- Included in the Flyers’ announcement of their training camp roster was a note that winger Isaac Ratcliffe will be out for at least four weeks after sustaining a fractured rib in training. The 21-year-old made his pro debut last season, notching six goals and nine assists in 53 games with Lehigh Valley of the AHL.
Flyers Rumors
Flyers Notes: Morin, Ustimenko, York
It’s not very often that you see players change position after they’ve made it to the NHL, though there have been some notable exceptions in recent years. Dustin Byfuglien and Brent Burns are two shining examples, lining up at forward and defense depending on the year, following in the footsteps of Red Kelly who famously came out of a semi-retirement to play center for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Now you can hopefully add another name to that list, as Philadelphia Flyers GM Chuck Fletcher announced that Samuel Morin will play left wing for the team this season.
If you’re thinking, “but Morin wasn’t a very offensive defenseman” you’re not wrong. The 25-year-old forward won’t be trying to lead the team in scoring anytime soon, telling reporters including Charlie O’Connor of The Athletic that the player he’s watching and trying to emulate is Matt Martin. The 6’6″ Morin certainly has the frame to play that bang-and-crash style and he has no pretense of entitlement; the 2013 first-round pick readily admits that he’s fighting for his career after several major surgeries.
- Speaking of surgeries to Flyers prospects, the team also announced that Kirill Ustimenko has undergone a procedure to repair a torn hip labrum. He will be out for four to five months, effectively ending his season. The 21-year-old goaltender was the 80th overall pick in 2017 and made his North American debut last year, playing most of the season with the Reading Royals of the ECHL. He actually played two games back in Belarus this season before going down to injury, the only two he is expected to play given the long rehab.
- If you want some good news, look no further than Cam York, the Flyers prospect who is dominating at the World Juniors as captain of Team USA. York is tied with Topi Niemela of Finland for the scoring lead among tournament defenders and trails only Trevor Zegras on the entire U.S. roster. A poised, two-way player, York has appeared to reach a different level in his development this season, excelling not only at the junior event but also for the University of Michigan. He and the rest of the U.S. squad will be back in action this evening taking on Sweden in an extremely important Group B matchup.
Flyers Prospect Jack St. Ivany Transfers To Boston College
There have been a handful of college players that have transferred in recent days and among them is Flyers prospect Jack St. Ivany as Jeff Cox of the New England Sports Journal reports that the defenseman has transferred from Yale to Boston College and will be eligible to play immediately.
The move was prompted with the Ivy League cancelling their 2020-21 season and the Eagles will be the beneficiaries of this transfer. The 21-year-old was a fifth-round pick of Philadelphia (112th overall) back in 2018 in his second year of draft eligibility.
While St. Ivany was a productive blueliner in the USHL which helped him get drafted, that hasn’t been the case in the first half of his college career. Last season, he had one goal and 15 assists with the Bulldogs after putting up six tallies in his freshman year. Nevertheless, he’ll likely be asked to step into an important role with Boston College right away and a change of scenery might help get that part of his game back on track.
After sitting since March when the college season was shut down due to the pandemic, St. Ivany will be eligible to suit up in Boston College’s first game following the winter break which is January 8th.
Cam York Named Captain Of Team USA
The World Junior Championship is set to start tomorrow and Team USA Now has a captain to lead them into battle against Russia in their first game. Philadelphia Flyers prospect Cam York has been given the “C” and he will be joined by alternates Cole Caufield and Alex Turcotte. Head coach Nate Leaman explained what an honor it is to be named captain:
It says a lot about this leadership group being voted in by their teammates. It’s a tremendous honor to be named captains and represent your country. This isn’t our team, this is their team. I believe our locker room is filled with leaders, and to be successful each guy will need to step up and be a leader in their own way, whether wearing a letter or not.
York, 19, was the 14th overall pick of the 2019 draft, selected by Philadelphia out of the USNTDP. He’s currently at the University of Michigan, where he earned conference All-Rookie honors last season and has five points in eight games this year. The smooth-skating defenseman was part of the U.S. team that disappointed a year ago but is back for revenge this time around.
Caufield, one of the most-hyped prospects in college hockey, returns to the tournament after scoring just a single goal last year. The undersized forward is an incredible sniper that is able to put the puck in the net in a thousand different ways and will be extremely difficult to contain at the event. Selected 15th overall by the Montreal Canadiens in 2019, he could be operating at the sidewall of an NHL powerplay before long.
Turcotte, the highest drafted of the three, went fifth overall to the Los Angeles Kings in 2019 and was a teammate of Caufield at Wisconsin last season. The 19-year-old signed his entry-level contract in March and will attempt to make the Kings out of training camp this year, but first has his eye on gold at the upcoming tournament.
Even though they were denied access to some top names, the U.S. squad looks extremely dangerous this time around. Caufield was named player of the match in the team’s exhibition game against Finland earlier this week when they won 3-2, with Trevor Zegras dazzling with his playmaking once again.
Mason Millman Signs With Philadelphia Flyers
The Philadelphia Flyers have signed one of their recent draft picks, inking Mason Millman to a three-year entry-level contract. Millman has spent the last two seasons with the Saginaw Spirit of the OHL and was picked in the fourth round by the Flyers in 2019.
Millman, 19, was unfortunately cut from Team Canada’s World Junior camp recently due to COVID-19 restrictions, but will still get some good news this holiday season with an entry-level deal. The defenseman scored 13 goals and 44 points last season for Saginaw, turning heads as a potential mid-round steal for the Flyers. The fact that he’s already earned a deal should only solidify that feeling, though where Millman goes from here is very unclear.
The OHL has still not set a date for its official return and some are wondering whether the 2020-21 junior season can be saved at all. For a player like Millman, who is ineligible for the AHL—and likely not ready to compete professionally—this season is looking like a potentially lost development year. Perhaps with him now under contract, the Flyers will find somewhere overseas to get Millman on the ice competing again, keeping the momentum he built since his draft in 2019.
Snapshots: Lindblom, Zadina, Saarela
One year after being diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer, Philadelphia Flyers forward Oskar Lindblom is still cancer-free. The young man had his second checkup and scans were clear, according to his girlfriend on Instagram. The news received an outpouring of congratulations from all over the hockey world as teammates, opponents, and fans all want to see Lindblom back on the ice.
The 24-year-old forward was off to a blistering start in 2019-20 before his diagnosis, scoring 11 goals and 18 points in the first 30 games of the season. To the surprise of many, he made an emotional return for the Flyers in the postseason bubble, playing in two games during their second-round series against the New York Islanders. One of the most natural goal-scorers on the Flyers roster, his return should give the team quite a boost this season should his health remain intact and his play goes back to previous levels. From everyone here at PHR, congrats Oskar!
- Filip Zadina is on his way back to Detroit to join the Red Wings for training camp, leaving HC Ocelari Trinec after scoring 14 points in 17 games in the Czech Republic. The 21-year-old forward hasn’t yet made his mark at the NHL level but should have an inside track for a roster spot this year. In 37 games with the Red Wings, Zadina has nine goals and 18 points.
- Chicago Blackhawks fourth-round pick Antti Saarela won’t be coming to North America for a while yet after his club team exercised an option year for 2021-22. The 19-year-old forward still has a lot of development to do anyway, so staying in Europe another year probably isn’t very upsetting for the Blackhawks anyway. He has shown improvement this year though, scoring ten points in 17 games, nearly reaching his total from last season already.
Salary Cap Deep Dive: Philadelphia Flyers
Navigating the salary cap is one of the more important tasks for any GM. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.
PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2020-21 season. This will focus more on players who are regulars on the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.
Philadelphia Flyers
Current Cap Hit: $79,238,852 (under the $81.5MM Upper Limit)
Entry-Level Contracts
F Joel Farabee (two years, $925K)
F German Rubtsov (one year, $894K)
F Morgan Frost (two years, $863K)
G Carter Hart (one year, $731K)
Potential Bonuses
Farabee: $500K
Rubtsov: $425K
Hart: 83K
Total: $1.1MM
One thing the Philadelphia Flyers have a lot of is balance, which includes quite a few impressive young players on entry-level deals. While he may not be paid the most of the entry-level players, the guy that is likely next to cash in is goaltender Carter Hart. Just 22, the young netminder has been impressive in two seasons. Perhaps the statistic that stands out the most is his numbers when at home. Hart posted a dominant 20-3-2 record at home with a 1.63 GAA and a .943 GAA. Unfortunately his road record wasn’t as good with a 3.04 GAA and a .896 save percentage — something he must work on. Regardless, he will likely command quite a bit when the Flyers try to lock him up to an extension.
Farabee and Frost are two young prospects who could make their impact known as soon as next season. Farabee played in 52 games last year for Philadelphia, scoring eight goals and 21 points, but he could be primed for a breakout season. Frost is the next prospect up. He appeared in 20 games last year, scoring two goals and seven points, but should see more regular time in Philadelphia’s lineup this season and could be a significant contributor down the road.
One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level
D Travis Sanheim ($3.25MM, RFA)
D Erik Gustafsson ($3MM, UFA)
F Scott Laughton ($2.3MM, UFA)
F Michael Raffl ($1.6MM, UFA)
G Brian Elliott ($1.5MM, UFA)
F Nolan Patrick ($874K, RFA)
D Samuel Morin ($700K, RFA)
Sanheim has established himself as a top-four defender on a very young defense and should continue to get better. With the loss of defenseman Matt Niskanen to retirement, Sanheim will be expected to take that next step and become a dominant defeneman for the Flyers. He scored eight goals and 25 points last season, but could be primed for a bigger year. Gustafsson was brought in to fill in the holes on the team’s defense. The 28-year-old was coming off a 60-point season in 2018-19, but failed to duplicate that with either with the Blackhawks or the Flames after he was traded at the deadline.
Laughton has been a useful bottom-six player over the last few years. The 26-year-old provides the team a combination of some offense and some physicality, something the team needs. Laughton finished last season with 13 goals and 27 points in 49 games last season as well as 109 hits, but more importantly stepped up in the playoffs, putting up five goals and nine points in 15 games. The 32-year-old Raffl is much the same, putting up eight goals and 20 points in 58 games with 96 hits.
The most interesting name might be Patrick, who missed the entire 2019-20 season with a migraine disorder. The Flyers hope that the No. 2 overall pick in 2017 can pick up where he left off and eventually become the dominant player he once was despite struggling through a myriad of injuries in the past. When healthy, Patrick can be a dominating, playmaking center. The team hopes to insert him into the lineup as the team’s third-line center to start and see where he goes from there.
Elliott, who has been mentoring Hart ever since Hart arrived, struggled last year and the team hopes the 35-year-old can find his game this season. If not, the team will likely move on from him in a year.
Two Years Remaining
F Claude Giroux ($8.25MM, UFA)
F Sean Couturier ($4.33MM, UFA)
D Justin Braun ($1.8MM, UFA)
D Robert Hagg ($1.6MM, UFA)
F Nicolas Aube-Kubel ($1.08MM, RFA)
Giroux has been one of the most dominant Flyers players in their history with 257 goals and 810 points over his career. He put up 21 goals last year in just 69 games, but did see a decline in his overall points as his point totals went from 85 to 53. At 32 years of age, it’s likely that we’ll see the start of a decline in the next few years, but with two years remaining on his contract, the team does have some relief coming down the road. If Giroux can bounce back this year, he’ll remain a viable player for a few more years and can eventually be signed to a cheaper deal as he reaches his mid-30’s.
Couturier, on the other hand, is also coming off a disappointing season. After two straight 30-goal seasons, he struggled with just 22 goals in 69 games. Of course, had he played the entire 82 games, he may have come close to those goal-scoring numbers, but the 28-year-old should continue to post good numbers for the next few years and his contract looks like a value deal if he can get back to 30 goals once again.
Braun provides some much-needed veteran depth on the blueline after the Flyers traded a second and third-round pick to acquire him last offseason. They still get two more years out of him. Hagg also provides key depth despite an injury plagued 2019-20.
Snapshots: Pacioretty, Hoffman, Kase, Sweden
News broke yesterday that the Vegas Golden Knights have had trade discussions regarding Max Pacioretty and the hockey world, desperate for any news right now, exploded with potential scenarios. Fans of nearly every team in the league pictured the 30-goal scorer in their uniform, but Jesse Granger of The Athletic believes that the Golden Knights shouldn’t rush into anything. Though he lists Pacioretty alongside Jonathan Marchessault and Marc-Andre Fleury as three names Vegas has considered moving, he reasons that it would be a step in the wrong direction to trade the former Montreal Canadiens forward due to a lack of scoring throughout the roster.
Tucked away in the piece is another note, however, and that is the Golden Knights have had no communication with Mike Hoffman’s camp. The free agent sniper was listed as a potential target by Frank Seravalli of TSN when he broke the Pacioretty news yesterday, but it appears as though that may not be the case. The Golden Knights could obviously make contact if they do move a contract like Pacioretty’s $7MM cap hit, but time is running out for Hoffman to sign with a team before training camp starts in a few weeks.
- The Philadelphia Flyers have loaned David Kase to the Czech National Team for the upcoming Channel One Cup, which starts next week. Kase had been on loan with HC Karlovy Vary but will get a chance to compete for his country at the international tournament. At some point, the 23-year-old should be expected to return to North America to quarantine and then take part in NHL training camp, but given the tournament isn’t over until December 20, it won’t be for a little while.
- More bad news for the Swedish World Junior team as the goaltending coach has also tested positive for COVID-19, the fourth staff member in the last few days. At this point, anyone that has tested positive is not supposed to be allowed to travel to the bubble in Edmonton for the tournament, while others are not supposed to be added to the traveling party. That leaves Sweden without several key coaches, including head coach Tomas Monten and assistant Anton Lundberg. At this point, given that several players were also excluded due to positive tests, it’s not clear if Sweden will even be able to take part.
Philadelphia Flyers Sign Philippe Myers
December 8: The deal is done, with Myers officially signing a three-year deal worth an average annual value of $2.55MM. Flyers GM Chuck Fletcher released this statement:
We’re happy to have Phil signed for the next three years. He is a big, mobile right shot defenseman who progressed into a top four role on our blue line last season. We look forward to his continued growth.
Myers is receiving a pretty substantial raise over his entry-level salary and will still be a restricted free agent when this new deal expires. At that point though, he will have arbitration rights and will be just a year away from UFA status, giving him plenty of leverage in talks. If the young defenseman does manage to secure a spot next to Ivan Provorov on the team’s top pairing in the meantime, it could be a big payday in 2023.
December 7: The Flyers have one remaining restricted free agent in defenseman Philippe Myers and it appears that they’re on their way towards getting that deal done. Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports (Twitter link) that the two sides are close to an agreement and that a contract could be finalized later this week.
The 23-year-old spent the majority of last season with the Flyers, getting into 50 games where he recorded 16 points (4-12-16) while averaging over 17:06 per game, a number that went up as the season progressed. By the time the postseason hit, he was a fixture in their top four and logged just over 20 minutes a night in 16 playoff games while picking up three goals and an assist.
With the team not changing much on the back end this offseason (Matt Niskanen retired with Erik Gustafsson, a left-shot player, taking his spot on the roster), Myers arguably sits atop Philadelphia’s depth chart among right-shot blueliners. As a result, it certainly seems as if he’s a candidate to take on an even bigger role next season.
The Flyers have some cap flexibility and have nearly $4.8MM in cap room, per CapFriendly. While someone in his situation (71 career regular season NHL games) would typically be a safe bet for a bridge contract, they do have some room to try to get a longer-term contract done. With how quickly Myers has moved up their depth chart, that may be the smarter play for GM Chuck Fletcher although such a move wouldn’t be without its risks. Whichever way they wind up going, it at least appears that some good progress is being made on his next contract.
Snapshots: Tentative Schedule, Exhibition Games, Players, Eklund
While nothing is set in stone about the forthcoming NHL season, the makings of a season format seem to be falling into place. Yesterday’s news that the league is targeting a January 15 start and a 56-game schedule provided some optimism that firm numbers may be coming into focus and the reality of a 2020-21 with it. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman and Chris Johnston have followed up that report with some speculative notes on how training camp, the regular season, and the postseason could play out. They have heard that a January 15 start date would mean that the seven non-playoff teams from 2019-20 would open camp on December 28, while the other 24 teams would start up on January 1. This isn’t exactly the extended camp that the non-playoff teams had hoped for, but with the Christmas holiday also playing a key role in negotiations from the players’ side, there is little wiggle room between starting after December 25 and allowing all teams enough time for a sufficient camp prior to January 15. Friedman and Johnston believe that a January 15 start and 56-game schedule would result in a May 1 end to the regular season, with room to make up games if needed. The postseason would then run through the first week of July, again with some flexibility for make-up delays before a likely late July Entry Draft and Expansion Draft and August 1 start to the new league year and free agency. None of these dates are official of course, but they do report that some players and teams have been notified that they should expect a January 15 start date and to be back in North America and in quarantine this month. As for the actual structure of the league and of travel and game play this season, temporary realignment seems very likely, especially if it will allow teams to play in their home cities and arenas, which is the preference of players and clubs alike. However, the concept of bubbles or hub cities is still very much on the table if that is the only way to ensure the safety of all players and staff. Friedman and Johnston also note that there is some optimism that with this delayed start to the season and the progress being made on a COVID-19 vaccine that there could be fans in attendance, regardless of the format, by the end of the regular season and in the playoffs.
- While everyone is hopeful that these plans work out and are excited for the return of NHL hockey, don’t expect to see any game action until the actual anticipated regular season start date of January 15. Friedman and Johnston report that there will not likely be exhibition “pre-season” games during training camp. This can likely be explained by a hesitancy to potentially expose players and personnel to COVID for a meaningless game. Although starting the season cold will be difficult, it is a a safer option. Teams will have to rely on inter-squad scrimmages for preparation.
- While logistics coming together for this coming season, with agreement on both sides, is great to see, there is still a financial negotiation going on as well. The owners are hoping to adjust the values of salary deferral and escrow just recently agreed upon in the CBA extension, but so far the players have been resistant to any change. The Philadelphia Flyers’ James van Riemsdyk, the team’s NHLPA rep, tells The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Sam Carchidi that the players feel the impact of the Coronavirus on 2020-21 profits was fully considered when the CBA was agreed upon and the players do not feel that they owe the owners any more than they have already relinquished. This is a sentiment that has been echoed by many when it comes to the league’s proposal of financial changes. On a positive note, van Riemsdyk says that the players are happy with their side of the CBA and like what they have heard so far about a “return to play” plan. He states that the players are “ready to roll” with the new season once the owners agree to uphold the CBA.
- While the NHL is doing their best to combat COVID and get back to play, the virus continues to impact every corner of the hockey world. Leagues and teams on multiple continents have paused their seasons, players, coaches, and staff have been infected, and opportunities to watch and play the game have been few and far between with restrictions on facilities and group gatherings. The latest newsworthy COVID impact comes out of Sweden. European hockey insider Uffe Bodin reports that 2021 draft prospect William Eklund has tested positive for the virus and as a result may not participate in the upcoming World Junior Championship in Edmonton. Eklund is considered by many to be a potential first-round pick in next year’s draft, which has been helped along by a breakout season in the SHL. His absence will be a major loss for Team Sweden and will also be a missed opportunity for NHL scouts. The talented forward will simply have to work to get healthy and continue to show what he can do in the SHL this year.