you have to give up some of the offense to focus on the defensive game and focus on the D-side of things. For me, whatever role I was given, I tried to do that to my best ability. I wish I could have produced a lot more and helped the team in that aspect.”

One of Farabee’s strengths ever since he was a 19-year-old rookie has been his ability to scale a lineup. He can score in your top six and be effective in your bottom six. His next step could be playing consistently on the Flyers’ top two lines.

“I think one of the things that I pride myself on is being able to play many different spots and things like that, but obviously personally, I’d love to be solidified in the top six and play as much as I can,” Farabee said. “But at the end of the day, it’s a long season and things change, guys are playing well at certain times. It’s not something that I need to lock into one spot or anything like that. Whatever role I’m given that night, I really just try to do to the best of my ability.”

The 2018 first-round pick will play for the U.S. at the 2024 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship next month before eventually coming back to the area to prepare for another training camp.

Meanwhile, the Flyers will stay open-minded this summer.

Konecny, now the team’s leading scorer and two-time All-Star, dealt with his share of trade speculation as the Flyers started to turn into a rebuilding team. Considering the Flyers’ position, there may be some noise around Farabee’s name moving forward.

But the Flyers should not lose sight of his upside, either.

“If there’s a trade that makes sense, that can bring more talent, there’s a way that makes sense, maybe it’s a hockey a trade, we’re definitely open for business,” Briere said of the Flyers’ offseason. “We’re going to keep exploring that.”

Flyers sign Fedotov to 2-year contract extension

Jordan Hall — Tue, Apr 23 2024 10:40:06 AM

When Ivan Fedotov finally arrived to the Flyers three and a half weeks ago, he hoped it was the start of a “long time together.”

They’ll be together for at least the next two years.

The Flyers signed Fedotov to a two-year, $6.5 million contract extension Tuesday. The deal has an average annual value of $3.25 million.

While the AAV seems a bit high, the Flyers likely had to do plenty of work just to get Fedotov to the NHL. The 6-foot-7 goaltender was also very accomplished in the KHL, Russia’s top pro league, and international competition. The Flyers have a chance to work with Fedotov and see how his game translates without committing long term.

Following a difficult journey, the 27-year-old suddenly joined the Flyers at the end of March. At the time, general manager Danny Briere declined to comment on the specifics behind the timeline of Fedotov’s arrival. The 2015 seventh-round draft pick appeared in three games (one start) for the Flyers, recording a 4.95 goals-against average and an .811 save percentage.

Fedotov signed his one-year entry-level contract with the Flyers in May 2022, signaling his plan to come to North America and compete for a roster spot. But not even two months later, he was detained for allegedly evading military service in his home country of Russia.

After spending a year away from the game to fulfill his required military duties, Fedotov returned to the net this season in the KHL with CSKA Moscow. He had a 2.37 goals-against average, .914 save percentage and four shutouts in 44 games.

As of now, the Flyers are planning to have Fedotov and 24-year-old Samuel Ersson make up their tandem next season.

At his end-of-the-season press conference last Friday, Briere did not have an update on Carter Hart’s status. The Flyers played five goalies this season. They lost Hart on Jan. 23 because of the Hockey Canada sexual assault case. The trial reportedly won’t begin until after the start of the 2024-25 season. The 25-year-old Hart is a restricted free agent this offseason.

The Flyers finished this season tied with the Senators for the league’s worst save percentage at .884. Considering the circumstances, the club has kept the numbers in perspective.

“Let’s face it, things got thrown into a really weird situation when we lost Carter,” head coach John Tortorella said a little over two weeks ago. “But having said that, we had discussions in the summer about the situation with Carter and figured something was going to go on, right? We’ve got to be honest about it, it’s not a great situation for our team when we lost him. But it showed me a lot of good things about a specific guy in Ers, how he handled it. But it has been a lot.”