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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!
Prospect Watch: Here are Two Players who are set to take the USHL by Storm Next Season
Photo Credit: https://chicagosteelhockeyteam.com/
The United States Hockey League is growing by leaps and bounds; so many players have been drafted out of it in recent years that it has become a hatchery of sorts for prospects. What I mean by that is, it has become a place where some of the best NCAA teams from around the nation come to watch and recruit players who have gone on to become future Hobey Baker Award nominees, finalists, and even winners like the first overall selection from this year’s NHL Draft Macklin Celebrini, who before joining Boston University was a standout star for the Chicago Steel back in the 22-23 season. This trend will continue this year with the likes of John Mustard, who was the recipient of the USHL’s Rookie of the Year Award last season, who played for the Waterloo Black Hawks and was just drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks a week ago. He is slated to be heading to Providence College next season, where he is sure to impress.
But, with the new season approaching, the question now becomes who will be the next up-and-coming players that will prove to take the league by storm?
Blake Zielinski
One player who could do just that is 16-year-old New Jersey native Blake Zielinski, who was taken 3rd overall in Phase One of the USHL Draft back in May by the Des Moines Buccaneers.
Blake, a forward who grew up locally playing for the Philadelphia Flyers Elite AAA Teams, took a chance this season by deciding to play for the much more competitive North Jersey Avalanche of the AYHL, where he scored 26 goals, and 26 assists for 52 points in only 22 games played this past year! That decision proved to be a wise one because the 1.18 goals per game and 2.36 points-per-game he average made USHL executives sit up and take notice.
Zielinski, whose breakaway speed, elite stick handling, and extreme patience with the puck on his stick when bearing down on the goalie, will pair nicely with the likes of the Buccaneers’ breakout star from last season, Ben Kevan, who, at just 16 years old was able to compile a near point-per-game average in just his first year playing in the USHL.
This is why, with these two swashbuckling prospects at the helm next season, I look for the Bucs to plunder their way through a couple more wins and thus place Des Moines in the talks for league supremacy.
Adam Valentini
The other name that will have fans sitting up and taking notice next season is Adam Valentini, who the Chicago Steel signed to a USHL tender agreement for the 2024-2025 season.
This 16-year-old, who hails from Toronto, Ontario, was the highest-scoring player in Canadian AAA hockey last year, where he netted 52 goals and 82 assists for 132 points in only 57 games played! Folks, that was good enough for him to average 2.31 points per game last season.
A feat that not only earned him the honor of playing for the Steel, who have produced prospects like Owen Power, who went 1st overall in 2021, Adam Fantilli, who went 3rd overall in 2023, Macklin Celebrini (who we already spoke about) who went 1st overall this year, and Michael Hage who went 21st overall. But also the honor of receiving an offer to play for the University of Michigan in the future, which he has since graciously accepted.
Adam will bring with him to Chicago next season a shot that already rivals most players in the NHL primarily because it is both powerful and accurate. As far as his play style goes he wastes no time holding onto the puck; he simply sets out to seek and destroy any goaltender who is brave enough to stand in front of his shot. To go along with that, he is dominant in the face circle, which gives his team plenty of offensive chances, as well as needed defensive zone wins, which allows his team to gain more puck possessions to create breakout chances.
Now, I know it may seem early to make this assumption but trust me when I say this: if you live close to a USHL team’s rink, you may want to go ahead and reserve your seats when these two players come to town with their respected clubs because they are sure to put on a show.
What to Make of the Flyers Draft Haul
Photo Credit: AP Photo/Steve Marcus
Coming into this weekend, the Philadelphia Flyers were already defeated. They had tried to create cap space by attempting to trade their 35-year-old underachieving diminutive winger Cam Atkinson, who they were due to be still on the hook for $5,875,000 this season. But after working out a deal to send him to the San Jose Sharks. Cam quickly rejected it thanks to his modified no-trade clause.
Resulting in the team having to place him on waivers with the intent to buy him out. Doing so will save the Flyers over $3.5 million in salary next season but will cost them nearly two million in 2025 for him not to play for them.
Now, I know that Atkinson is a veteran player who is coming into the final years of his career, but to NOT be able to find any other trades for him, even if they were to retain some of his salary, seems laughable.
Especially since the Tampa Bay Lightning were able to create $11 million in salary cap space mid-draft by trading one of their overpaid blueliners in Mikhail Sergachev to Utah, who is signed for seven more years at $8.5 million a season, and Tanner Jeannot to the Kings. Mind you, both of these trades came with no mention of Tampa Bay having to retain any salary. These sudden draft day deals are the ones that create championships or at least keep teams competitive year in and year out. Case in point: because of these masterful moves on the draft floor, the Lightning will be able to re-sign both Steven Stamkos and Victor Hedman. Something that before today seemed highly unlikely.
Also, leading up to the draft, we heard rumors about Philadelphia desperately trying to make a deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets, among others, to try to secure a top-five selection. It was a move they could have clearly made with all the draft assets that they had previously acquired, but when it came right down to it, the Flyers were unwilling to ante up and make a deal with them giving up or folding on their pursuit. They lost out on the chance to select their prized prospect, Matvei Michkov’s former teammate and friend Ivan Demidov, whose elite passing skills would have paired perfectly with Michkov’s innate finishing ability.
Only to later pass on the opportunity to select a multiple World Junior Championship gold medal-winner/ NCAA National Championship award-winning defenseman in Zeev Buium. And the most lethal scorer in this draft in Cole Eiserman, whose 127 career goals for the Red, White, and Blue saw him surpass the likes of Auston Matthews, Patrick Kane, Phil Kessel, and Cole Caufield to become the National Development Program’s new all-time goal scorer. For them to only to reach for a center at 13, which wasn’t even projected to go until the mid to late twenties overall.
Jett Luchanko- 1st Round Pick 13th Overall from the Guelph Storm
So, who is this guy the team passed on so many other seemingly excellent prospects to select? Well, that would be none other than Jett Luchanko—a fast-rising prospect who opened a lot of eyes late in the season. Being one of the youngest players in this draft class, Jett started the year as a virtual unknown, but with each passing game, he gained more and more respect from scouts around the league. Why? You may be asking, well, let’s just say he is a player who undoubtedly lives up to his name.
Because every time, Luchanko steps on the ice, the opposition is left saying who was that or what just happened. That’s because Jett (pardon the pun) is known to turn on the afterburners as soon as he touches the puck. Seriously, Jett is hands down the fastest player in this draft class. Now, while he can score goals, as evident by the 20 lamp lighters that he was able to accumulate this season, he is more of a playmaker. A setup artist, if you will, who achieved 54 assists on the year.
And, if you’re on the ice with him, please pay attention and keep your stick down. Because, as they say about some gifted shooters, the puck doesn’t stay on his stick long. The only difference is that Jett is not just going to throw it at the net immediately. His excellent on-ice vision allows him to play two steps ahead of everyone else, so if a shot is not there, he is going to find his target instantly and launch an absolute cruise missile to an awaiting teammate’s stick blade.
These are all good things if your name is Matvei Michkov.
After making that selection, the Flyers made another head-scratching move when they chose to trade away their second-first round pick, 32 overall, that they received from the Panthers when they dealt away their long-time captain Claude Giroux. They dealt that pick that they waited so long to receive to the Edmonton Oilers for a future 1st round pick in either 2025 or 2026, depending on where the Oilers finish next season. A move that could possibly leave the Flyers with three first-round selections in 2025.
Jack Berglund- 2nd round 51st Overall
So, with that, Philly had to wait until the 51st pick to make their next selection, which they used to select another center. This time, it was a 6’3, 207-pound Swedish one that goes by the name Jack Berglund.
Now, if you don’t know Berglund, he is a 200-foot center who doesn’t put up a ton of points but has sneaky good hands and a surprisingly high finishing rate. Obviously, with his size, he does well in board battles and can drive the puck to the net with ease without even noticing his opponent’s attempts to strip the puck from him. But as far as where he could fit in terms of the NHL, I think his ceiling is a third-line gritty center.
There are a lot of other players I would have selected here, but Danny Briere said he thought the center position was a need for them, so another center he went out and got.
After making this selection, the Flyers saw a guy they really liked still on the board, so they traded back into the second round to take a defenseman this time.
Spencer Gill- 2nd round 59th Overall from the QMJHL Rimouski Oceanic
Spencer is a big-bodied defender who likes the offensive side of the game. He possesses a pretty decent shot, and he pairs it with a good release. This season Spencer was able to score 12 goals and 34 assists for a total of 46 points in 65 games played.
He needs to clean up his skating and work on his decision-making.
If they wanted to take a blueliner this high, I would have taken a guy like Charlie Elick with the 32nd overall pick and not traded it to Edmonton. I think they would have gotten a much better defender who skates well and makes much better decisions on the breakout.
Heikki Ruohonen- 4th Round 107th Overall Pick U20 SM-Sarja
Without a 3rd round pick because of all the trades, the Flyers’ next selection came in the 4th round, where they took yet another center. This time, it was Heikki Ruohonen from Finland. A 6’2 204 pound center who scored 20 goals and 27 assists for 47 points in 37 games played at the junior level.
Now, Rouhonen is not the most physical player, and he won’t blow you away with any one skill over another player, but what he will do is outwork you. And what apparently is a must now if you want to be drafted by the Flyers is he is a 200-player. One that will play you just as hard in the defensive zone as he will in the offensive zone. Fun fact here is that Heikki is committed to playing for Harvard University in the coming years.
If they wanted to take another center with this pick, I would have suggested a very underrated player in Tomas Mrsic, who scored nearly a points-per-game for the Medicine Hat Tigers of the WHL this year.
Noah Powell 5th Round 148th Overall Pick RW USHL
In the 5th round, we saw the Flyers take their first winger, Noah Powell. He is an overager who was able to triple his point production from last season. Noah, who exemplifies what it is to be a late bloomer, went from scoring just eight goals last year to leading the league this past season, scoring an awe-inspiring 43 goals, with 16 of them coming while on the power play, which was also a league-best total.
Like Ruohonen, Powell is an intelligent player who loves to use his 6’2, 201-pound power forward frame to drive to the center of the ice and get a scoring attempt closer to the paint.
He is committed to playing for Ohio State next season, and I think his game should transition well there.
If it were up to me with this pick, I would have taken a chance on a 17-year-old 5’8 diminutive forward by the name of Justin Poirier from the QMJHL. Poirier was still on the board when the Flyers made this selection, and he is nothing but a pure goal scorer. This season, Poirier put up a league-leading 51 goals. He averaged 1.20 points per game while still maintaining a +40 average. Just my opinion, but I would much rather take a chance on Poirier, who is a pure goal scorer, rather than a guy who couldn’t put up numbers in his draft year, so he decided to stick around and accumulate huge stats playing against much younger prospects.
Ilya Pautov 6th Round 173rd Overall Pick
In the later rounds, you begin to take more chances, and Pautov is just that. While he will do some things that impress the heck out of you, there are still many areas where his decisions will have you shaking your head.
Despite all that, his puck handling is strong, and his point totals reflect that. With him scoring 15 goals and 30 assists for 45 points in 46 games played in the MHL (Russia’s junior league)
But, as impressive as those stat lines are for a 6th-round player, he tends to shy away from contact, and that simply won’t bode well for him if he ever wants to come over to play in North America.
Again, while I don’t necessarily hate this pick, I would have rather seen them take a chance on a guy like Nathan Free. A player who scored 32 goals and 33 assists for 65 points in 60 games played this season for the Brooks Bandits of the BCHL.
Scheduled to follow his former teammate Aiden Fink to Penn State next season, I think Nathan Free is going to have a breakout year in the NCAA next season.
Austin Moline 7th Rd. 205 Overall Pick
For their last selection this year, the Flyers took a 6’4 194 pound right-hand-shot defender by the name of Austin Moline from Shattuck St. Mary’s—a big-bodied defender who has good mobility and isn’t afraid to jump up into the rush.
He will play next season for the Brooks Bandits of the BCHL and has agreed to attend and play for Northern Michigan University after that.
If it were up to me, I would have selected Christian Humphreys from the United States National Development program with this pick. No, they don’t need another center after drafting so many, but he is a PA native who is scheduled to play for the University of Michigan and was able to post 23 goals and 35 assists for 58 points in only 52 games played this year.
In closing, I would give the Flyers a draft grade of C-. They had a lot of picks that they could have used to move up to select a real game changer, but they didn’t pull the trigger on a deal. Instead, they settled for a lot of guys who like to make their way to the center of the ice to the high-scoring areas. And, even though they had the chance to draft a franchise-changing offensive talent like Cole Eiserman, they passed on him so they could draft even more two-way centers that play a 200-foot game but will never blow you away with their offensive production. Call me crazy, but don’t they already have a bunch of those with guys with Sean Couturier, Scott Laughton, Morgan Frost, Ryan Poehling, and Noah Cates all being on the roster for next season?