Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Flyers Rumors

Maksim Sushko Signs In KHL

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Though it went under the radar earlier this month, the Philadelphia Flyers have one less restricted free agent to sign this offseason. Maksim Sushko, a young forward coming off his entry-level contract, has signed with Dynamo Moscow in the KHL.

Sushko, 23, was a fourth-round pick of the Flyers in 2017 and made his NHL debut in the 2020-21 season, playing two games with the big club. After spending all of 2021-22 in the minor leagues, it appears as though he’ll pursue a career overseas instead. Though Sushko spent half a season in the KHL while COVID restrictions were keeping the AHL dark, it isn’t like he is unfamiliar with North American hockey.

The Belarusian forward came over to play in the OHL in 2016 and spent three years with the Owen Sound Attack before jumping directly to the AHL. In fact, this will be the first Russian team he plays for, making this a new experience altogether.

Signed to a two-year deal, he’ll still be young enough to return in 2024 if the Flyers choose to issue him a qualifying offer this summer. That will allow them to retain his exclusive rights as a restricted free agent and potentially allow them to bring him back after receiving playing time in the KHL.

Flyers Expected To Interview Jim Montgomery Next Week

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The Flyers are expected to interview Jim Montgomery for their vacant head coaching position next week, reports Sam Carchidi of Philly Hockey Now.  Montgomery has been an assistant in St. Louis since 2020 and with the Blues being eliminated last night, teams can now talk to him about their coaching vacancies.  Montgomery has some NHL head coaching experience under his belt having coached Dallas for parts of two seasons before being let go for unprofessional conduct which he later revealed was related to his battle with alcoholism.  John Tortorella and Barry Trotz are among those that are believed to have already interviewed for Philadelphia’s vacant position.

Looking At Claude Giroux’s Impending Free Agency

at CDT | by 16 Comments

With the Florida Panthers now swept out of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, many questions will arise this offseason about the future of this year’s Presidents’ Trophy winners. One of those questions will be the future of forward Claude Giroux, who the Panthers acquired at the Trade Deadline. The longtime captain of the Philadelphia Flyers was moved for what many viewed as an underwhelming return, and despite Florida’s early elimination, Giroux performed with renewed vigor on a better team. He had eight points in 10 playoff games but piled up assists in the regular season, notching 20 in 18 games with the Panthers. He still managed 42 points in 57 games with the Flyers prior to the trade on a massively struggling team, too. His eight-year extension that kicked in prior to 2014-15 is now expiring, and Giroux could hit unrestricted free agency for the first time in his 15-year career.

Giroux has already stated his desire to return to South Florida if the opportunity arises. However, with the worst year of the Keith Yandle buyout hitting the Panthers next season, the team has just under $4MM in projected cap space for the 2022-23 season, according to CapFriendly. That’s already an impossible number to sign Giroux unless he takes a serious old-man discount, but the team also has a handful of roster spots to fill on both forward and defense. The team could likely opt to trade Patric Hornqvist (with a limited no-trade clause) and the final year of his $5.3MM cap hit, though, which could seriously open the door for a Giroux return.

If Giroux can’t work out a return to the Panthers organization, though, teams will come prepared with serious offers for his services. The 34-year-old can still be counted on for at least 20 goals and 65/70 points in a full season, and he remains a very good defensive presence and faceoff man. Giroux is still boasting a streak of five seasons above a 55 percent mark in the faceoff circle, and although his skill set is now best used on the wing, he’s still valuable as a faceoff specialist. It’s hard to imagine Giroux receiving less than $6MM or $7MM, although a four-year term is likely an extreme maximum for Giroux at this point.

His hometown Ottawa Senators have been constantly linked to Giroux over the past few years, and the team hasn’t been quiet about their desire to improve this offseason drastically. With the team boasting nearly $25MM in cap space this offseason, they have the room and then some to make that sort of acquisition.

Is a return to the Flyers in the cards? It’s doubtful. Giroux hasn’t made a Stanley Cup Final in 12 years and he doesn’t have a ring. It’s that fact that makes it seem like a discount to stay in a team on the rise in Florida would make the most sense for Giroux. However, if the Senators play their cards right and their prospects develop properly, they could be in a position to win Cups by the end of a Giroux contract as well. Other teams in contending positions may not have the cap space to afford Giroux’s services, but it’s much too early to eliminate that scenario.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Latest On Philadelphia Coaching Search

at CDT | by 6 Comments

The Philadelphia Flyers are on the lookout for a coach and have already been linked to some big names. Barry Trotz and John Tortorella have reportedly already had their interviews with the club, though it does not appear as though the team is in any rush to make a final decision. Today, on the 32 Thoughts podcast, hosts Jeff Marek and Elliotte Friedman linked another few names to the Flyers, including recently eliminated Calgary Flames associate coach Kirk Muller, and Pittsburgh Penguins assistant Mike Vellucci.

Muller, according to Friedman, will also draw interest from the Winnipeg Jets now that the Flames are out of the playoffs. The 56-year-old last served as a head coach with the Carolina Hurricanes in 2014 and has been an associate in both Montreal and Calgary. Muller obviously also brings a long successful history as a player, including a Stanley Cup championship in 1993.

Vellucci meanwhile is an interesting name, given he actually doesn’t have much experience at the NHL level but has been around the hockey world for decades. The 55-year-old coach (who played two games in the NHL with the Hartford Whalers) won a Calder Cup as head coach of the Charlotte Checkers in 2019 after a long stint as general manager and head coach of the Plymouth Whalers of the OHL. Friedman expects Vellucci to draw interest from more than just Philadelphia, though has already interviewed with the Flyers.

The other name brought up by Marek was St. Louis Blues assistant Jim Montgomery, who Friedman confirmed would be of interest, but noted is still working. Montgomery, who last served as a head coach with the Dallas Stars, was fired in 2020 for unprofessional conduct–a decision he admitted was the “appropriate call” at the time while revealing his battle with alcoholism. After getting help, Montgomery was back behind an NHL bench with the Blues in 2020-21 and is currently helping them try to come back against the Colorado Avalanche in the second round.

Philadelphia Flyers Interviewed John Tortorella

at CDT | by 12 Comments

The Philadelphia Flyers have already been linked to Barry Trotz in their head coaching search and now another big-name free agent has been connected to the team. John Tortorella has interviewed for the position, according to Kevin Weekes of ESPN. Weekes notes that it is “one of the coaches” that has been interviewed.

Tortorella, 63, last coached in the NHL during the 2020-21 season, spending the interim as an analyst with ESPN. The fiery competitor has one of the highest profiles of any coach in the league due to a combination of his success and very public spats with players and media. Only 13 men have won more regular season games as a head coach in the NHL, and Tortorella also has a fair bit of postseason success–including a Stanley Cup championship in 2004 with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

A career that includes time with the New York Rangers and Columbus Blue Jackets, Tortorella should be very familiar with Philadelphia and the Flyers organization. Like Trotz, his time in the Metropolitan Division could provide an inside track, though, with so many qualified candidates on the market, it is hard to know exactly which path the team will choose.

Recently, Jeff Marek of Sportsnet gave his take on the situation during an episode of the 32 Thoughts podcast, explaining that the Flyers do not appear to be in any rush to name a head coach. Still, with now Trotz and Tortorella connected to the team, they are certainly not shying away from the big–and likely expensive–options.

The Flyers are still on the hook to pay Alain Vigneault $5MM per season through 2023-24 but also have a clear impetus from ownership to turn things around quickly. Chairman Dave Scott told reporters that he was giving general manager Chuck Fletcher a “blank check” to fix things, and with the long-term extension of Rasmus Ristolainen, followed by this coaching search, it appears as though there is no time for a tear down in Philadelphia.

Philadelphia Flyers Extend Linus Sandin

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Philadelphia Flyers are in hot pursuit of one of the NHL’s biggest-name coaches, but that hasn’t stopped them from getting some offseason work done as well. The Flyers announced today that they have re-signed forward Linus Sandin to a one-year, two-way contract worth $750,000.

Sandin, 26, is an undrafted player who has spent the past two seasons in the Flyers’ organization. He is the brother of Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Rasmus Sandin. He is a veteran of four SHL seasons, having played for two clubs: HV71 and Rogle BK. After a first season in the SHL where he struggled to score, Sandin began to figure things out and scored 35 goals over the next two seasons. He had 10 points in 20 games in 2020-21 before coming over to the Flyers’ AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, and posting a healthy 10 points in 26 games. This season he had 20 points in 36 games and made his NHL debut. For Sandin, this extension and his choice to remain in North America indicate that he is committed to building off of this past season in order to keep his chances of getting back into an NHL lineup alive.

Sandin is hardly a prospect at 26 years old, but he still has only 63 games of experience on North American ice and is an established, quality player at the SHL level. So his ultimate place within the Flyers organization is hardly a settled matter. As the Flyers embark on an offseason where there could be major changes, bringing Sandin back into the fold gives the club a low-cost player who has the chance to become something if he plays well.

Oskar Lindholm Could Be A Buyout Candidate This Summer

at CDT | by 1 Comment

Like many teams, the Flyers will be looking to free up some cap space this summer.  Charlie O’Connor of The Athletic highlights (subscription link) an under-the-radar option to help accomplish that with a buyout of winger Oskar Lindblom.  While his battle to return back from Ewing’s sarcoma and become a regular NHL player again is certainly commendable, he has underachieved offensively with just 20 goals in 129 games since then which isn’t a great return on a $3MM AAV.  However, he’d be eligible for a reduced buyout charge of one-third because of his age (25) and the structure of the contract would actually create a cap credit of $333K for next season with a $667K charge the following year.  With that credit, the Flyers would effectively save $3.33MM in 2022-23 with a Lindholm buyout, making that option one that GM Chuck Fletcher will likely give some serious consideration to in the coming weeks.

Update On Barry Trotz

at CDT | by 17 Comments

5:14 pm: Chicago Blackhawks beat writer Jay Zawaski reports that the Blackhawks are one of the teams that have inquired about Trotz’s services. However, the team isn’t too optimistic about their chances of landing the free-agent coach, noting that they don’t expect him to want to lead a rebuild. If that’s true, it’s obviously unlikely that he would seriously consider heading to Philadelphia as well.

1:06 pm: One of the hottest free agents in the NHL right now is head coach Barry Trotz, who parted ways with the New York Islanders earlier this month. Trotz had already been linked to the Winnipeg Jets, and recently rumors had emerged that he would interview for the Philadelphia Flyers job on Friday.

It doesn’t appear as though those rumors are true, though Sam Carchidi of Philly Hockey Now tweets that Trotz will meet with Philadelphia brass “soon.” Notably, they weren’t the only teams to reach out, as Nick Kypreos of Sportsnet reports that six to seven teams have already contacted the Trotz camp. Kypreos adds that teams believe the price tag will be in the $6MM range, more than the $4MM he was earning per year with the Islanders. Trotz had one year remaining on his deal when he was relieved of his duties.

Of course, the Flyers are also paying Alain Vigneault $5MM/year through the 2023-24 season, meaning committing to Trotz as well would be an incredibly expensive proposition. When team chairman Dave Scott said that he was giving general manager Chuck Fletcher a “blank check” to fix the group, most expected that to mean spending big on free agent players; perhaps it will also mean on a head coach.

Trotz is one of many experienced bench bosses on the market, and was something of a surprise addition after taking the Islanders to two consecutive Conference Finals, before missing the playoffs this season. Since winning the Stanley Cup with the Washington Capitals in 2018, he has generally been regarded as one of the most effective coaches in the league.

Flyers To Interview Barry Trotz Friday

at CDT | by 7 Comments

The Flyers are expected to interview Barry Trotz for their vacant head coaching position on Friday, reports Sam Carchidi of Philly Hockey Now.  Philadelphia is among the teams looking for a new bench boss after opting not to give interim coach Mike Yeo the full-time job and with Chuck Fletcher looking for someone to turn things around quickly, Trotz’s track record certainly is appealing.  Trotz’s former team, the Islanders, made the playoffs in each of his first three seasons while making the Eastern Conference Final in two of those while his defensive tactics would certainly help to shore up a team that allowed 298 goals this season.  Philadelphia certainly isn’t the only team interested in the 59-year-old, however, as Trotz interviewed in Winnipeg earlier this week.

Philadelphia Flyers Sign Nick Seeler

at CDT | by 4 Comments

The Philadelphia Flyers have brought back a depth defenseman, signing Nick Seeler to a two-year extension that will carry an average annual value of $775K.In the press release, it indicates that the deal is one-way/two-way, presumably meaning that in 2022-23 Seeler will be on a one-way contract, and in 2023-24 he will be on a two-way.

Seeler, 28, saw considerable playing time this season, appearing in 43 games with the Flyers. Though he averaged just over 13 minutes in those contests he was still relatively effective, racking up blocks and hits at a good rate while providing another option on the penalty kill. There’s no mistaking Seeler for a top-pairing option, but at this price, he doesn’t have to be.

In fact, there’s no guarantee he even sees the lineup as often next season given the situation the Flyers currently find themselves in. Cam York and Ronnie Attard will both likely push for full-time minutes, while the team still expects Ryan Ellis to return to full strength at some point. That would already give the team six NHL options before even considering any additions made in free agency, or a young player like Yegor Zamula taking a considerable step in his development.

For Seeler, the two-year term provides a bit of security, and $775K would be the highest salary of his career to this point.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

scroll to top