Free Agents, who are still available, that could prove to Pay Dividends for the Flyers

After a flurry of deals that resulted in teams spending over a billion dollars on just the first day of free agency (July 1st), it’s easy to assume that anyone who could actually help the Philadelphia Flyers organization next season has long since been signed by another team, but you would be wrong!

Now, while I will admit the Flyers’ options may be limited at this point, given the fact that they have very little cap space thanks to their multiple buyouts used over the years and the list of available players already being heavily picked over. I still think there are some free agents out there that could prove to pay major dividends.

Carter Savoie

The first and perhaps most affordable option out there that makes sense for the Flyers to sign or at least invite to camp is 22-year-old Carter Savoie. Carter, who is a left winger, previously won an NCAA National Championship with the University of Denver while playing alongside Flyers prospects Bobby Brink and Massimo Rizzo, where that season, he was able to post 23 goals and 22 assists for 45 points in just 39 games played. Savoie, who is now an unrestricted free agent, was originally taken in the fourth round of the 2020 Draft by the Edmonton Oilers because he was deceptive both with and without the puck, which created many offensive chances.

But, sadly, since turning pro, Carter (who was once thought of as one of the Oilers’ top prospects) has yet to make an impact at the pro level, which ultimately led to his becoming a free agent.

However, the Oilers’ loss could be the Flyers’ gain in that a change in scenery and a couple of familiar faces may be all that Savoie needs in order for him to get back on track. Case in point: Savoie, who is still just 22 years old, was once thought of as a top-tier prospect, and therefore, his career should be far from over, which is why I feel Philadelphia would be wise to sign Savoie to a one-year two-way contract to give him the chance to revive his career most likely with the Phantoms. That way, if he still does not perform, they could let him walk at the end of the season, but if he thrives playing alongside some of his former teammates, then they just gained themselves a player who could be a problem for the rest of the Metropolitan Division for the next ten years.

Kailer Yamamoto

Throughout this off-season, the Flyers management stressed that they wish to improve their team down the middle. They backed that statement up recently by selecting multiple centers a few weeks ago at the draft, with the most notable being the newly signed Jett Luchanko, who the team took with the 13th overall pick.

But although Jett looked quite impressive at development camp, he most likely will not be ready to make the big clubs opening night roster this fall.

What other options may the team then have, you may be asking? Well, as far as Dot Dwellers go, the team has both Denver Barkey and the previously mentioned Massimo Rizzo signed. But both are likely to start the season in Lehigh Valley.

So, I would suggest they take a look into what it would take to sign 25-year-old Kailer Yamamoto. Kailer, at times last season, was asked to center the Krakens’ second line. Where while he did not turn out to be a big point producer, only scoring eight goals and eight assists for a total of 16 points, he did manage to create plenty of scoring chances for his less-than-impressive linemates.

What should be noted here is that Kailer is not known for being a playmaker like he was forced to be last year in Seattle. He instead is more known for his ability to put up points in bunches when playing with other talented players, as he did in Edmonton a few years back, where he scored 20 goals, and 21 assists for 41 points while playing on a line with a guy like Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and on power play opportunities while lining up alongside the likes of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.

Now, the Flyers may not have elite-level offensive talent like the players found in the Oilers’ top six. But, I think that Yamamoto (who only made $1.5 million last season) could prove to be a more suitable option over Morgan Frost to keep up with the likes of Owen Tippet and newcomer Matvei Michkov, who may very well be this team’s new dynamic duo.

Kirill Marchenko

Ok, those may be the more plausible options that the Flyers could make, but if they wanted to finish the off-season with a bang, I would suggest they try and trade for the rights to the Blue Jackets restricted free agent forward Kirill Marchenko. Kirill, who hails from Russia, is a 23-year-old versatile winger who is equally comfortable lining up on either side of the face-off dot.

Columbus originally drafted him in the second round of the 2018 Entry Draft. Where after quite some time he finally decided to come over to play in North America for the 22-23 season, where, after suiting up for just a handful of games at the AHL level, he was promoted to the NHL, where he was able to net 21 goals in just 59 games.

Always striving to get better this past season, Kirill was able to top those totals by scoring an impressive 23 goals.

In my mind, Kirill would make the perfect linemate for the Flyers, impeding superstar Matvei Michkov. He is a young, established Russian player who is already thriving in the NHL and could help Matvei with any trials or tribulations that may arise during his first full season playing in North America.

As far as why Marchenko may still be considered an option, the Blue Jackets have yet to name a new head coach and have a new GM in Don Waddell. A guy who was formally the GM of the Carolina Hurricanes, and if you know anything about him, he is hesitant to sign anybody to a long-term deal like Marchenko is rumored to be asking for.

But what makes the Flyers chances that much better is that the Blue Jackets just inked free agent forward Sean Monahan to a new 27.5 million dollar deal and re-signed Yegor Chinakhov to a new two-year contract. Not to mention the fact that Marchenko is not the only restricted free agent, that Waddell still needs to resign. The team’s former top-five pick, Kent Johnson is still waiting to sign his new contract as well.

Think about it. We all know the Flyers were trying to move up to select the young Russian Ivan Demidov to pair with Michkov and failed miserably in their attempts. So, why not offer up future draft capital to obtain a proven NHL talent like Marchenko, who could be there for Matvei day one of training camp? I’m sure this kind of acquisition would not come cheap, but the Flyers have the means to get the deal done with the three first and three second-round picks that they have acquired over the last few years for the 2025 Draft. Not to mention, they could throw in any number of roster players like Morgan Frost or the often-rumored Joel Farabee to combat their own salary cap issues. Then there of course is the Flyers already drafted prospects, like forwards Samu Tuomaala and Olle Lycksell. Defenseman Emil Andre and Helge Grans, or goalie Alexei Kolosov who any combination of these players when paired with a couple picks could prove enough to entice the Blue Jackets newly appointed GM to make a deal.

So, if the Flyers really wish to accomplish their goal of returning to playoffs sooner rather than later. They need to make a couple, if not all, of these moves. So, what if the team is competitive? They haven’t won a championship in over 49 years! So, take a chance if it’s there, Danny. While the idea of having all these draft picks is nice, if you keep on trading back to acquire more, it will only prolong the drought!