2024-2025 NHL team preview: Philadelphia Flyers

Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

LAST SEASON

The 2023-24 season was an entertaining change of pace for fans who had grown accustomed to misery during Chuck Fletcher’s nightmare tenure as GM of the Philadelphia Flyers.

Coach John Tortorella nearly led his feisty, overachieving team to the playoffs during the first season of President of Hockey Operations Keith Jones and GM Danny Briere’s new regime. The Flyers had a four-point cushion at the trade deadline and stayed in the postseason race until Game 82 despite a scuffling 5-10-3 finish to the season.

Cynics would have preferred a worse campaign and higher draft pick, but scrappy sniper Travis Konecny (33 G, 68 P in 76 GP) and the do-it-all top pair of Travis Sanheim and Cam York treated Philadelphia to the best hockey it had seen in a long time.

With KHL phenom Matvei Michkov set to join the Flyers two years ahead of schedule in 2024-25, there’s a feeling of cautious optimism throughout the once-proud organization.

KEY ADDITIONS & DEPARTURES

Additions

Matvei Michkov, RW

Anthony Richard, LW

Departures

Carter Hart, G (UFA)
Cam Atkinson, RW (TB)
Marc Staal, D (retired)
Ryan Johansen, C (UFA)
Victor Mete, D (UFA)
Felix Sandstrom, G (Buf)
Denis Gurianov, RW (KHL)

OFFENSE

The Flyers fired more than 2,700 shots on goal last season and needed every single one to score at the sixth-worst rate in the league. Tortorella’s high-energy forwards had no issues tilting the ice but cashed in on just 8.5% (31st in NHL) of their attempts. Add in the 22nd-worst power play in the league’s history (12.2%), and it’s no wonder this outfit couldn’t find enough big goals to hold off the Washington Capitals and New York Islanders in the playoff race.

Michkov’s hands will be a welcome addition to a group that struggled to finish last year. He’ll join a talented stable of wingers that’s the strength of the Flyers’ roster.

The leader of the bunch is Konecny, though Tyson Foerster (20 G, 55.26% of high-danger chances) or Owen Tippett (28 G, 53 P in 78 GP) might be better options to play opposite the prized rookie. Both players offer more size and strength than the gutsy but diminutive ‘TK,’ who like Michkov, stands 5-foot-10.

Pairing Michkov with Tippett might be too good to pass up; the latter’s top speed (99th percentile) and hardest shot (94th percentile) were among the NHL’s best last season. Combining those natural gifts with the Russian’s puck skills could yield explosive results.

The question on South Broad is who will center all these dangerous wingers.

The Flyers’ top pivot is captain Sean Couturier, whose return from a pair of career-threatening back surgeries started great (31 P in 46 GP) but ended ignominiously: the veteran power forward managed just one goal in his final 28 games. The hope is that ‘Coots’ ran out of steam after a long layoff and can still be a 50-60 point producer.

Second-line center Morgan Frost (41 P in 71 GP), American winger Joel Farabee (22 G, 50 P), and two-way forward Scott Laughton (13 G, 39 P) all had their moments last year, but each player had to battle through a cold streak or two. This season will go a long way toward determining if they’re part of the solution or trade fodder; at age 30 and on an expiring deal, Laughton is especially at risk.

DEFENSE

Tortorella runs a tight ship and the Flyers were a middle-of-the-pack team last season, so their 18th-placed scoring defense seems out of step with what we saw on the ice (52.44% of expected goals at 5-on-5). There’s an easy explanation for that: the Flyers’ league-worst goaltending (.888 SV%) and a rash of injuries that forced them to use 13 (!) defensemen. “Stop more pucks” is a time-tested strategy, but there are still questions around the Flyers’ blueline ahead of 2024-25.

The biggest is who can carry the load when Sanheim and York take a breather. Last year, righty speedster Sean Walker and shot-blocker Nick Seeler were an excellent second pair, but after Jamie Drysdale replaced Walker (traded to Colorado on 3/8) for the homestretch, Seeler’s pair was outscored 7-1 at 5-on-5.

If the duo gets another look this season, Philadelphians shouldn’t panic. The underlying numbers of Seeler-Drysdale were only marginally worse than those of Seeler-Walker. The big difference was the Flyers’ comical 1.72 shooting percentage and .851 SV% during their 100-minute audition; their luck literally could not have been worse.

On the top unit, Sanheim and York aren’t going anywhere. Sanheim was rejuvenated in his second season under the tutelage of ‘Torts,’ posting career highs in everything from points (44) to takeaways (37) on his off right side. In his first 82-game season, York was just as reliable. They’re probably a second pair on a contender, but York and Sanheim earned a ton of respect from their surly coach.

Former Sabre Rasmus Ristolainen’s return from injury will give the Flyers’ blueline depth a major boost to start the season. The hulking Finn only appeared 31 times in 2023-24 after reinventing himself as an effective stay-at-home defenseman in his first season under Tortorella and defenseman whisperer Brad Shaw. Ristolainen’s physicality in front of the net could garner trade interest despite a hefty $5.1 million cap hit.

Further up the ice, Couturier is a former Selke winner, Laughton led Flyer forwards in ice time on their fourth-ranked PK, and Konecny fired in a league-leading six shorthanded goals. Add in checking forwards like Ryan Poehling, Noah Cates, and Garnet Hathaway, and Philadelphia can create tough matchups all game long.

GOALTENDING

Flyers’ starter Sam Ersson was much better than his .890 SV%. When Ersson split time with Carter Hart in the early season, his poise and positioning implied a fruitful future in the NHL. After the London Police charged Hart with sexual assault in late January and without reliable backup play from Cal Petersen (.862 SV%) or Felix Sandstrom (.824 SV%), Tortorella ran Ersson into the ground as the Flyers fell apart.

The 24-year-old will return to platoon duty in 2024-25 with Ivan Fedotov, the 6-foot-7 Russian who is finally a Flyer after a bizarre odyssey. The former Gagarin Cup winner and Olympic silver medalist only played three times for the team before Briere handed him a two-year, $7-million extension. Handing out a higher salary than Sam Montembeault’s and Anthony Stolarz’s, the Flyers aren’t paying Fedotov to sit on the bench.

COACHING

Flyers’ chairman Dan Hilferty often mentions John Tortorella in the same breath as Jones and Briere. He’s ingrained in the organization, and the team has assumed his thorny personality on the ice.

Tortorella’s reputation as a Keenan-esque drill sergeant belies his knack for player development. Sanheim and Konecny have finally reached their potential under his leadership, Poehling and Seeler have risen from relative obscurity to fill important roles, and York and Foerster are off to fast starts in the show. His ability to get the best from his players has never been under more scrutiny now that Michkov has arrived, though. How will the teenager respond to his new coach’s intensity?

Tortorella’s choice of assistants will also garner interest throughout the season. Brad Shaw is untouchable as the engineer of the defense, but Rocky Thompson has far less job security given last season’s brutal power play. If things don’t improve with Michkov on board, Briere might have to make Tortorella’s decision for him.

ROOKIES

Michkov, Michkov, Michkov. The youngster is a Calder Trophy favorite and has more hype surrounding his arrival than any Flyer since Eric Lindros. Michkov was a stud in the ‘K’ for lowly HC Sochi (61 P in 74 GP since 2022), but without much foot speed or defense to fall back on, he’s on the team to create offense.

So far, so good; Michkov found twine in a rookie game against the Rangers and has garnered palpable excitement throughout the organization. “He wants to score every shift,” assistant GM Brent Flahr said Sunday. “If he doesn’t, he gets fired up.”

Swedish defensemen Emil Andrae and Adam Ginning appeared in 13 combined games for the Flyers in 2023-24, but it would likely take an injury for either player to appear for the big club this season.

Fourth-round gem Denver Barkey and 2023 first-rounder Oliver Bonk will return to the OHL champion London Knights but could be in line for late-season debuts.

So too could 23-year-old Massimo Rizzo, who was also a champion in 2024 with the Denver Pioneers. Rizzo will have to impress for the Phantoms to force his way into the NHL.

BURNING QUESTIONS

1. Is this the end of the line for Joel Farabee? The Flyers have committed Owen Tippett and Travis Konecny for the better part of the next decade. Barring something unforeseen, Foerster and Michkov will be right there with them. How many foundational wingers does a rebuilding team need? If the answer is four, Joel Farabee is seemingly the odd man out. ‘Beezer’ racked up a career-high 50 points last season but has yet to earn Tortorella’s trust in key situations. The well-rounded winger might benefit from a change of scenery and is young and talented enough to command a nice return.

2. Who is Jamie Drysdale? Drysdale came to the Flyers under tumultuous circumstances as the team got whatever value they could for disgruntled mega prospect Cutter Gauthier. Drysdale’s elite skating and puck handling immediately improved his new team before a huge collision injured his shoulder and knocked him out of action for the whole of March. He wasn’t the same player on his return and required off-season surgery to address a separate injury. Drysdale’s talent is obvious, but 2024-25 will be a critical season in his development. Will he, like so many others, find a new level under Tortorella and Shaw? Drysdale has to stay healthy first, having missed most of the past two campaigns.

3. How good is the class of 2025? Frustrated by a decade of mediocrity, some Flyers fans don’t think Jones and Briere have done enough to draft game-changers outside of Michkov. Tortorella has kept standards too high for the team to bottom out, and at the 2024 draft, their patient executives traded down a spot from the 12th pick before kicking another first to next year via a different trade. This could be the year the Flyers make serious noise at the draft. They possess six 2025 picks in the first two rounds. Could they use their war chest to trade for a top-three pick? James Hagens, Anton Frondell, and Michael Misa all have the potential to be the next top centerman in Philly.

PREDICTION

Adding a star rookie to a now healthy 87-point team should enable them to take the next step in theory, but no one expects Philadelphia to contend in 2024-25. You can’t discuss the Flyers’ 2024 playoff charge without mentioning how badly the rest of the Eastern Conference underachieved. If the New Jersey Devils and Pittsburgh Penguins return to their best, they’ll block Philadelphia from the postseason picture. Improved finishing and goaltending should keep the Flyers out of the bottom five for another season, but they’ll look more like a rebuilding team in 2024-25 regardless.

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