Philadelphia local news, sports, jobs, cars, homes

Tag: Jamie Drysdale

  • NHL free agency news: Flyers extend Dan Vladař and Tyson Foerster, add depth forwards; big names on the move

    NHL free agency news: Flyers extend Dan Vladař and Tyson Foerster, add depth forwards; big names on the move

    • What you should know
    • NHL free agency officially opened at noon on Wednesday, meaning the Flyers could begin signing free agents from other teams. Here’s everything you need to know.
    • The Flyers quickly inked goalie Dan Vladař to a longterm extension, worth $27.5 million over five years.
    • Tyson Foerster signed a massive eight-year extension with the Flyers at an average annual value of $7.1 million.
    • They also agreed to a two-year deal with Noel Acciari, who is expected to be their fourth-line center.
    • Before those deals, the Flyers had about $32.7 million in cap space, a number that will drop to around $17 million if the team re-signs Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale as expected.
    • Defenseman John Carlson and center Dylan Larkin remain among the list of top trade targets for the Flyers.

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 5:47pm

    Zach Werenski staying in Columbus despite trade speculation

    The Flyers won’t be landing Blue Jackets defenseman Zach Werenski.

    After weeks of speculation and a vetoed trade to Dallas, Zach Werenski is staying in Columbus after all.

    The Blue Jackets and Werenski released statements Wednesday saying that Werenski wants to stay in Columbus and maintains his desire to win there. The statement including the following:

    “The past two seasons have been very challenging ones, but also ones of growth for our team. Our goals from ownership on down and Zach’s goals are the same … to win a Stanley Cup. Our city and our fans deserve nothing less and we are all on the same page working towards that end. Zach has been a very important part of this organization and our community for a long time, and we couldn’t be happier that he will continue to be moving forward.”

    Werenski, who won the Norris Trophy last season as the league’s best defenseman, echoed similar sentiments.

    “[President of hockey operations Don Waddell] and I have had very open and honest dialogue since the season ended” his statement said. “Ideally, this wouldn’t have become such a public thing but that is the world we live in now and everything got blown out of proportion in my opinion. I want to win and I want to do that in Columbus.

    “As I’ve thought about things and discussed everything with my wife and family, we want to be in Columbus. It has been my home for the past 10 years and I have always been proud to be a Blue Jacket. We have the best fans in the NHL. I love my teammates and coaches and I’m looking forward to doing everything I can to get us back in the playoffs to compete for a Stanley Cup. Don and I are completely aligned on that and are excited about what’s to come with our team.”

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 5:24pm

    Senators sign two more Phantoms players

    After signing former Flyers goalie Sam Ersson earlier on Wednesday, the Ottawa Senators have signed two former Flyers farmhands in defenseman Christian Kyrou and center Philip Tomasino.

    Kyrou and Tomasino were both in-season additions for the Phantoms and both put up strong numbers in the AHL. The Flyers did not qualify either player by Monday’s deadline.

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 4:59pm

    Flyers add more AHL depth with Jack Studnicka and Cam Dineen

    In addition to Zach Aston-Reese and Danila Klimovich, the Flyers announced they have signed AHLers Jack Studnicka and Cam Dineen as they look to fill out their roster in Lehigh Valley.

    Studnicka, 27, has bounced back and forth between the NHL and AHL with Boston, Vancouver, San Jose, and last year in Florida. He had 30 points for the Charlotte Checkers last year in 41 games and was held pointless in 19 games with the Panthers. The forward has just 16 points in 126 NHL games but has been a productive American leaguer throughout his career.

    The last name Dineen may ring a bell in Philly, but Cam is not related to former Flyers captain Kevin Dineen or Kevin’s father, and former Flyers coach, Bill Dineen. The younger Dineen is 28-year-old defenseman and a native of Toms River, N.J. A former third-round pick, he has played almost 400 games in the AHL.

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 4:09pm

    Flyers make Grundström deal official

    Source: Flyers to bring back forward Carl Grundström on a one-year deal

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 4:06pm

    Reports: Darnell Nurse headed to San Jose

    After weeks of twists and turns, the Darnell Nurse saga has come to a conclusion that will not see him follow in his uncle Donovan McNabb’s footsteps in Philly.

    Nurse, who beat the Oilers to the punch by demanding a trade this summer, is headed to San Jose in a trade that will see defensive defenseman Shakir Mukhamadullin go the other way. In the end, the Oilers, somewhat miraculously, did not have to retain any of Nurse’s $9.25 million salary.

    The Inquirer reported a few weeks back that there was mutual interest between Nurse and the Flyers, but only if the Oilers retained some of Nurse’s salary. In the end, the Oilers found a dance party and the Flyers rightfully walked away from the negotiating table for the 31-year-old blueliner.

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 3:56pm

    Former Flyer Andrei Kuzmenko signs with Pens

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 3:33pm

    Darnell Nurse could expand his trade list

    Edmonton Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse (left) already had the Flyers on his shortlist.

    The Flyers have been confirmed as one of three teams rugged defenseman Darnell Nurse would be willing to accept a trade to. But that list could soon grow. With Edmonton yet to find a deal, Sportsnet reports that Nurse could add teams to his list, with San Jose mentioned by Elliotte Friedman.

    One potential hang-up with Nurse is salary retention, as the Flyers likely would want Edmonton to pay at least 25-30% of Nurse’s $9.25 million cap hit. That would bring Nurse down to a much more manageable $6.5-7 million player, and make him a more attractive proposition as a second-pair guy. The Flyers also could be waiting things out on the blue line, as they are reportedly still in the mix for Zach Werenski and John Carlsson, and also have a decision to make with Rasmus Ristolainen.

    Nurse, 31, is a left-shot who brings toughness and shot suppression to a team’s back end. He also happens to be the nephew of former Eagles QB Donovan McNabb.

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 3:23pm

    Flyers add more depth with forward Zach Aston-Reese

    The Flyers continued to add organizational depth Wednesday with the signing of NHL veteran Zach Aston-Reese. Aston-Reese’s deal is a two-year one-way/two-way deal, which will see the NHL vet make $850,000 this season.

    Best known for his time with the Penguins, the veteran forward has compiled 49 goals and 102 points in 416 career NHL games. The 31-year-old split last season between the Columbus Blue Jackets and their AHL team in Cleveland, tallying five points in 27 NHL games and another 16 points in 27 AHL contests. Aston-Reese, who can play center or wing. will be expected to compete for an NHL spot in training camp, but seems more likely to be ticketed for an AHL job.

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 3:19pm

    Blackhawks give Bowen Byram highest AAV for a defenseman ever

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 2:37pm

    Toronto reportedly lands Sergei Bobrovsky

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 2:35pm

    Former Flyer Scott Laughton reportedly returning to Kings

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 2:33pm

    Phantoms’ point leader Lane Pederson heads to L.A.

    Flyers farmhand Lane Pederson has found a new home in Los Angeles.

    Pederson, who had 23 goals and 48 points to lead the Lehigh Valley Phantoms last season, got into five games with the Flyers last season. The first year of Pederson’s deal has a two-way option, but it converts to a one-way in Year 2.

    // Pinned

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 2:23pm

    Flyers lock down Tyson Foerster with eight-year extension

    Flyers right wing Tyson Foerster isn’t going anywhere for a long time.

    It’s been a rollercoaster start to his career, but Tyson Foerster’s feet are firmly planted in Philly.

    On Wednesday, the 24-year-old winger inked an eight-year extension with an average annual value of $7.1 million. According to league sources, it has limited trade protection in Years 3-8, but it does not feature a no-move clause. The contract will start after next season, when Foerster was scheduled to become a restricted free agent.

    “We’re excited to have Tyson be a key part of our long-term future,” general manager Danny Brière said in the team’s press release. “He has established himself as an important piece of the foundation we’re building here. Since coming up through our system, he’s continued to improve and develop every step of the way into a consistent offensive contributor while also being a trusted and reliable 200-foot player.

    “We have a great deal of confidence in him and believe he’ll play a significant role as we continue building toward a successful team for years to come.”

    The Flyers now have Foerster, Travis Konecny, Travis Sanheim, Owen Tippett, Sean Couturier, Cam York, and Christian Dvorak inked to long-term deals. Goalie Dan Vladař signed a five-year extension that will begin after next season on Wednesday, and restricted free agents Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale are expected to be locked down in the coming days.

    Flyers sign winger Tyson Foerster to massive eight-year extension

    — Jackie Spiegel

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 2:04pm

    Klimovich signing one-year, two-way deal

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 1:54pm

    Former Flyer Luke Schenn going back to Toronto

    Former Flyer Luke Schenn is on the move again, as the rugged defenseman is signing with the Vancouver Canucks.

    Schenn, 36, played in Philadelphia from 2012-16. The well-traveled defenseman, who has played for 10 NHL teams, will return to Vancouver for the second time.

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 1:38pm

    Stuart Skinner heading to Winnipeg

    The Winnipeg Jets have signed former Edmonton Oilers and Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Stuart Skinner to a two-year contract.

    The move could spell the end for four-time Vezina Trophy winner and U.S. Olympic hero Connor Hellebuyck in Winnipeg. Rumors have been swirling that Hellebuyck wants out and that Buffalo and Carolina could be potential landing spots.

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 1:32pm

    Flyers reportedly adding winger Danila Klimovich

    The Fourth Period reports the Flyers are signing winger Danila Klimovich.

    Klimovich, 23, is probably an organizational depth move, as he seems likely to begin the season the Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League. The former second-round pick has spent the past five seasons in the Vancouver Canucks organization, playing with AHL affiliate, Abbotsford.

    The Belarusian forward had 18 goals and 34 points last season in the AHL, a year after he scored 25 times and helped Abbotsford win the Calder Cup. Klimovich’s time in Vancouver would have overlapped with Flyers coach Rick Tocchet and assistant Yogi Svejkovský.

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 1:23pm

    Report: Flyers to sign center Noel Acciari

    Flyers center Trevor Zegras and Penguins center Noel Acciari tangle during a game in October.

    The Flyers look to have found their new fourth-line center, as Sportsnet reports they have agreed to a two-year contract with Noel Acciari that carries a $2.8 million cap hit.

    Acciari, 34, had 13 goals, 25 points, and an impressive plus-14 rating in 67 games this season for the Pittsburgh Penguins. He had one assist in six playoff games against the Flyers, winning 61% of his faceoffs. Known for his face-off ability, nastiness, and penalty killing, Acciari will likely take the spot vacated by Luke Glendening.

    In 585 career games with the Boston Bruins, Florida Panthers, St. Louis Blues, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Penguins, Acciari has 81 goals and 144 points.

    He was a teammate of Owen Tippett’s in Florida and worked with Todd Reirden in Pittsburgh for one season

    He was a member of the Bruins’ 2019 Stanley Cup Final team, chipping in with four points in 19 games.

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 1:08pm

    Noah Juulsen heads to Colorado

    Defenseman Noah Juulsen, who along with Emil Andrae spent most of last season swapping in and out on the third pair, is headed to Colorado. Jackie Spiegel previously reported that he wouldn’t return to the Flyers, but it appears he’s found a landing spot.

    — Matt Mullin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 1:02pm

    Two potential Flyers targets go off the board

    Fourth-line tough guy Jeffrey Viel looks to be heading to Tampa Bay, reports Dave Pagnotta of the Fourth Period.

    He was a name The Inquirer considered as a Garnet Hathaway replacement.

    — Gustav Elvin

    Ross Johnston, another depth forward, also inked a deal elsewhere Wednesday, signing a three-year contract with the Blues.

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 12:42pm

    Reports: Flyers in the mix for Hurricanes’ John Carlson

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 12:41pm

    Sam Ersson inks new deal

    Former Flyers goalie Sam Ersson signed with Ottawa Wednesday.

    Former Flyers goalie Sam Ersson, who was traded twice this offseason, can finally unpack his bags.

    Ersson has signed a two-year, $2.2 million contract with the Ottawa Senators, according to Sportsnet. The 26-year-old is expected to back up fellow Swede Linus Ullmark in Ottawa. The Flyers traded Ersson last month alongside Emil Andrae to Toronto in a deal to acquire Joseph Woll and Simon Benoit. The restricted free agent’s negotiating rights were then traded to Ottawa on June 26 for a fifth-round pick.

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 12:38pm

    A look at what else is happening around the NHL

    The New Jersey Devils re-signed center Nico Hischier to a huge five-year deal.

    In addition to long-term deals for Dan Vladař and Tyson Foerster, contracts and extensions are rolling in across the league. Here’s a look at what has happened so far:

    • Former Flyers defenseman Radko Gudas is reportedly signing a six-year contract with the Florida Panthers with an average annual value of $1.5 million. Gudas, whose rights were acquired from Anaheim this week, is the latest veteran Panther to receive one of those stretched out contracts.
    • The Panthers also have locked up middle-six winger Eetu Luostarinen to an eight-year, $40 million extension ($5 million AAV).
    • Buffalo has reportedly signed newly-acquired smooth-skating defenseman Olen Zellweger to a three-year, $9 million deal ($3 million AAV). The restricted free agent was someone we mentioned as a potential fit for the Flyers entering the summer.
    • Montreal locks up budding superstar Ivan Demidov to an eight-year contract with an AAV of $9.125 million.
    • New Jersey has locked in captain Nico Hischier to a massive five-year contract. The Swiss international, who was the No. 1 pick in the 2017 Nolan Patrick draft, is one of the league’s top defensive forwards and now will make $11.7 million-a-year beginning in the 2027-27 season.
    • Los Angeles has been busy as they have reportedly agreed to deals with veteran forwards Erik Haula (two-year, $3.6 million) and Mats Zuccarello (one-year, $1 million).

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 12:08pm

    Flyers, Dan Vladař agree to contract extension

    Flyers goaltender Dan Vladar parlayed his career best season into a longterm deal.

    Last July 1, the Flyers surprised many by signing Dan Vladař to a two-year, $6.7 million contract. Vladař then went out and surprised many with his play.

    One year later, Vladař is sticking around for the foreseeable future. According to a league source, he is signing a five-year, $27.5 million contract extension with an annual average value of $5.5 million. The contract comes with a no-trade clause for the first two years, followed by a no-movement clause for the remaining three years, with it dwindling from 15 teams to five. Vladař’s contract won’t kick in until the 2027-28 season and will take him through his age 34 season.

    The writing had been on the wall for some time that this was happening. Asked about the rumors of an extension, Vladař joked at his end-of-season availability that, while he would accept the phone call for the extension, “If you can ask the same question to Danny Brière, I’m going to be watching. So we’ll see what he says.”

    Two days later, the general manager was quick to respond, saying, “I heard his answer. Maybe we wait, and I’ll talk to you guys [off camera] about that.” The extension could not be signed until July 1.

    Source: Flyers sign goalie Dan Vladař to a five-year, $27.5 million extension

    — Jackie Spiegel

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 11:57am

    What to expect from Flyers on Day 1

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 11:53am

    A Claude Giroux reunion in Philly?

    Ottawa Senators right winger Claude Giroux (center), defenseman Thomas Chabot (right), and right wing Drake Batherson (left) celebrate a goal.

    With Mavrik Bourque off the board, could the Flyers pivot to a familiar face?

    Pierre LeBrun reports that the Flyers have interest in bringing back former captain Claude Giroux.

    Giroux, 38, has played the last four seasons for the hometown Ottawa Senators. The Flyers traded Giroux in March of 2022 for a package that included Owen Tippett and a first-round pick.

    Giroux, who ranks second in career games (1,000) and points (900) in Flyers history, is still an effective top-six player. Last season, he had 14 goals and 49 points, including 13 points on the power play. While he’s mostly played wing in Ottawa, he’s also still one of the league’s top face-off men (63% last season on almost 800 draws). He also has a strong personal connection to Philadelphia and general manager Danny Brière.

    Stay tuned …

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 10:55am

    Report: Mavrik Bourque heading to Nashville

    The Flyers were reportedly in the mix for Dallas Stars forward Mavrik Bourque but ultimately lost out to the Nashville Predators. The Preds paid a modest price of second- and third-round picks for the 24-year-old Bourque, who had 20 goals last season. They also took on the final year of defenseman Ilya Lyubuskin’s deal in the trade, which was reportedly a deal-breaker for the Flyers. The Preds will now need to extend Bourque who is a restricted free agent.

    For a player of Bourque’s age and upside, one year of eating $3.25 million owed to Lyubushkin doesn’t seem like the end of the world. We’ll see where the Flyers go from here in search of a center.

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 9:47am

    Mavrik Bourque trade rumors heating up

    Stars forward Mavrik Bourque could be on the move as Dallas looks to clear cap space.

    Dallas’ Mavrik Bourque has been viewed by many around the league as a prime offer-sheet target given Dallas is big-game hunting and has limited cap flexibility.

    The threat of that could also lead to a trade, something we suggested in our recent Flyers target list. It sounds like that could be the case, as the Fourth Period is reporting there is some traction on a Bourque trade.

    Bourque, who has played mostly wing in the NHL but is a natural center, is coming off a 20-goal season and is a restricted free agent. At 24, and with runway to grow, we wouldn’t be surprised to see the Flyers get involved here.

    12 players the Flyers could target to upgrade their roster via trade, free agency, or an offer sheet

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 9:40am

    Are the Flyers in on Zach Werenski?

    Columbus Blue Jackets’ Zach Werenski (right) is one of the big fish. Can Danny Brière reel him in?

    Amid a wild offseason marked by trade demands and the dawning of the player empowerment era in the NHL, Norris Trophy-winner Zach Werenski is viewed by many as the ultimate prize.

    You can count the Flyers among that group, as according to multiple reports, Danny Brière and Co. are serious about getting involved in the sweepstakes for Columbus’ wantaway defenseman. It’s hard to blame them, as Werenski has averaged 23 goals and 82 points over the past two seasons, ranking in the top three among defensemen in both categories.

    The big questions with Werenski are would he entertain a move to Philly and whether the Flyers could pull off a deal without including Porter Martone or Matvei Michkov? The first question seems to be the sticking point, as Werenski, who has a no-move clause, turned down a move to Dallas on Tuesday and seems to be zeroing in on a few specific Eastern Conference destinations, including Tampa Bay and Toronto.

    Werenski’s landing spot, even if it isn’t Philadelphia, could have a major impact on the Flyers. The gold medalist ending up in Tampa Bay would eliminate another landing spot for top free-agent defenseman John Carlson and potential increase the Flyers’ chances there. Carolina currently has Carlson’s negotiating rights, but after 12 p.m., the 36-year-old power-play quarterback is free to negotiate with other teams.

    — Gustav Elvin

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 8:43am

    Longterm Dan Vladař extension expected once free agency opens

    Flyers goaltender Dan Vladar had a career year last season.

    All signs are pointing to Dan Vladař signing a five-year extension with an AAV of $5.5 million once deals can officially be announced at noon.

    The Czech goalie, who signed a two-year, $6.7 million deal with the Flyers last summer, is coming off a season where he went 29-14-7, with a 2.42 goals-against average and .906 save percentage. It was the lowest GAA of his career and tied his career-best save percentage, although he played in 22 more games than in any prior season.

    He was even better in the postseason with a 2.18 GAA, .922 save percentage, and two shutouts after not posting one in the regular season.

    — Jackie Spiegel

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 8:36am

    These are the Flyers’ top options via free agency or trade

    Dallas Stars center Mavrik Bourque could be an offer sheet option for Philly.

    John Carlson, on a big-money, short-term deal, would make a lot of sense for the Flyers to help with the power play. But do the Flyers make sense for him? He’ll turn 37 during the season, and time is ticking on his chances of winning another Stanley Cup.

    Rumors are percolating that the Flyers could add Noel Acciari to the roster. A 5-foot-11 center who just played against the Flyers in the playoffs with the Penguins — he had one assist in the six games — the Rhode Island native would slot onto the fourth line and be a key piece in the faceoff dot as a coveted right-shot, as well as on the penalty kill. Fellow bottom-six center Teddy Blueger is also another name to keep an eye on, as he played for coach Rick Tocchet in Vancouver.

    What about offer sheets/trade targets?

    As previously mentioned, the Flyers and Edmonton Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse have a mutual interest in one another, with the Flyers, alongside Pittsburgh and Boston, on his short list of teams. He previously requested a trade and would need to waive his no-movement clause to approve any trade destination.

    The Flyers are obviously interested in Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Zach Werenski from the Columbus Blue Jackets and All-Star center Dylan Larkin of the Detroit Red Wings. Like Nurse, they would need to approve any trade. And they surely wouldn’t mind adding one of Shane Pinto or Dylan Cozens, two young centers from the Ottawa Senators, to the mix if either was made available via trade.

    Now, who doesn’t love an offer sheet? Would the Flyers be willing to partake in the one thing that gets everyone going? To be determined, but if they do, center Mavrik Bourque, 24, might be an attainable target given Dallas’ cap crunch.

    12 players the Flyers could target to upgrade their roster via trade, free agency, or an offer sheet

    — Jackie Spiegel

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 8:28am

    How much salary cap space do the Flyers have?

    Philadelphia Flyers general manager Danny Briere should have some money to spend, even after he re-signs Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale.

    According to Puckpedia, as of Wednesday, the Flyers have just over $32.68 million of cap space before signing their four restricted free agents. The expectation is that Hunter McDonald will be in the minors to start the year, and Nikita Grebenkin, who was skating on Tuesday at development camp, is working his way back from an injury.

    Not counting Grebenkin’s deal, the expected cap space to sign Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale should come in at an approximate annual average value of $15 million combined. That leaves about $17 million, and then subtract $3-4 million to cover Grebenkin and McDonald. So there is some room left to add pieces to the lineup.

    — Jackie Spiegel

    Flyers free agents include Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale

    Center Trevor Zegras and defenseman Jamie Drysdale are both restricted free agents, and the Flyers have extended qualifying offers to both.

    According to a league source on Tuesday, the Flyers have agreed to sign pending unrestricted free agent forward Carl Grundström to a one-year, $1 million contract. It comes one day after they handed out qualifying offers to four players and released six more to unrestricted free-agent status.

    Here is a breakdown of who the Flyers need to and could re-sign from the system.

    • NHL unrestricted free agents: forwards Rodrigo Ābols and Luke Glendening; defenseman Noah Juulsen
    • NHL restricted free agents: forwards Nikita Grebenkin and Trevor Zegras; defenseman Jamie Drysdale
    • AHL restricted free agents: defenseman Hunter McDonald
    • AHL unrestricted free agents: forwards Karsen Dorwart, Oscar Eklind, Brett Harrison, Boris Katchouk, Lane Pederson, Anthony Richard, Tucker Robertson, and Philip Tomasino; defensemen Adam Ginning, Maxence Guenette, Artem Guryev, and Christian Kyrou

    Dorwart, Harrison, Robertson, Tomasino, Guryev, and Kyrou were not given qualifying offers on Monday. They could all be signed to a new deal or an AHL-only deal to stay with the club. Garrett Wilson is listed as an unrestricted free agent on Puckpedia, but he is signed to an AHL contract for next season.

    A league source has told The Inquirer that Juulsen will not be re-signed.

    — Jackie Spiegel

    // Timestamp 07/01/26 8:22am

  • Flyers qualify Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale, let six other RFAs walk

    Flyers qualify Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale, let six other RFAs walk

    The Flyers were required to submit qualifying offers to their restricted free agents by 5 p.m. on Monday.

    After the deadline, they announced that they did not provide qualifying offers to forwards Philip Tomasino, Brett Harrison, Tucker Robertson, and Karsen Dorwart, and defensemen Artem Guryev and Christian Kyrou. They will now be unrestricted free agents on July 1.

    They gave qualifying offers to forwards Trevor Zegras and Nikita Grebenkin, as well as defensemen Jamie Drysdale and Hunter McDonald. Drysdale, Zegras, and McDonald are eligible for arbitration.

    According to Puckpedia, Zegras’ qualifying offer is $5.75 million. It is the same amount as his expiring three-year contract signed in 2023 with the Anaheim Ducks. Drysdale is due $2.3 million, the same as the three-year deal he inked with Anaheim in 2023. Grebenkin’s is $850,000, and McDonald’s is $897,750.

    In his first season in Philly, Zegras had 26 goals and 67 points — both were career highs — in 81 regular-season games before adding another six points in 10 playoff games. It was his first playoff experience, as it was for Drysdale, who stepped up his game this past season and had a career high in goals (eight) and tied his career high in points (32). He added two goals and four points in 10 playoff games, scoring the first Flyers playoff goal since 2020.

    Grebenkin has not played since late March due to an upper-body injury. “Initially, we thought it was going to be something short, and it just never got better,” Flyers general manager Danny Brière said at his end-of-season press conference. “Now we’re looking at different options for him. So he’s the only one that I would say maybe [he’s not ready for training camp], if it doesn’t improve.” Brière did not have an update when speaking to The Inquirer at the start of June at the NHL scouting combine.

    McDonald made his NHL debut this season, skating in the season finale, and registered the secondary assist on Oliver Bonk’s first NHL goal. A rugged blueliner, he had six assists in 65 games for the Phantoms.

    “Hunter took a big step last year in his development, and that’s why he played that game late in the season,” Brière told The Inquirer in early June. “I think our coaching staff was really impressed [with] how he took a step forward this year. He put in the work and really elevated his game, earned that NHL game at the end, and he was around the team when we played in the playoffs as well.

    “Really exciting to see him have growth to his development. It’s a big summer for him, but we’re excited about him. A big, physical defenseman like that is not easy to find, and we hope he’s going to be one of those guys, eventually. But he’s going to have to beat someone at some point to earn those minutes.”

    Tomasino was acquired this past season in a swap that sent Egor Zamula to the Pittsburgh Penguins. He potted 12 goals and 41 points in 52 regular-season games between the two teams’ AHL affiliates. A first-round selection of Nashville in 2019, he has 218 NHL games under his belt.

    Traded to the Flyers with Jackson Edward for Alexis Gendron and Massimo Rizzo in March, Harrison had two goals and four points in 12 games with Lehigh Valley. Guryev was part of the deal that sent Ryan Ellis’ contract to the San Jose Sharks, and Christian Kyrou was acquired in a one-for-one, with Samu Tuomaala going to the Dallas Stars.

    Dorwart was signed out of Michigan State as a college free agent in March 2025. He skated in five games after inking his entry-level contract, making his NHL debut in Montreal. Last season, he had 10 goals and 24 points in 70 games for the Phantoms.

  • Unlocking Jamie Drysdale’s offensive potential could go a long way toward improving the Flyers’ power play

    Unlocking Jamie Drysdale’s offensive potential could go a long way toward improving the Flyers’ power play

    Jamie Drysdale snapped a 20-game goal drought with his game-winner late in the third period Tuesday against the Washington Capitals.

    The goal was critical to keeping the Flyers competitive in the Metropolitan Division standings, snapping the team’s four-game losing streak and helping build some momentum heading into the Olympic break.

    But it was also important personally for Drysdale, as it marked his first goal since returning from an upper-body injury on Jan. 14, and doubled as a sign of the progress he and the power play have been making in recent games.

    “I think I had my chances, to be honest with you, I just couldn’t put the puck in the net,” Drysdale said. “Guys did a great job of finding me, finding holes, and it was nice to see one go in.”

    Jamie Drysdale’s third period goal helps Flyers beat Capitals and snaps four-game losing streak

    Coach Rick Tocchet has praised Drysdale’s growth as one of the locker room leaders, including an important speech on the bench against Colorado. But the 23-year-old is also quietly having his best season on the ice, as he is on pace for a career high in points in addition to improving his game on the defensive side of the puck.

    According to Natural Stat Trick, the Flyers’ top three performing defensive pairs this season, with more than 30 minutes played, have included Drysdale. Cam York, Nick Seeler, and Travis Sanheim have all generated more expected goals with Drysdale than without.

    “Such a good skater, really high IQ,” York said of what makes Drysdale easy to play with. “He can be a one-man breakout when he wants to. Being close friends helps, too, because I feel like the communication is really good.”

    The last piece for Drysdale to unlock is the power play. The Flyers have converted on 16.3% of their power play opportunities, good for 26th in the league, but they’ve slowly improved in recent weeks, scoring six power play goals over their last seven games.

    Over that last stretch of games, Drysdale has anchored the top power-play unit of Trevor Zegras, Christian Dvorak, Bobby Brink, and Travis Konecny, which Tocchet first pivoted to in earnest against Vegas on Jan. 19. In 20 minutes, 45 seconds of ice time on the power play, that unit has scored four goals, including a goal in each of the last two games.

    Flyers defenseman Jamie Drysdale (9) scored the game-winner with just over five minutes left against the Washington Capitals.

    Drysdale’s shot from the point on Tuesday was an example of exactly what Tocchet wants to see the defenseman do on the power play: take point shots that are low enough for a deflection opportunity.

    “Teams will pre-scout you, and we’re trying to explain to the players that on the pre-scout, if you’re overpassing, they won’t respect the middle shot,” Tocchet said. “That’s the hardest thing to defend is a middle shot when you’re out of position. If we can get those types of goals and build on it and get some guys confident with that shot, you can get those types of goals.”

    Flyers GM Danny Brière addresses Rick Tocchet’s recent comments on Matvei Michkov: ‘They have a good relationship.’

    Just five of Drysdale’s 22 points this season have come on the power play, including three in the last seven games. Since his draft year in 2020, Drysdale, due to his skating and playmaking ability, has possessed the potential to be a strong offensive defenseman.

    If he can continue to improve the Flyers’ power play, he could surge far past his career high of 32 points, set in 2021-22.

    “It’s not easy to get pucks through,” Drysdale said. “Obviously, it’s guys’ jobs to get in front of them, but at the same time, it’s your job to get them through and try and create. It’s a little give-and-take, and you’re constantly working and building and trying to create more.”

    Breakaways

    Konecny did not skate Wednesday for maintenance reasons. … Emil Andrae has been a scratch the last five games and could sit again on Thursday against Ottawa (7 p.m., NBCSP), Tocchet said. … The Rangers traded All-Star winger Artemi Panarin to the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday for a third-round pick and prospect Liam Greentree.

  • Flyers takeaways: Matvei Michkov’s increased minutes, Dan Vladař’s leadership and a rare power-play goal

    Flyers takeaways: Matvei Michkov’s increased minutes, Dan Vladař’s leadership and a rare power-play goal

    The Flyers snapped a four-game losing streak with a 4-2 win against the Washington Capitals.

    It was a huge game against a team above them in the standings, but also on the outside of the Stanley Cup Playoff picture. The win moved the Flyers within seven points of the Metropolitan Division’s third spot, currently held by the New York Islanders, and the Boston Bruins, who are sitting in eighth in the Eastern Conference.

    The Orange and Black had more energy, held off a surge by the Capitals in the third, and were able to snag the all-important two points.

    Here are three things to know from the win that saw the Flyers score four goals for just the second time since beating the Anaheim Ducks on Jan. 6.

    Matvei Michkov played almost 16 minutes

    Hitting the ice just minutes after general manager Danny Brière spoke about the latest Michkov-Rick Tocchet discourse, the Russian winger played 15 minutes, 54 seconds across 21 shifts. It was the highest total since he played a little over 16 minutes against the New York Islanders on Jan. 26 and his 12th-most minutes this season.

    Michkov averaged 45-second shifts after he averaged 34 on Saturday against the Los Angeles Kings, when he played a controversial 10:21. Was it a point of focus to have him take longer shifts?

    “Yeah, a little bit,” coach Rick Tocchet said. “We talked yesterday, too, a little bit about if you feel like staying, get out there. Obviously, if you’re winded, get off. But, I thought he was moving.”

    Michkov played well at times. He set up Bobby Brink for a chance late in the third and was a key contributor to Owen Tippett’s goal that opened the scoring just under six minutes into the game, marking the 19th time in 55 games that the Flyers scored first — and their 11th win.

    On the goal, Trevor Zegras gained the zone and dished to Michkov, who carried the puck around the net. He took it around and up the right boards before threading the needle through two Capitals to Travis Sanheim at the left point. The defenseman then threaded the needle himself to Tippett in the right circle before the forward went across the crease and scored on the backhand.

    “We knew we would have a little bit of room coming out of the corners there,” Tippett said. “I think that was a great pass to find Sanny, and Sanny made a great play to kind of calm it down and pass it right back to me.”

    Dan Vladař was good again

    In hindsight — and after taking a deep breath from a busy night — Dan Vladař should have gotten one of the three stars of the game from this reporter.

    The Czech goalie stopped 26 of 28 shots to win his 17th game of the season. He raised his save percentage to .904 and dropped his goal-against average to the 10th-best in the NHL (2.49) among goalies who have played at least 20 games.

    Flyers goalie Dan Vladar (left) helped lift Owen Tippett and the Flyers to a much-needed win.

    He allowed two goals — one a short-handed goal by Aliaksei Protas and the other a rebound goal by Anthony Beauvillier, who was left all alone in front. But while the team was facing some adversity, Vladař was pumping them up, too.

    “He’s a leader,” said Tocchet, adding that while Vladař doesn’t wear a letter — goalies aren’t allowed — for him, he has one.

    “I forget when he came by our bench [but] he said, ‘Guys, why are you guys holding your head down? Let’s go here.’ And I love that. It’s good to hear that. He’s our goalie, and [has] a lot of character. He’s been like that all year.”

    Vladař was solid in net. In the first period, he made a save with 15:53 left, sliding across to rob Dylan Strome on a power play. Later in the frame, while shorthanded, he stopped Strome again as the puck popped up and he swiped it away with some help from his defenseman, Travis Sanheim, who swiped it further away — but he won’t be doing that in a few days.

    “We play him in Game 1, too. I won’t be helping him out like I did,” he joked, noting that Sanheim’s Canada squad will be taking on Vladař and the Czechs on Feb. 12 (10:40 a.m.)

    In the third period, he stopped Brandon Duhaime’s shot after Rasmus Ristolainen couldn’t get the puck out, and with six attackers on for the Capitals, off a faceoff deep in the Flyers’ end, Vladař stopped an Alex Ovechkin slapshot. It was one of nine low-danger shots he faced; however, according to Natural Stat Trick, he did see seven high-danger shots.

    “That’s one thing that you cannot really control as a goalie,” he said about facing high-danger shots. “You’re there to stop the puck, no matter where the shots are coming from. Mentality is still the same for me, trying to keep as many as I can out of the net. And then having the confidence in the group that I think that we can be scoring two or three every single night.”

    Jamie Drysdale (9) has helped power-play goals become a recent and much sought-after habit for the Flyers.

    A power-play goal!

    Jamie Drysdale has been on and off the power play all season, but lately he’s been getting power-play time. On Tuesday, he finally got on the board.

    Zegras got the puck in the corner and threw a reverse hit into Martin Fehérváry to create time and space for himself. He skated up, utilized that time and space to find Drysdale as he slid into the spot atop the circles and fired off the one-timer that popped off the top of the pad of goalie Clay Stevenson and in.

    The goal is Drysdale’s fourth of the season and first on the man advantage, giving him five power-play points.

    “I think I had my chances, to be honest with you, I just couldn’t put the puck in the net,” Drysdale said. “Guys did a great job of finding me and finding holes, and it was nice to see one go in.”

    Philly went 1-for-3 and has now scored on the man advantage for three straight games (3-for-8).

    “Well, I like the shot by Jamie. That’s what we need is that … three feet [off the ground shot],” Tocchet said, using his hands to show the amount. “It’s that hard [shot] so we can get a tip on it. I think sometimes our shots are a little high, blocker side, and we talked about, before the power play, what we wanted, and we executed.

    “I thought Trevor did a really nice job, like he was excellent. He went low. He body positioned the guy, the guy goes down, he doesn’t do that, maybe they get the puck out. So Trevor did a nice job to set that play up, and then obviously, Jamie, that’s the shots we need.”

  • Jamie Drysdale’s third period goal helps Flyers beat Capitals and snaps four-game losing streak

    Jamie Drysdale’s third period goal helps Flyers beat Capitals and snaps four-game losing streak

    The Flyers were desperate to pick up momentum heading into the Olympic break, especially against the Washington Capitals, a Metro Division opponent that they’re chasing in the standings.

    The Flyers got out to a strong start, building a 2-0 lead in the first period before conceding two Capitals goals to tie the game. But the Flyers finally snapped their four-game losing streak with the 4-2 win thanks to Jamie Drysdale and an empty netter from Rasmus Ristolainen to earn two points and keep their playoff hopes alive.

    Owen Tippett opened the scoring, tucking one past Washington rookie goalie Clay Stevenson, who was starting his second game in as many days. Travis Sanheim and Matvei Michkov, who general manager Danny Briere came out to publicly defend after warmups, picked up the assists.

    Flyers GM Danny Brière addresses Rick Tocchet’s recent comments on Matvei Michkov: ‘They have a good relationship.’

    Carl Grundstrom, back in the lineup after missing the last two games, scored a goal in his return. His shot from the circle bounced off the skate of Capitals defenseman Jakob Chychrun to make it 2-0.

    But the game changed during the Flyers’ second attempt on the power play. The Flyers are among the league’s worst on the power play, converting on just 15.9% of their opportunities heading into Tuesday’s game.

    Their woes continued in the second period, after Washington’s Aliaksei Protas scored on a shorthanded rush to pull the Caps within 2-1. Things went from bad to worse when Anthony Beauvillier picked up a Dan Vladař rebound and buried it to tie the game at 2-2.

    Flyers’ Rasmus Ristolainen (center) celebrates after scoring an empty net goal in the third period on Tuesday.

    The Flyers got a third chance at a power play late in the third period, and this time, it was clinical. Drysdale buried a shot from the point 30 seconds into the man-advantage to give the Flyers the 3-2 lead, which was ultimately the game-winner. Ristolainen sealed the win for the Flyers with an empty-net goal, his first of the season.

    Breakaways

    Garnet Hathaway was a healthy scratch … Travis Konecny played in his 700th NHL game. He ranks 13th among Flyers players all-time in games played for the franchise … A source tells the Inquirer that Ty Murchison is out for the year after undergoing surgery for an upper-body injury, and Alex Bump is expected to return for Lehigh Valley on Feb. 14.

    Up Next

    The Flyers will play their final game before the Olympic break against the Ottawa Senators (7 p.m. ET, NBCSP) on Thursday.

  • Jamie Drysdale returns but Flyers lose Rasmus Ristolainen before Sabres game to an upper-body injury

    Jamie Drysdale returns but Flyers lose Rasmus Ristolainen before Sabres game to an upper-body injury

    BUFFALO ― Jamie Drysdale is back. But Rasmus Ristolainen is out.

    Drysdale was activated off injured reserve after morning skate Wednesday and is back in the lineup. He suffered an upper-body injury in the Flyers’ win on Jan. 6 against his former team, the Anaheim Ducks, after absorbing a high hit well away from the puck by forward Ross Johnston.

    Without him in the lineup, the Flyers lost three straight, including two in a row to the Tampa Bay Lightning, in which they were outscored by 12-3. Getting the fleet-of-foot defenseman, who is having a breakout year on the defensive side of the puck, back in the lineup is a big lift.

    Q&A: President Keith Jones on the Flyers’ timeline, playoff hopes, and Matvei Michkov’s development

    “Oh, man, he has such an impact on our back end. He plays with speed. He helps our offense, so it’ll be good to have him back,” said forward Travis Konecny, who added he is good to go after dealing with his own ailments, including an upper-body injury, a lower-body injury, and a good slash to the leg on Monday.

    But now they have to get back on track without Ristolainen, who was not on the ice for warmups before the Flyers faced the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center. The team announced he is day-to-day with an upper-body injury. He was a full participant at morning skate and was on the point for one of the power-play units.

    It’s another unfortunate setback for the 31-year-old blueliner. He returned to the Flyers lineup on Dec. 16 in Montreal after missing the start of the season and the end of last season after undergoing surgery on a right triceps tendon rupture in late March. It followed a pair of procedures in 2024, which also repaired a ruptured triceps tendon. Flyers general manager Danny Brière said last April that the injury was similar, although he wouldn’t confirm whether he suffered a torn tendon again.

    In 13 games this season, Ristolainen has three assists and a plus-minus of minus-3 while averaging 20 minutes, 59 seconds a game.

    Before the announcement, Rick Tocchet was planning on shaking up his defensive pairings because, “I think during the season maybe things get stale [so] you want to move it around stuff,“ he said.

    Ristolainen would have been paired alongside Travis Sanheim and Drysdale with his good buddy Cam York. The other pairing would have been Nick Seeler and Emil Andrae. Instead, York and Sanheim remain together, Drysdale is back with Andrae, and Seeler will skate with Noah Juulsen.

    Jamie Drysdale (left) and Cam York are close friends and will get a chance Wednesday to be paired together.

    Flyers defenseman Jamie Drysdale lands on injured reserve; Travis Konecny and Bobby Brink are day-to-day

    Barkey sits

    Although Bobby Brink was not on the ice for morning skate and is expected to miss his fourth straight game with an upper-body injury, Denver Barkey will be a healthy scratch on Wednesday.

    “He just played junior last year, so I think it’s important that he gets a little bit of a break,” Tocchet said. “I told him work out this morning, and go watch the game up top [in the press box]. I think that’s important for young guys to go watch, it slows the game down up top.”

    “I think it’s important that even the young guys go up there and just take a look at it. Well, it looks easy up top. It looks a lot slower,” Tocchet said.

    “Obviously, on the ice, it’s different. But you can learn from up top. I think it’s important that he does that. I’ll go the next day [and say], ‘What did you see?’ It’s almost like a homework assignment. … He’s a pretty smart kid. … That’s why he was drafted, for his hockey IQ.”

    Rick Tocchet thinks rookie Denver Barkey can benefit from a break and watching the game from up in the press box.

    Barkey has one goal and three points across 11 games since being called up and recording two assists in his NHL debut on Dec. 20. He has struggled the last two games and had the puck stolen by Brayden Point ahead of Nikita Kucherov’s first goal on Saturday and Nick Paul’s goal later in the game.

    Breakaways

    Dan Vladař (16-7-4, 907 save percentage) will start in goal. He is 2-1-1 with a .902 save percentage in four career games against Buffalo.

    Flyers prospect Carter Amico leaves Boston University, will play in the USHL
  • Flyers will be without Travis Konecny, Jamie Drysdale, and Bobby Brink as they begin pivotal stretch

    Flyers will be without Travis Konecny, Jamie Drysdale, and Bobby Brink as they begin pivotal stretch

    Between now and the Olympic break, the Flyers have 14 games in 26 days. It’s a bit of a gauntlet as they come across red-hot teams like the Buffalo Sabres, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Colorado Avalanche.

    The stretch begins Saturday (7 p.m., NBCSP) with the first of two straight home meetings against the Tampa Bay Lightning, winners of eight straight.

    And the Flyers will have to do it without three of their top players. Defenseman Jamie Drysdale was placed on injured reserve with an upper-body injury on Friday, and forwards Bobby Brink and Travis Konecny are day-to-day with upper-body injuries.

    Flyers takeaways: Power-play struggles continue, Rick Tocchet frustrated about missed reads

    “I talked to Drysie and Brink; they felt better today. So, that’s a real good sign,” coach Rick Tocchet said on Saturday after the team’s morning skate, which Brink and Drysdale participated in wearing green noncontact jerseys.

    “TK said he felt a little bit [better] yesterday, but not good enough to play.”

    Konecny, who did not participate in the morning skate, was injured in Thursday’s overtime loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs after scoring the Flyers’ lone goal.

    Since Nov. 29, when he had two assists in the win against the New Jersey Devils, Konecny is tied for 20th in the NHL in points (21) with names like Mitch Marner, Kirill Kaprizov, Nick Suzuki, Sam Reinhart, and Sam Bennett. His nine goals in that timeframe are tied for 19th with several players, including Sidney Crosby, the Lightning’s Nikita Kucherov, and Trevor Zegras.

    Konecny has been playing with Christian Dvorak and Zegras, who called his loss “terrible.”

    “Yeah, it’s a big hole. He’s a big part of our team offensively, especially,” added Sean Couturier. “So it’s going to be next-man-up mentality. He’s not an easy guy to [replace], you don’t just fill in with one guy. But, I think collectively, we can all step up and take over.”

    Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet will shuffle his lines and power-play units without three key regulars on Saturday.

    With Konecny and Brink out of the lineup, Matvei Michkov has been moved to Konecny’s spot. According to Natural Stat Trick, Michkov, Dvorak, and Zegras have played 39 minutes, 15 seconds together this season, with the Flyers having 40 shot attempts for and 40 against and potting two goals while allowing one.

    “When you have four or five guys out, you get the bingo balls going, right?” said Tocchet about reuniting Zegras and Michkov. “You’re trying to put chemistry and thought process. So, yeah, we’ll see how it works.”

    As Couturier said, it is a next-man-up mentality, but the Flyers will assuredly also be looking for Owen Tippett to continue his charge.

    Since Dec. 20, his four goals are tied atop the team’s leaderboard with Konecny and Carl Grundström. His 32 shots during that span rank No. 1 on the Flyers and are tied for the 13th-most in the NHL, but the problem has been his finishing. His 12.5 shooting percentage across those nine games ranks eighth on the team. (Tippet is scoring on an almost identical 12.6% of his shots for the season, also eighth among Flyers.)

    Tippett has been flying of late, using his speed to create chances for himself and his linemates, Denver Barkey and Couturier. Does he feel pressure to produce without Konency in the lineup?

    Contract grades: Was signing Christian Dvorak for the long haul the right move for the Flyers?

    “I don’t want to put that pressure on myself. But I think I said the same thing when [Tyson Foerster] went out, he’s one of those guys that we have to kind of pick up a little bit where we can and contribute where we can,” he said.

    “Obviously, I know I’m capable of doing it, but I think the moment you start putting pressure on yourself to fill that void and fill that gap, it can tend to kind of take away from your game. [Konecny is] a big loss in the room, we all know that, so we’re all going to have to kind of step up and chip in where we can.”

    Breakaways

    Sam Ersson (6-5-4, .868 save percentage) will start against the Lightning. He was in net for the Flyers’ 3-0 loss on Nov. 24 in Tampa Bay, Fla., allowing two goals on 17 shots. … Defenseman Adam Ginning, who was recalled from Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League on Friday, is expected to be a healthy scratch. … Forward Nic Deslauriers will slot back into the lineup after being a healthy scratch for the past eight games. … With the power play having plummeted — it is tied for second worst with the Washington Capitals (15.0%) — and guys who normally play on the man advantage out, Tocchet has two new units: Tippett, Michkov, Zegras, Dvorak, and Rasmsus Ristolainen are on one, and Noah Cates, Cam York, Barkey, Travis Sanheim, and Nikita Grebenkin are on the other. Couturier, despite being a net-front presence on Thursday and consistently screening the goalie — something Tocchet has preached this season — is not on a unit. “He’s played a lot of power play this year, and I think he’s just getting overused,” Tocchet said. “It doesn’t matter who, you’ve got to get in front of the net.”

  • Flyers’ Bobby Brink, Jamie Drysdale ‘still getting evaluated’ after injuries

    Flyers’ Bobby Brink, Jamie Drysdale ‘still getting evaluated’ after injuries

    Tuesday’s Flyers-Ducks game was always going to have extra emotion and intensity given the connections and bad blood between the teams after Cutter Gauthier demanded a trade from Philadelphia two years ago.

    That bad blood quickly ratcheted up another level when two Flyers were injured by blindsided hits. Bobby Brink and Jamie Drysdale each left the game and did not return.

    “Still getting evaluated, type of thing,” coach Rick Tocchet said on Wednesday. “I don’t want to say it’s a day-to-day. I don’t know yet. So it’s kind of one of those things. … I really don’t know. I talked to them today; they’re in a half-decent mood. Still being evaluated, so we’ll see.”

    Reevaluating the Flyers-Ducks trades involving Cutter Gauthier, Trevor Zegras, and Jamie Drysdale

    Brink was blindsided by a Jansen Harkins hit just 2 minutes, 38 seconds into the first period.

    Off the rush, the Flyers winger received a pass from Nikita Grebenkin and was skating toward the slot when Harkins cut across the slot and clipped Brink up high. The Flyers winger did not return to the bench in the first period and was later ruled out with an upper-body injury.

    Noah Cates went right after Harkins, and the two dropped their gloves. Both players received five-minute majors for fighting, and Cates was handed an extra two minutes for instigating. Harkins was not assessed a penalty for the initial hit.

    According to Hockeyfights.com, it is Cates’ first pro hockey fight. The site says he logged one fight when he was with Omaha of the United States Hockey League in 2018, dropping the gloves with Paul Cotter, who now plays for the New Jersey Devils.

    Injury struck for the Flyers again in the second period, as Drysdale went down after a cheap hit well away from the puck by Ducks forward Ross Johnston.

    Johnston was skating into the zone and ran over an unsuspecting Drysdale, who was curling up top near the blue line. The puck was deep in the Ducks’ zone at the time. Johnston appeared to be pleading that the hit was incidental and just a collision between two players who didn’t see one another. On replay, it appeared that Johnson had enough to see and avoid Drysdale and that he even stuck out an arm and threw it into Drysdale. The two seemed to bang knee-to-knee, with Drysdale also absorbing a blow up high.

    Johnston was handed a five-minute major for interference and a game misconduct. The play by Johnston came after Garnet Hathaway drilled Olen Zellweger — cleanly — in the offensive zone. The Flyers failed to score on the five-minute power play.

    Drysdale, who was acquired in the deal for Gauthier almost two years ago to the day, laid on the ice and did not move for a considerable amount of time. The stretcher did come out, and the doctors came out of the stands, but Drysdale sat up and skated off the ice with help.

    He did not return and was officially ruled out at the start of the third period with an undisclosed injury.

    There was no supplemental discipline handed out by the NHL on any of the hits.

  • Flyers fans still don’t like Cutter Gauthier. Trevor Zegras has made it sting a little less.

    Flyers fans still don’t like Cutter Gauthier. Trevor Zegras has made it sting a little less.

    Cutter who?

    That was the message from Flyers fans for former top prospect Cutter Gauthier on Tuesday in his second career game in Philadelphia — at least on some of the pregame signs.

    If fans had somewhat gotten over the whole ordeal in warmups, Tuesday’s game — a 5-2 Flyers win over the Anaheim Ducks — unfolded perfectly to hook them back in.

    “The crowd was outstanding,” Flyers coach Rick Tocchet said. “I remember the days when I played, that’s a loud building tonight. They were awesome. I think they really gave our team some juice. Even when they scored the first goal, they didn’t let up.”

    Trevor Zegras scored twice against his old team in the Flyers’ 5-2 win over the Ducks

    Colin Meehan, a 19-year-old St. Joseph’s student, came armed with a sign he made with a picture of Jamie Drysdale and a picture of Gauthier to support the player the Flyers received in the trade out of Philly that Gauthier forced nearly two years ago.

    Drysdale is having the best season of his young career, but Meehan still wondered pregame what could have been if Gauthier hadn’t asked out.

    “Imagine if we had Trevor Zegras, [Matvei] Michkov, Cutter, [Travis] Konecny, we would have been unstoppable,” Meehan said. “I feel like we would have been first in the league.

    “Jamie, he’s not a quitter,” Meehan added. “I’ll tell you that. He tried with the Ducks. The Ducks didn’t want him. We’ll happily take him.”

    St. Joseph’s student Colin Meehan yells at Anaheim’s Cutter Gauthier as he skates by during warmups before Tuesday’s game.

    While Gauthier still got a healthy round of boos as the Ducks took the ice for warmups, most of the signs lining the glass weren’t about him at all. Many celebrated the addition of former Duck Trevor Zegras, who was playing his first game against his old team.

    Gauthier did have a small group of supporters in the form of two Boston College students from Philadelphia who, for the second year in a row, made a sign supporting the player who’d brought their college hockey team to the national championship game.

    “I think it’s a lot to put on someone who’s 21, 22 years old,” one of the students said. “It might be really loud in here and people are rooting against you, but there is someone in the building who’s rooting for you.”

    Flyers’ Bobby Brink, Jamie Drysdale exit Ducks game early with injuries

    Compared to his first game here last year, the proceedings in warmups were civil. Instead of a raucous crowd shouting expletives the entire warmup, fans mostly stayed quiet after the Ducks had taken the ice.

    When the puck dropped, though, fans started chanting “We want Cutter!” Once Gauthier was on the ice, he was greeted by a loud chorus of boos.

    But Gauthier quieted the crowd by scoring the first goal of the game to give Anaheim an early lead, and he gave it back to the crowd.

    Not to be outdone, Zegras scored against his former team to tie it at 1 later in the first, and then hung up the phone on the Ducks, which he said postgame was meant to mimic the length of the phone call he got when he found out he was getting traded.

    Zegras scored his second goal of the game from the same spot a few minutes later, pumping up the already-juiced crowd even more.

    “This is home for me,” Zegras said. “I love being here. These guys are amazing. I’m having a blast, but it’s always going to feel good playing them for sure.”

    But the game took a more somber turn after Ross Johnston checked Drysdale behind the play. Drysdale was down on the ice for a long time and nearly left the game on a stretcher, but he ultimately stood up and left the ice on his skates with assistance. The crowd rang out with a supportive “Jamie’s better” chant.

    Anaheim’s Cutter Gauthier carries the puck during second period while facing the Flyers on Tuesday.

    Drysdale’s injury took some of the bite out of the crowd, but, as the game continued, Flyers fans got back in the hating spirit.

    As the Flyers closed out their win, chants cursing Gauthier continued to ring out, and the team left the ice to a standing ovation from the sold-out crowd.

    It wasn’t quite as raucous as a year ago, but the crowd still created a playoff-type atmosphere. Cam York said postgame that what’s important now is continuing to play meaningful games so that Xfinity Mobile Arena doesn’t get loud only once a year.

    “Pretty crazy, great atmosphere, felt like a playoff game,” York said. “It was really cool, a little bit different when there’s so much noise during the play, but I think I’d probably rather have it that way.”

  • Reevaluating the Flyers-Ducks trades involving Cutter Gauthier, Trevor Zegras, and Jamie Drysdale

    Reevaluating the Flyers-Ducks trades involving Cutter Gauthier, Trevor Zegras, and Jamie Drysdale

    Danny Brière has officially been the Flyers’ full-time general manager since May 11, 2023. In the two-plus years since, he has made 27 trades, with most involving draft picks or swapping players in the AHL.

    But that doesn’t mean there haven’t been splashy deals. And two of the biggest ones are with a little guy he doesn’t hate working with, Pat Verbeek of the Anaheim Ducks.

    As the Flyers get set to host the California team, let’s revisit them:

    Who was involved in the Flyers-Ducks trades?

    Trade 1: Jan. 8, 2024

    Flyers received: Jamie Drysdale and a second-round pick in the 2025 NHL draft

    Ducks received: Cutter Gauthier

    Trade 2: June 23, 2025

    Flyers received: Trevor Zegras

    Ducks received: Ryan Poehling, a second-round pick in the 2025 NHL draft (Eric Nilson), and a fourth-round selection in the 2026 draft.

    Trevor Zegras has fit in seamlessly with the Flyers. What will it cost to keep him long-term?

    What happened to Gauthier and Poehling?

    As for Gauthier, Flyers fans may want to look away.

    Selected with the No. 5 overall pick in 2022, Gauthier never played for the Flyers after forcing a trade out of Philly.

    “We tried to give him space,” Brière said the night the trade was made. “We tried to get in touch with him many times. They would not communicate, as far as the Gauthier side. So at some point, we had to make a decision.”

    Why? No one knows.

    “It wasn’t one specific reason why I asked for a trade,” Gauthier said on a Zoom with Anaheim’s media after the trade. “It was multiple, [recurring] issues that I’d seen over the past year and a half, two years of being under the Flyers organization. It kind of hit me all at once, thinking, ‘I can’t move forward with this, and I really need to step up for myself and see what’s best for my future,’ and that’s what I did.”

    Last season, Gauthier notched 20 goals and 44 points in 82 games, finishing fifth in Calder Trophy voting with 92 votes — well behind fourth-place finisher Matvei Michkov — and was named to the All-Rookie Team. Amid that, he returned to a city that did not show him any brotherly love on and off the ice in a 6-0 thrashing by the Flyers last January.

    Cutter Gauthier, once the Flyers’ top prospect before forcing a trade, has 19 goals this season for Anaheim.

    This season, he already has 19 goals and 39 points in 42 games for an upstart Ducks team that is tied for third in the Pacific Division. Gauthier, who turns 22 this month, is on pace for 37 goals and 76 points.

    In October, Gauthier had an eight-game point streak, helped by his first NHL hat trick against the Florida Panthers. He skates on the left wing of the Ducks’ top line, alongside Leo Carlsson and Alex Killorn, while also getting time on the second power-play unit, where he has tallied four power-play goals and eight points.

    Poehling, a first-round pick in 2017 for the Montreal Canadiens, resurrected his career in Philly after being signed to a one-year, bet-on-himself deal on July 1, 2023.

    The speedy center, who collected 28 points in 77 games that season, became a favorite of then-coach John Tortorella and earned himself a two-year extension on Jan. 26, 2024. The following season, despite being impacted by injury, he set career highs in goals (12) and points (31) in 68 games with the Flyers.

    Trevor Zegras is even better than the Flyers thought, and other things we know as the calendar flips

    Across his two seasons, Poehling was heavily relied on to kill penalties. He skated the second-most shorthanded minutes among forwards (235 minutes, 17 seconds). He tied Scott Laughton and Garnet Hathaway for second on the team with three shorthanded goals during that time frame and tied Hathaway, with whom he was often paired, for third with five shorthanded points.

    Poehling, who has two goals and 14 points this season, has eight points across his last 12 games while centering Anaheim’s fourth line with Jansen Harkins and tough guy Ross Johnston.

    What happened to Drysdale and Zegras?

    In summation, two words: good things.

    The two buddies have been key to the Flyers’ good vibes this season, with Zegras leading the team in goals (15), points (39), power-play goals (five), and power-play points (12) through 40 games.

    While Zegras has officially put his last two years in Anaheim behind him, Drysdale has quietly shifted from being just a purely offensive blueliner who is questionable on defense to a guy who can play a complete 200-foot game.

    Jamie Drysdale, who is still just 23, has improved defensively in his first year under Rick Tocchet.

    With Drysdale paired with Emil Andrae since Nov. 22, the two have skated more than 300 minutes together and have been on the ice for 18 goals by the Flyers and just nine against.

    So does Drysdale like being the veteran on the pairing with Andrae, who is the same age as him (23) but has played 182 fewer NHL games?

    “A little bit, I do, yeah, I like it,” Drysdale said. “I love playing with Emil. He’s got a good mind, and I think that we have similar mindsets as well on and off the ice. And it’s good to build off each other.”

    Drysdale is known to be a quiet guy, but he says he’s been more chatty on the ice, which is important as the veteran in the pairing. And a lot of it is to remind himself what to do, too, which seems to be working.

    For Trevor Zegras, the trade to the Flyers is not just a refresh, it is also a homecoming of sorts

    He takes a lot of pride in his trajectory, noting that the defensive side is “coming to me more naturally now.” And while Drysdale’s power-play time is up and down, coach Rick Tocchet likes that he is consistent at five-on-five and is very good at following his philosophy of skating forward to defend.

    “Well, I had heard a lot of different things, but what’s his identity?” Tocchet said when asked what he knew of Drysdale before coming to Philly. “And I didn’t really know that, but I know the one thing is that he came to camp in really good shape and he wanted to shake the tag that he wasn’t a good defensive player.

    “So he corrected those two things, right? Came in great shape. He’s been really good [at] defending, so now we’re going to ask him [for] a little more offense eventually, but that’s a work in progress. I don’t want him to suffer in his other parts of the game to try to get the other part. I think he’s just got to chip away at that part, and he’s a very coachable kid.”

    What is the trade grade today?

    Originally, our Drysdale-Gauthier trade received an A-minus grade, and the Zegras trade an A. Today, almost two years after the former and just over six months after the latter, it’s an overall A.

    Why?

    Although Gauthier would rank No. 2 in scoring on the Flyers behind Zegras across several categories and has a promising career ahead of him as a goal scorer, the forward made it clear he didn’t want to play in Philly. So why keep a malcontent?

    Trading him away became inevitable, and it made sense to bring in another young guy with pedigree like Drysdale, who has not only shown a stark improvement — and a desire to do that — but is good in the room. He has become a key defenseman for the Flyers while skating an average of 21:35, tying his career high from 2023-24. And he has worked so well with Andrae that the Swede has finally become an everyday defenseman on a pairing earning top-four minutes.

    And what can one say about Zegras? The New York native has been a revelation on the ice and in the locker room.

    Those 39 points in 40 games are setting him up to demolish his previous career highs — he’s on pace for 31 goals and 80 points — set in 2022-23, before then-Ducks coach Greg Cronin moved him to the wing. Is he playing the wing in Philly? Sure. Is he also playing some center? Absolutely. And he’s in a spot where he’s able to shine with his creativity and awareness while also having buddies like Drysdale, Cam York, and linemate Christian Dvorak around.

    Flyers players and close friends (from left) Trevor Zegras, Cam York, and Jamie Drysdale have had a strong season since being united.

    “You’re always looking for high skill level, talented players, and at the time, he was a distressed asset. … You have to be thoughtful and a little bit lucky, and provide an environment where the player can shine,” Flyers president Keith Jones recently told The Inquirer.

    “He’s done a great job,” Jones added. “It’s really proof of Danny’s willingness to wait for the right time, and he was really patient on this one. It’s been well-documented that it was a long process. Trevor kind of fit what we were looking for, and he has been all that and more with what he’s done for us.”