The upcoming NHL offseason promises to be unique in many ways, most of which are results of scheduling difficulties forced on the league by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Stanley Cup will be awarded in the coming days, and chaos is sure to ensue.
The Philadelphia Flyers and general manager Chuck Fletcher will face added pressure following the unfulfilled expectations of the 2020-21 season. The need for a major acquisition of an available big name player like Seth Jones of the Columbus Blue Jackets, Dougie Hamilton of the Carolina Hurricanes, or Jack Eichel of the Buffalo Sabres is obvious.
Seattle Kraken Expansion Draft
The Seattle Kraken Expansion Draft, scheduled for July 21, will force the hand of general managers around the league to make complicated decisions involving their protection lists. The possibility of adding pot-sweeteners to incentivize Seattle GM Ron Francis to select certain players also lends itself to additional activity.
The flat salary cap, set at $81.5 million, adds reason to leave talented and accomplished NHL players with higher cap numbers exposed. The Flyers are unlikely to protect veterans Jakub Voracek, James van Riemsdyk, and Shayne Gostisbehere.
NHL Entry Draft
The 2021 NHL Entry Draft, scheduled to take place virtually July 23-24, provides additional challenges for general managers and talent evaluators because of the lack of traditional scouting opportunities to evaluate prospects. The OHL cancelled its 2020-21 season, while the WHL played a shortened schedule. The USHL and NCAA played under circumstances far from ideal.
The draft boards are as murky as ever. With severely limited in-person scouting evaluations made largely based on prospect showcases rather than traditional game settings, no clear consensus first-overall pick has emerged.
The fickle nature of the draft will also increase the likelihood of trades involving picks in the early rounds. The first domino has already fallen with the acquisition of winger Viktor Arvidsson by the Los Angeles Kings.
Given the need for the Flyers to acquire proven NHL talent, they are among the teams most likely to move out of their current first-round draft position at 13th overall in one way or another.
Free-Agency and the 2021-22 NHL Season
Fletcher certainly won’t be getting much sleep leading up to the period of free-agency. Although the picture will finally become clearer by the time free-agency begins on July 28, the lack of preparation time will be yet another obstacle in attempts from general managers to stick to traditional offseason strategies.
The goal of the NHL and commissioner Gary Bettman has been to withstand the pandemic and return to normal scheduling in October for the 2021-22 season. The little issue of the NHL’s participation in the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing won’t exactly eliminate further complications.