Category: Sports

The Flyers are making a few changes on the fourth line.

The team announced Thursday that Garnet Hathaway has been traded to the Florida Panthers along with a 2026 sixth-round pick for a fifth-round pick in this year’s draft and a 2027 fourth-rounder. The Flyers now own four picks in this weekend’s NHL draft: 21, 53 (second round), 136 (fifth round), and 213 (seventh round).

Signed as a free agent in 2023, the 34-year-old winger played three seasons in Philadelphia and put up three points in 66 games last season, down from his 21 points in 2024-25 and 17 in 2023-24. Alongside Sean Couturier and Luke Glendening, he was part of a formidable fourth line in the playoffs, scoring one goal and recording one assist in eight games while asserting himself physically.

A Maine native who graduated from Brown, the undrafted Hathaway ranked fourth in hits in the NHL across his three seasons in Philly. The past two seasons, for every hit the Flyers recorded, Hathaway and his wife, Lindsay, pledged to donate to local first responders with a match from Flyers Charities through Hits for Hath’s Heroes. Following the 2024-25 season, the Hathaways donated $30,000 to the Families Behind the Badge Children’s Foundation, a Conshohocken-based nonprofit.

Hathaway has one year left on his two-year extension signed last July 1, which is worth $2.4 million annually. A team source has confirmed to The Inquirer that the Flyers will retain 50% of Hathaway’s salary, leaving a cap charge of $1.2 million on the books for 2026-27.

With the move, the Flyers have two of three salary retention spots available for next season. The Flyers still have a projected $33.6 million in cap space with which to extend restricted free agents Jamie Drysdale and Trevor Zegras, and to make any new additions to the roster.

The trade is the latest tweak to the roster. Last week, they acquired defenseman Simon Benoît and goalie Joseph Woll from the Toronto Maple Leafs for goalie Sam Ersson, defenseman Emil Andrae, and a third-round 2026 draft pick.

Jackie Spiegel contributed to this article.

BUFFALO, N.Y. — The excitement on the other end of the phone from Nathan Quinn was unmistakable.

But this conversation, for the most part, wasn’t focused on Quinn, the Flyers’ sixth-rounder in 2025, who had a tremendous season for Québec of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. It was about his linemate, road-trip roommate, and buddy Maddox Dagenais, who is on the verge of being drafted into the NHL.

What if it were the Flyers snagging Dagenais at No. 21?

“Oh, it’ll be awesome,” Quinn said emphatically. “Just being at the [development] camp a couple of days after together, it’s another step to your life, too. If you want to make it to the pro level, being with someone that you know, you may be more comfortable [with], and of course, one of my best friends, so it would be an incredible thing.”

Ready to Start

Dagenais moved around a lot as a kid. It’s what happens when your dad is chasing his own hockey dreams. Pierre Dagenais was drafted twice by the New Jersey Devils, in 1996 and then two years later. The first time it was in the second round, 47th overall, and yes, Maddox and his dad have a little competition going to see which Dagenais is selected higher.

Pierre played 142 games in the NHL, mostly for the Montreal Canadiens, while also spending time in the American Hockey League and in Europe. The shuffling around didn’t stop the younger Dagenais from working on his own game.

“Every house had a net to shoot on,” he told The Inquirer, recalling some were in the basement, some in the garage, and others were outside, like the one he has today.

“Every night, just a couple of 100 pucks, even a thousand pucks … become natural with me to just go out there and shoot pucks with my dad or myself.”

And that work paid off as his shot is considered his biggest strength, with draft analysts like FloHockey draft and prospect analyst Chris Peters liking his release, and The Athletic’s senior NHL prospects writer Corey Pronman calling it one of the better shots in the draft.

Following a tough first season in the QMJHL as a 16-year-old, where he potted only 12 goals in 43 games, Dagenais stayed in Quebec City that summer to train. The potential was always there, but he learned that he needed to compete.

And at the end of this past season, Dagenais had notched 30 goals, making him one of 22 players out of the 521 to skate in at least one game in the QMJHL to hit the mark, while chipping in 32 assists across 62 games. He added another three goals and six points in 11 playoff games.

“He probably has the best shot I’ve ever seen, to be honest with you,” said Quinn, who finished with 73 points in 58 games. “When you give him the puck in the slot, or on his one-timers, it’s a goal almost every time. So it’s fun to play with a guy that can create space, but also put the puck in the back of the net.”

When he was drafted with the No. 1 pick into the “Q” by the Remparts in 2024 — the Dagenais’ are the first father-son duo to go first overall — he was a center. He is also listed as a center by Central Scouting, and did win 51.3% of the 545 faceoffs he took this past season.

However, the left-handed Dagenais actually spent the majority of the time as Quinn’s right winger. For one thing, Flyers general manager Danny Brière will like the versatility as Dagenais is being projected to play on the wing in the NHL.

So how did this happen? As the Remparts’ general manager explained it, centers look to pass the puck, and wingers look to shoot. He feels Dagenais is the latter, having put the fourth-most shots on goal in the league with his shoot-first mentality. And this GM knows a thing or two about scoring goals himself: Simon Gagné scored the 10th-most in Flyers history (264).

“[Whichever] team is going to pick him, he’s going to score goals for them. … The sky is really high for Maddox. … He’s a type of player that I’m sure the fans will love to have on their team, and I’m sure [the Flyers] organization as well,” Gagné told The Inquirer during a recent phone interview.

“When you look at your player like that, to where the ceiling is at, and for Maddox, I think he’s just starting … but the ceiling is really high for him. And he’s a kid that loves to come to the rink, loves to want to learn, and wants to get better. He’s a geek for that, so that’s always a good thing to see that from a player.”

‘Ring the bells’

When Drew Bannister first saw the 6-foot-3¾, 198-pound Dagenais on video, he wasn’t too sure of his game. The former NHL player and coach, who was figuring out his roster for Canada’s U18 team, thought he was being opportunistic and hung back a little behind the play.

Dagenais learned what he needed to do to gain Bannister’s trust. He changed his game and was one of the players who surprised the coach by the end of the U18 World Championship this past spring. Although he only scored once in five games, it wasn’t for lack of opportunity. “Just didn’t have any puck luck,” Bannister said.

Known to use his size and physicality to create space, he brought his reverse hits to the international stage with one scout telling Daily Faceoff after a big-time hit during the U18 tournament, “It’s kind of his thing. He’s terrifying.”

“Oh, it’s impressive,” exclaimed Quinn when asked about the reverse hits Dagenais can lay. “I remember one time in Moncton, I think the guy was like maybe 6-6 or 6-7 and like 230 and [he hit him] like the guy was like 140 and like 5-7.”

The two players, who play video games like Fortnite together and are always talking strategy, plays, and small details, usually stay on the ice after practice to work on things, but rarely is it the reverse hit; Dagenais said he is “not trying to hurt my teammates.”

Although it is a good tool to have in the toolbox as the reverse hit creates time and space on the ice for himself and his teammates, usually because the guy he hit fell, and now the Remparts have a five-on-four advantage for a few seconds at least.

“He’s a big kid. He’s starting to use his physique at his advantage now. … That reverse hit, that some Flyers fans remember with Peter Forsberg doing it, Maddox started to do that a couple times last year, and it kind of reminded me of … Peter Forsberg when I played with him,” Gagné said.

Dagenais knows he is a big body, and he focuses on using it to be physical and to create offense. He considers his comparables to be Buffalo Sabres forward Tage Thompson and Canadiens forward Juraj Slafkovský. He is a solid puck protector and can use his skating to his advantage.

However, while there are some small concerns about his attention to detail, one major issue that consistently pops up in conversations is that while he is physical and competitive, it’s only when he wants to be.

It’s something that will have to be buttoned up as his career progresses, because while there are some concerns about how impactful he will be, the consensus is that he will be an NHLer.

Now the only question is, where will Dagenais be drafted? Will he go earlier than the consensus expects, as Peters thinks? Will it be by the Flyers, who have kept tabs on the right winger this season? And if that does happen, who will be more excited, Quinn or Dagenais?

“He’s texting me every day about it,” Dagenais said at the combine in early June. “It would be nice if I were drafted with him.”

It’s that time of year.

The next generation of NHL stars will find out their destinations on Friday and Saturday at the 2026 NHL draft as teams work to fill the cupboards and holes in their depth charts.

As of Wednesday, the Flyers have four picks — one in each of the first, second, sixth and seventh rounds. The biggest question: Who will they grab at No. 21 in Friday’s first round?

Ahead of the draft, FloHockey draft and prospect analyst Chris Peters joined The Inquirer on the latest episode of Flyers Gameday Central to dissect the draft class, which players fit the Flyers, and what could happen in the next few days.

You can watch the full Flyers Gameday Central episode with Chris Peters below.

Q: Is there anything we’ve learned from the past couple of drafts with the Flyers that could suggest the route they’re going to go [at pick no. 21]?

A: Teams definitely have types, they have guys they like, they have the kinds of players they go after. I think when you’re drafting at 21 in the first round, you’ve got to be really diligent about your list and really stick to it, I feel like, because you’re just hoping to get an NHL player. … I think there’s a ton of intrigue about really from [picks in] the teens on down, where things can go, and at that point you’re going to see a wide variance in ranges of players on lists. And so you’re just trying to see whoever the Flyers have as the best pick, they might be really high on somebody else’s list, or might not be on somebody else’s list at all.

Q: Is there anyone in this draft class who fits the Flyers system at center?

A: I think it would be hard to pinpoint that. I do think that you look at guys that are centers that could potentially be wings, like Maddox Dagenais, a guy who’s all over the map in terms of draft ranges. He could be gone in the early teens, he could be gone in the mid-20s, but he is a center naturally, plays a lot on the wing though, and so I think a lot of people are thinking that he is more of a winger. … Jack Hextall, he’s a good two-way guy, high-energy player, had a really good strong season in the USHL this year. … A guy to really keep a close eye on, probably in that range, I think he could be available, there is Ilia Morozov, who plays at Miami [Ohio}. He’s a 6-foot-4 center; obviously the Flyers have not been afraid to draft some Russians, and he’s been a Russian who’s played in North America for at least three years and he’s been playing at a pretty high level, and had a great season in Miami. And the upside on him is just tremendous. So I could easily see a player with that size, skill combo being a really good fit for the Flyers.

Q: Maksim Sokolovskii is a name I heard in Buffalo as someone who the Flyers have a lot of interest in. There’s the London [of the OHL] connection, and he’s a giant at over 6-7. Is he someone they could reach on at 21 or is that too high?

A: They could, I wouldn’t. I think that would be Sam Morin part two. So I wouldn’t do that. I like [Sokolovskii] a lot, and I watched him in the playoffs a lot, and that’s where I think a lot of this late buzz is coming from, is that he was a really good shutdown guy for London in the postseason. And he was playing a physical mean brand of hockey, the kind of hockey that helps you win in the playoffs. I think that there is so little offense there … he’s too one dimensional defensively. The skating, it isn’t good enough for me to say, like it’s good for his size but like it’s not good enough, I don’t think. So, he has boom-bust potential too, because he’s got this massive frame, he has incredible reach. I think he thinks the game decently well, like I think he thinks the game defensively pretty solidly. I think he’s got good enough mobility defensively. And so I think he’s going to play [in the NHL]. The question is where does he go?

Q: Who’s the one player people aren’t talking enough about?

A: I would say people probably aren’t talking enough about Tommy Bleyl. It’s coming up more now, but the season that he had was historic. … And you talk to teams like, “Hey, I didn’t have him on my radar as a guy for us,” and there were some guys like, “Yeah, I had him as a pick, but no way was he a first.” And his postseason put him right in the mix as a first [round pick], and potentially even a mid-first round pick, and that’s a pretty significant jump from where he was at the start of this season. So, he’s a guy that I think is incredibly fascinating. The skating ability is about as good as anybody’s. I just think there’s a lot to unlock with that player yet, and I’m excited to see who takes him.

Q: The player you enjoyed watching the most this year?

A: One of the players I had the most fun watching this year was probably Nikita Klepov, even in the games where he was a little bit frustrating and a little bit out of it. I just think that there’s a real skill level to him. Another guy that just frustrates the heck out of scouts that I enjoyed watching was Egor Shilov from Victoriaville. Just the patience that kid has on the puck is really out of this world. The way he extends plays and finds the right read. He’s not quite competitive enough for guys, and I think that’s going to potentially knock him out of the first round. I did list him in the second round myself, but he’s a really intriguing player, too. I think the hockey sense is high-end in terms of the offensive game.

Q: Who is the best defensive defenseman?

A: William Håkansson is pretty darn good [at] defending. I think he’s a stopper. Sokolovskii is a stopper. … But like I look at Håkansson, I think he’s probably one of the most mature overall defenders. And then also at the end of that top 10, top 11, Malte Gustafsson is another guy where I just think the defending is outstanding. He’s such a complete player, and I’m really impressed by him more and more.

Q: The Flyers love high-compete and great motors. Who do you think is in that range of high compete, great motor kind of guy?

A: Yeah, I think Alexander Command is probably No. 1. Viggo Björck is up there too, but I think Alexander Command has the physicality, the doggedness in pursuit of the puck. Just the absolute annoyingness of just getting under your skin, and I think that there’s a lot to like about that player. The comp that I had for him was Brayden Schenn and I think he probably has a higher motor, even there. Brayden Schenn was physical and mean, and he could score, and that’s what I think Command can do, too.